ePals with Survey Monkey

Part of the attraction to ePals is that since it is online other tools and resources can be used while collaborating.  I mentioned in my last post that one idea I have for incorporating ePals into my classroom would be through a "Getting to Know You" activity in which students would write about themselves and ask their cooperating student questions about their own lives.  One tool that could be beneficial to this activity would be Survey Monkey.  Students could create a series of questions related to preferences in order to get to know their cooperating partner even better.  They could inquire about favorite past times, TV shows, types of music, musical artists, sports, etc. while using the Target Language.  This would not only again be beneficial to their language learning, but also to their understanding of a new culture as perhaps new musicians, TV programs, films, and even sports may be mentioned by their cooperating student.  This would also create more opportunity for dialogue between the partners as one partner may be curious about these new findings and the other student would be excited to share these things with his or her partner.  Instant collaboration is key to ePals' success and educators need to keep in mind the vast resources that are available to their students when developing an activity through ePal.