Schools

East and Japanese Students Connect Via Social Networking [YouTube]

Lessons created by East teacher Tim Needles allow students to share life in Smithtown with students in Japan, and vice versa.

Students in Tim Needles' photography class at East are participating in a project called "Picture My Life," where photographs of everyday life are shared with students in Japan via Skype.

A video of the class saying hello to their Japanese counterparts surfaced Monday, serving as an introduction to the project.

"I traveled to Japan this summer and wrote lessons with teachers from throughout Japan, Pakistan, and the U.S.," Needles said in an email Tuesday. "Each of my classes this year is doing one shared lesson along with the partner schools ... students photograph a typical day and then we have a conversation comparing and contrasting the images between the different schools in different countries and then talk to the class live via Skype."

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Needles said the origins of the program are derived from the Japan Society in New York City, a nonprofit organization aimed at bringing people of Japan and the U.S. closer through mutual understanding, appreciation and cooperation, according to the organization's website.

Students began to take photos in September, according to Needles, and could be seen via a blog for Smithtown high school photography and media classes, needlesfilmacademy.blogspot.com.

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