Thanks to Matt Montagne, I was able to join in on the live interview with the Pearl Harbor survivor on the USS Oklahoma. This was a "jump right in" opportunity for me and Matt made it very easy for us. Our 8th graders are learning about WWII and the USO, so it was opened up to the students. I also had some interested 7th graders participating. Several adults and both administrators were there.
I decided to set up in our library. There's a small reading room off to the side, so we used that as a 'live mic area' and everyone else was in the library. The students were prepared with questions but found it hard to jump in the conversation with so many participants. They said they felt more comfortable speaking after they were in front of the microphone for a while.
On my end, I needed to prep the students a bit more about what was going to happen. They were a little distracted thinking of their questions and when to ask it, than actually listening and checking the relevancy of the question.
Matt made it all seem effortless. The pre-planning was important and well done. Thanks Matt! It was nice to have friends in on this first time too! Interns Karen O and Sonja are part of my NH connections. This experience definitely made me more knowledgeable and comfortable with the whole process. Reading the notes and viewing the screencasts have not been as helpful (especially that I'm on a mac), but I'm moving forward.