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Kindergarten Class Takes Voyage Overseas

Beginning on January 12, 2011 the Kindergarten class of Jane Guadagno set sail on a four-month journey around the world — all from within the comfort of their own classroom thanks to the Vicarious Voyage® program.

Instituted in the fall of 1991, the Vicarious Voyage® program provides more than 45,000 K-12 students in over 1,500 classrooms from across the nation with the unique opportunity of establishing communication with, developing a relationship with, and exploring new cultures with a voyage-volunteer and Semester at Sea® (S.A.S.) participant.

Since 1963, Semester at Sea® has provided college students with profoundly transformative study-abroad experiences that emphasize global exchange and awareness. Its mission is to instill in undergraduates the knowledge and perspective necessary to promote a greater understanding of all peoples and cultures.

In a partnership with both Semester at Sea® (S.A.S.) and Vicarious Voyage®, Mrs. Guadagno’s class also earned a greater understanding of other peoples and cultures after spending a “semester at sea” with her son Bryan. While earning credits in oceanography and world biomes on the Semester at Sea’s® “floating campus” this spring, Bryan acted as a voyage-volunteer to his mother’s class.

A junior from Indiana University, Bryan sent regular e-mails (his only means of communication) to the eager group of Ranney Kindergarteners as he traveled to 13 countries that included Singapore, India, South Africa and Viet Nam. After sharing with the class his stories and unique learning experiences encountered when exploring countries like Dominica, Brazil and Ghana, they would then reply with questions about the country he was visiting or ship he was on — the MV Explorer. Examples of their questions included: What does your classroom look like? Did you see giraffes in Dominica? How many friends did you make on the ship? His and their actual letters can be viewed by clicking here.

A chance for students to “think globally, but act locally,” said Mrs. Guadagno, other interactive classroom activities included tracking Bryan’s ship via the Internet, learning additional information about each country and its culture, and locating Bryan’s position on a huge world map located in the Commons.

The group’s vicarious voyage may have ended in the spring, but the information they gathered about other cultures through a truly unique learning experience with Bryan will stick with them forever. Due to its success, the Lower School is hoping to make the program a part of next year's curriculum as well! 
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Ranney School

235 Hope Road
Tinton Falls, NJ 07724
Tel. 732.542.4777
Our mission is to know and value every child, nurturing intellectual curiosity and confidence, and inspiring students to lead honorably, think creatively, and contribute meaningfully to society. 

We envision Ranney School as a nurturing learning community, in which families, faculty, alumni, and all of Ranney’s constituents collaborate to know and value every child, foster individual talents, sustain powerful connections between children and adults, and graduate resilient, globally-minded citizens.