Making the Most of Mystery Skype

Any Skype session is a special event in our classroom, no matter how many times we schedule one. Whether it be an author Skype, a visit with a teacher traveling faraway, or meeting old friends to celebrate WRAD, my students enjoy making connections. It's my way of bringing the world to my classroom.

But Mystery Skypes are something different altogether. It's a live puzzle. It's a real-world interactive. It is a group of thinkers trying to collectively figure something out. My students are immediately engaged and interested, and there is nothing quite like it.

In a Mystery Skype, two classes connect without knowing each other's locations (although their teachers do know and have prearranged it). There are several ways to conduct one, and how you decide to carry it through is really up to you. We choose to use a standard set of 12 clues, and exchange them with another class who has done the same thing. (This is one of the arrangements that teachers can agree upon prior to the Skype call. )

My students exchange the clues with the other class, and as they guess, there are many other things happening in the classroom. My students aren't just viewing the Skype call. They are using it to create a learning piece that is for us. That's because we use Skype jobs as listed here by Silvia Tolisano. I love this concept and I am so grateful she shares her work with us.

Our greeter begins the call, and starts the conversation off  with a friendly salutation and introduction. Usually, this student has prepared this in advance and alters his/her message according to the nature of the call.

Then, we exchange our clues with the other class one by one. As the clues are being shared, the rest of the class is participating in several activities that will add to the learning.

• Some are using Today's Meet to backchannel the event. This helps immensely because I get to see what the students are thinking as the Skype happens.
•  Some are on Google Earth documenting the location and finding the distance as soon as it is determined. This activity alone will be rich in learning possibility.
• Another student is taking pictures of our students as the Skype happens.This helps us see what everyone is doing.
• The elapsed time job is also helpful because knowing the length of the call not only helps us incorporate math in the call but it also helps us determine if there was enough time to connect.
• One student is writing up a blog post as the call happens. Another student also will co-write. I love to read the posts my students write because they always catch a quote or question that I miss!  Click here to read our latest classroom blog post about Mystery Skype. 

I can always tell during the call when my students have solved the puzzle.  (I start to hear the buzz and the answer is whispered and confirmed by classmates.) At the end of the clues, we will exchange our guess with the other class. We have a 100% accuracy rate on this so far, as do our visiting classes.

Afterwards, there is much follow-up. Each person will share their job and the results. Questions and answers are exchanged, and my students are doing almost all of the talking. Students will teach one another to do the jobs next time. The learning continues throughout the day.

And at the end of the day, my students always ask: "When is our next Mystery Skype?"

Have you participated in a Mystery Skype? What do you like about it?

(I found out about Mystery Skype on Twitter. Check the #mysteryskype hashtag to learn more!)