Lesson 1

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Friends,
Welcome to Module 4 of Kidlink's I Have a Dream program. The time has come to set in motion all of the plans that you and your teammates have been working hard to prepare. Now is the time - Your Dream Project Starts!

Thinking back to Modules 1, 2 and 3 you will recall that you and your team have been making important decisions throughout this program. The dream project belongs to your team and your continued efforts to make it a reality are essential. You have worked together to reach common understandings of a specific goal. You have developed a plan and constructed an initial webpage for your dream. Now is the time to follow your plan and make the dream a reality.

Remember that you are working with people and it is an important part of the project to get to know the people in your team. Remember, at school there are not only lessons or work, there is also fun. You have friends - people you like, people you dislike. All of this will come up in teamwork online just as it does when you meet people in real life. So remember to socialize, have fun, and enjoy each other. Learning to know people from different cultures and countries is both educational as well as fun

Take a deep breath; gather your teammates - and begin!

The activities and discussions below are suggestions. Use these as a guide for completing the program. You may always substitute other activities that are more suitable for your needs.

Setting the dream plan in motion...

As your team begins the work of making your dream project a reality read carefully the following questions and suggestions. Refer back to them as you work during the next few months on your dream. Examine your process along the way to make sure everyone has a clear understanding of your goal and is dedicated to its success.

Revisit your goals.

Make sure everyone on the team is focused on the goals. Display your web and charts made in Module 3, Lesson 1 with your defined goals and major tasks. To make these available to all in your team, display these on your project web pages or post in the team's KidCom room. Use KidCom and KidMail to confirm that everyone:

1. Knows what to do
2. Knows when to do the task
3. Has the means to do it
4. Has a time frame for reporting progress
5. Completes the task on time

Prepare a Weekly Report Document such as the sample below. Adapt to your project designs.

Keep communication lines open.

Be sure your team meets regularly to report on dream plan progress. There are several ways to hold your meetings including KidCom for the team project.

1. How often will you conduct team meetings?
2. What means will you use? - KidMail, KidCom, face-to-face (for local team members)
3. Who will organize these meetings and make agendas?
4. Who will record minutes or logs?
5. Where will you store these log files so that they are available for team members?
6. How will you handle disagreements?
7. What means are you taking to facilitate communication across languages?

Prepare a chart with all the times zones of your team members. From this data decide the best time to hold real time meetings for your team. If all cannot meet because of time differences, plan to hold "regional" meetings and share log files of each meeting. Use KidMail to continue any needed discussions for the entire group.

Prepare a document reporting the major accomplishments of any real time interactions the team schedules. Below is a sample. Your teams' summaries will reflect your topics and issues.

Is your team still complete?

If any additional team members are needed because a youth cannot be on the team anymore for various reasons, be sure to select new members following guidelines in Module 3, Lesson 1. Remember to add the new members to your team.

Have you lost any team members from the opposite hemisphere because they are now on holidays? Is there any way members who are not in school and who still want to participate on the team can continue? If they do not have access to a computer at home how can you help them remain part of the team? What help can you find for them to obtain Internet access? Will any sponsors help you at this time?

Is everyone on the team accepting the responsibilites they have been assigned to do? Do any tasks need to be rotated or changed? Are all team members cooperating and working well together? Are team members supporting each other and communicating successes or problems to the group?

Examine your team profile.

Have you been able to recruit team members from various age groups? Is cooperation among older and younger team members working out well? Are the older team members willing to teach younger member how to do things without being overbearing? Are younger team members capable of the tasks they have been assigned? Are they willing to take suggestions from older team members?

Does your team include members from other countries who speak other languages and who bring a desired blend of cultural diversity to your team?

Is your time line reasonable?

After a few weeks of working time reassess the time frame you have outlined for your plan. Is it reasonable? Do you need more time to complete some tasks while finding that others have been accomplished more quickly than anticipated? Review the project timeline.

Document your work.

Is your web team able to maintain your project web pages satisfactorily? Are you making a digital portfolio of your dream project work on the web? Are you making sure that potential sponsors visit your web pages which validate the worthiness of your plans?

Market your plan.

How successfully are you marketing your plan on the web? Are you sending messages to the I Have a Dream room encouraging others to see your work and support your efforts? Are you branching out and reaching youth beyond our Kidlink members? Are you reaching out to enough sponsors? What are your strategies for doing this? Do you have strategies that you can share with other teams?