The Librarian's Internet-An International Address Book
Connecting kids and classrooms via email
Gail Junion-Metz -- School Library Journal, 2/1/2000
Kids are always on the lookout for penpals. I've continued the theme this month with sites that connect kids around the world who want to communicate, using plain old Internet e-mail. There's a ton of kids' e-pal sites on the Web. Following are some of the largest, most reliable, and most educationally centered:
Note: If your library or school doesn't provide e-mail accounts don't despair, e-pal sites can also handle messages sent from staff e-mail accounts.
Rules of Pen Pal Netiquette
kidspenpals.about.com/kidsteens/kidspenpals/library/
blppnet.htm
Gr 4-12, teachers -Common sense guidelines on e-mail behavior and safety especially for kids. Sponsor: About.Com, with Web guide Shauna Brunette, a certified children's counselor. Don't Miss: "Rule #1: Look for Pen Pals in the Right Places," for links to e-pal sites for teens, pre-teens, and kids abroad. "Rule #5: Keep Yourself Safe Online," for links to essential mail-safety tips, and "This Is an Emergency." Detour: "Tips for Beginners" at kidspenpals.about.com/
kidsteens/kidspenpals/library/bltipsforbeginners.htm offers advice for "e-mail newbies." Consider subscribing to the e-mail-based "Pen Pals for Kids Newsletter," for current information and new e-pal sites.
Intercultural E-Mail Classroom Connections
www.stolaf.edu/network/iecc/
Teachers, parents, librarians--International, cross-cultural, and inter-generational e-pals for classes and kids. (As of December 3, 300 adults from 61 countries subscribed to the IECC listserv.) Sponsor: Bruce Roberts and Howard Thorsheim, Department of Psychology, and Craig Rice, Computing Center, St. Olaf College, Northfield, MI. Don't Miss: "Search All IECC Archives," an online form you can use to locate e-pals for kids by date, language, and country (or post your own request for pals). Detour: "Related Resources," at www.stolaf.edu/
network/iecc/related-resources.html, links to other international e-mail Web sites and discussion groups.
Keypals Club
www.mightymedia.com/keypals/
Gr 1-12, teachers--An e-pal match site that lists 4,100+ classrooms and 18,000+ individual students around the globe. All e-mail is filtered to protect kids from obscene or harassing messages. To activate a search for e-pals, everyone must first fill out a brief registration form. Kids who register must have their parents sign and return a permission form. (The privacy policy states that registration information will not be provided to outside parties.) Sponsor: Mighty Media, Inc., Minneapolis, MN. Don't Miss: "Find a Student Keypal," a search form that can locate individual students based on their country, state, age, gender, or interests. Detour: "Find a Class of Keypals" is another search form that can help locate classes based on country, state, grade, class size, or interests.
The Kidlink Network
www.kidlink.org/english/general/index.html
All kids to gr 10, teachers--A multilingual, multinational site for students to connect via e-mail discussion groups. Student-only discussions, called Kidcafes, take place in more than 10 different languages. Cafes also discuss various topics, with the assistance of adult discussion leaders. Sponsor: The Kidlink Society, a nonprofit, grassroots foundation based in Norway. Detour: "What Does Kidlink Offer the Classroom" at www.kidlink.org/english/general/
curric.html for lots of cool Kidlink-related class activities and projects.
E-PALS Classroom Exchange
www.epals.com/index.html
Gr K-12, teachers--A teacher-based, e-pal match site that lists over 19,000 classes in 108 countries. Search for classes, or register and post a request for an e-mail connection of your own. (The site contains a few banner ads and links to both commercial and educational sites.) Sponsor: e-PALS Classroom Exchange, Easton, CT. Don't Miss: "e-PALS Quick Search," and "Power Search" to look up classes seeking an e-pal connection. The Power Search seeks by country, city and/or school name, grade/age, and/or language. Check out the profiles added daily--just click on the "New Profiles" link.
