I have never been a huge fan of blogging and I think that is partly because of lack of understanding. I always saw blogging as an online journal and I'm not a journal person.
Sue's presentation was great in that it gave me a better understanding of what blogging is and how it can be used. I had already gone through all the step by step process in setting up a blog so that area I felt comfortable in except for a few little pieces.
What I like the most about what Sue said was how blogging gave people a voice. I think for where I work this is such a great tool. I am in an alternative setting where a lot of students struggle. They have difficulties with relationships, alcohol/drugs, family disfunction, police, and mental health issues. Blogging gives these students an avenue to express their thoughts, frustrations and feeling in a safe way.
I see blogging in our school at a way for kids to communicate with staff, students and beyond. I also see it as a way for them to show their writing and use it as a hand in tool for some of their writing assignments. It seems that as soon as you change the process of writing from paper and pencil or word to a blog students open of the flood gates.
So onward we go...
Monday, 6 October 2014
Class blogging journey...
Well I figured that now that I have my class and staff on Edublogs that I should switch over my ECI 831 blog site as well. Getting students working on their blog sites was pretty easy and they caught on really fast. Students had their themes and colours picked out before I could say click appearance!
As for the staff that’s another story…
I found that the staff had the most difficulties getting up a rolling. Students were waiting and helping them find where to click and it actually slowed us down quite a bit. Although I love it when students can teach us things and support our learning, for time sake I may not do it this way next time. I would probably get the staff set up on theirs first and then have them watch the students get set up.
So now that I have us all on we will start our first posts this week. I am curious to see how it comes together once students are on and posting. I still don’t really have a visual of how that will look but will fond out soon enough. I really liked the last blackboard session, because the first thing the STAFF asked is why do we blog, and whats the purpose of this? So it was great to have some answers to those questions as well as direction for me in setting this up.
The funny thing was that all the students wanted to know is if they can message their friends on the blog.
One issue I am having is I have switched over to edublogs for my blog but I don't know how to connect to ECI 831. I am sure it is really easy but I just haven't figured it out yet. So for now I will continue using this one
Monday, 29 September 2014
Class blog learning number 2
So I got the class blog set up on Saturday and today I set up the students and staff so that we can start blogging tomorrow. What I learned since Saturday...
1. I created a class
2. I created student blogs and set up usernames, passwords and URL's for 4 students and 4 staff members. I just realized I did not add myself as an administrator on their sites and will need to go back and do that, somehow...I will learn that to.
3. I added a widget to the class blog. The widget is a class list or our students. This I learned on Saturday but needed to re-learn it due to absolutely forgetting how I did it. eels
4. I learned how to navigate between dashboards
I am trying to figure out how to moderate the posts and hope I get this figured out by tomorrow.
Tomorrow I will introduce blogging to the class and support workers in the class. Students will be able to set up there front page and do their first post. It will be a work in progress because I will be learning with them.
Whew that is for now...it took way less time to write what I had learnt than it did doing it hahah.
1. I created a class
2. I created student blogs and set up usernames, passwords and URL's for 4 students and 4 staff members. I just realized I did not add myself as an administrator on their sites and will need to go back and do that, somehow...I will learn that to.
3. I added a widget to the class blog. The widget is a class list or our students. This I learned on Saturday but needed to re-learn it due to absolutely forgetting how I did it. eels
4. I learned how to navigate between dashboards
I am trying to figure out how to moderate the posts and hope I get this figured out by tomorrow.
Tomorrow I will introduce blogging to the class and support workers in the class. Students will be able to set up there front page and do their first post. It will be a work in progress because I will be learning with them.
Whew that is for now...it took way less time to write what I had learnt than it did doing it hahah.
Saturday, 27 September 2014
School Blog!
So today I got our school blog going!
Whew I will not tell you how long it took but it is up. I will tell you what I learned and I'm kinda excited.
1. I set up my blog through edublogs I really like their set up and I think I may change my current blog to an edublog. I really like the way everything is organized and I can set up a separate page for my major project. I am sure I can do it on Blogger but I think I'll stick with edublogs.
2. I went online and made an avatar and actually got it in my new blog site yahoo! This involved learning how to do a screenshot on my mac, finding it in my mac, then pasting it in the blog site and cropping to fit.
3. I changed the timezone so that it is correct for old Speedy Creek (Swift Current)
4. Picked a theme and embedded a tagline
5. I learned the difference between post and pages. Pages being areas you don't want to change and will stay on your page like the titles, About, Contact, and Blogging Guidelines. Post being your thoughts, opinions, assignments etc. I then set up my pages so that they reflected our school and added the information needed to support them.
6. Set up my custom menu with links that actually work!
7. I posted my first blog in the site and linked it to a you tube video and a website. This I actually learned on my last blog post but hey...I did it twice!! haha. I did add a new category in the side bar though, which was new.
8. I learned how to delete a post.
9. OMG I also learned what a Widget is and how to put in on your blog page. I put Flagcounter on because I think that students will find it cool to see the global impact of our blog. What's a widget? Well...its a tool or content you can add, arrange or remove fro the sidebar. Who new that all those cool pics on sidebars were widgets...lol.
10. I was able to connect the blog page to our official school website.
Okay that's it for now. I certainly feel more confident with the blogging process, setup and maintenance. Can't wait to the the kids on board and the rest of the staff...whop whop
Whew I will not tell you how long it took but it is up. I will tell you what I learned and I'm kinda excited.
1. I set up my blog through edublogs I really like their set up and I think I may change my current blog to an edublog. I really like the way everything is organized and I can set up a separate page for my major project. I am sure I can do it on Blogger but I think I'll stick with edublogs.
2. I went online and made an avatar and actually got it in my new blog site yahoo! This involved learning how to do a screenshot on my mac, finding it in my mac, then pasting it in the blog site and cropping to fit.
3. I changed the timezone so that it is correct for old Speedy Creek (Swift Current)
4. Picked a theme and embedded a tagline
5. I learned the difference between post and pages. Pages being areas you don't want to change and will stay on your page like the titles, About, Contact, and Blogging Guidelines. Post being your thoughts, opinions, assignments etc. I then set up my pages so that they reflected our school and added the information needed to support them.
6. Set up my custom menu with links that actually work!
7. I posted my first blog in the site and linked it to a you tube video and a website. This I actually learned on my last blog post but hey...I did it twice!! haha. I did add a new category in the side bar though, which was new.
8. I learned how to delete a post.
9. OMG I also learned what a Widget is and how to put in on your blog page. I put Flagcounter on because I think that students will find it cool to see the global impact of our blog. What's a widget? Well...its a tool or content you can add, arrange or remove fro the sidebar. Who new that all those cool pics on sidebars were widgets...lol.
10. I was able to connect the blog page to our official school website.
Okay that's it for now. I certainly feel more confident with the blogging process, setup and maintenance. Can't wait to the the kids on board and the rest of the staff...whop whop
Wednesday, 24 September 2014
Technology and Yoga
About 8 years ago a friend asked me to take a yoga class with her. I jumped at the opportunity because I love trying new things. I dug out some workout clothes and trotted off to yoga feeling pretty confident that I would do well. I was a gym girl, considered myself to be in decent shape and pretty strong. Just like when I signed up for eci831, I was feeling kinda confident. I have used computers before, I own an i-phone, an i-pad and a laptop and I know I am capable of learning and had lots to learn.
So off to yoga I go with my friend. We walk in the room and put our yoga mats down. People were there sitting on their mats and stretching before the class started. Just like our first night of Blackboard we were all logging in and saying hi. Some people appeared to know each other from other classes. Classmates were commenting during the presentation by Alec about resources (I have never heard of ) but none the less I was ready to learn.
So back to my yoga class...the instructor came to the front of the yoga studio and introduced herself to the "new people" (me and my friend). From there the class started and I think I was fine until I realized I was not flexible, and people twice my age were kicking my butt. We came to a pose called Marichyasana A. The picture of the pose may look easy but when you try it for the first time I guarantee you your arms will feel to short. It was at that moment that I was hooked! My goal was to master Marichyasana A. In the school division we talk about stretch goals. Marichyasana was a stretch goal for me. Just like after the first blackboard session when I realized that what I thought I new was small potatoes to what I was expected to learn and master.
My stretch goal in eci831 will be the major project. Using technology to engage students in their learning and support students in achieving their math goal for the year will be Marichysana A. I am hooked, I am determined and I look forward to the learning.
How will I make my learning visual for you all to see? Well for starters I wrote this blog so that I can post a picture and embed a link (which I have never done) as well as share some things about me.
For those of you that actually read this far and are wondering if I ever mastered Marichyasana I can safely say YES!! Since then I have gone on to train and become a yoga teacher. Oh and I am practicing with twitter, by sharing some cool stuff that has come across my face book and some things we are doing at the school.
Friday, 19 September 2014
I think I'm learning...
This week was a lot of reading. I read blogs and listed many of the very cool digital resources out there for schools that many of you suggested. Some of the resources I downloaded and/or read about are:
Edudemic
Padlet
Google class
Desmos
Setting up class blogs
I printed off the instructions from edublogs to set up my first classroom blog. I'm kinda excited about the idea of it. We do have our students journal so this is a great opportunity to start. I see the opportunity for students to complete writing assignments and submit through their blog. Another benefit I see is that out youth worker can use this as a tool when she is working with kids and journaling their thoughts and struggles.
My major project idea is a collaborative project with Tammy Lee. We have always wanted to do something different with our math program to engage students more. We new we needed to tech it up but had no idea of how. Therefore, we are going to develop a supplemental resource for grade 9 math. We are looking at a flip classroom idea where we can do some of the lessons online and then the practice work happens in class. Attendance has always been an issue in our school so my hope is that a more interactive class may increase attendance and student engagement. This will be a learning curve but I hope that once I am done I will be able to use this style in ther classes.
Another project that we are doing this year is a video project. Students are learning life skills throughout the first semester. Then they will be asked to think of something that they truly feel passionate about. After deciding on a topic they will be making a video on their topic that they will share with an audience that related to their topic. For example, if a student picked drugs as their topic, they will show their public service announcement to an addictions worker. I am very excited to learn about the video project ideas in Edudemic. I would also be greatful for any other ideas that you (class) may have, as I am very new to classroom technology.
So to start I will set up the classroom blog.
P.S. My only major problem so far is tweeting... Argh. I am having to force myself to tweet. I am making friend join twitter to that I can practice. Any advice on how I can love tweeting?
Edudemic
Padlet
Google class
Desmos
Setting up class blogs
I printed off the instructions from edublogs to set up my first classroom blog. I'm kinda excited about the idea of it. We do have our students journal so this is a great opportunity to start. I see the opportunity for students to complete writing assignments and submit through their blog. Another benefit I see is that out youth worker can use this as a tool when she is working with kids and journaling their thoughts and struggles.
My major project idea is a collaborative project with Tammy Lee. We have always wanted to do something different with our math program to engage students more. We new we needed to tech it up but had no idea of how. Therefore, we are going to develop a supplemental resource for grade 9 math. We are looking at a flip classroom idea where we can do some of the lessons online and then the practice work happens in class. Attendance has always been an issue in our school so my hope is that a more interactive class may increase attendance and student engagement. This will be a learning curve but I hope that once I am done I will be able to use this style in ther classes.
Another project that we are doing this year is a video project. Students are learning life skills throughout the first semester. Then they will be asked to think of something that they truly feel passionate about. After deciding on a topic they will be making a video on their topic that they will share with an audience that related to their topic. For example, if a student picked drugs as their topic, they will show their public service announcement to an addictions worker. I am very excited to learn about the video project ideas in Edudemic. I would also be greatful for any other ideas that you (class) may have, as I am very new to classroom technology.
So to start I will set up the classroom blog.
P.S. My only major problem so far is tweeting... Argh. I am having to force myself to tweet. I am making friend join twitter to that I can practice. Any advice on how I can love tweeting?
Sunday, 14 September 2014
Blog number two....overwhelmed
Well blog number 2 for EC&I 831....
I have spent my first week reading, reading, and more reading. I have learned what tweeting is, what a hashtag is and how to use it. I even practiced one and convinced a friend to sing up. I have read many classmates blogs and decided to comment in my blog rather than on each individually. It appears there are lots of newbies like me and many social media experts out there. Here's just a few questions that have come to me so far.
Do others feel like there is WAY to much information to sift through?! I read the tweets coming through and most are "use this", "check this out", "great resource for the classroom", etc, etc. many of the ones I have checked out look great but wow, where does one start.
Do others feel like social media is a forced activity? I have used Facebook for quite awhile, mainly because I have so many friends that live in other countries. Although I am frustrated by a lot of the useless information the is posted lol. I basically look at Facebook but rarely post. I don't post my plans for the day, my personal accomplishments etc. If I post it's usually an accomplishment of a friend, family or work. I have posted some pictures of my travels. So now add twitter and Google plus to that and it's intimidating. I am finding myself searching for things to post hahah. I hope this gets a bit easier and more comfortable.
Does anyone worry about sharing to much? I guess I also think about all the security issues that come with sharing information. Maybe I'm just paranoid...eeks. Hope I get over that to.
Anywho, enough for now. I'm confident I will learn lots and really hope that at the end of this I have a superfantastic new open classroom in my school!
Cheers....
I have spent my first week reading, reading, and more reading. I have learned what tweeting is, what a hashtag is and how to use it. I even practiced one and convinced a friend to sing up. I have read many classmates blogs and decided to comment in my blog rather than on each individually. It appears there are lots of newbies like me and many social media experts out there. Here's just a few questions that have come to me so far.
Do others feel like there is WAY to much information to sift through?! I read the tweets coming through and most are "use this", "check this out", "great resource for the classroom", etc, etc. many of the ones I have checked out look great but wow, where does one start.
Do others feel like social media is a forced activity? I have used Facebook for quite awhile, mainly because I have so many friends that live in other countries. Although I am frustrated by a lot of the useless information the is posted lol. I basically look at Facebook but rarely post. I don't post my plans for the day, my personal accomplishments etc. If I post it's usually an accomplishment of a friend, family or work. I have posted some pictures of my travels. So now add twitter and Google plus to that and it's intimidating. I am finding myself searching for things to post hahah. I hope this gets a bit easier and more comfortable.
Does anyone worry about sharing to much? I guess I also think about all the security issues that come with sharing information. Maybe I'm just paranoid...eeks. Hope I get over that to.
Anywho, enough for now. I'm confident I will learn lots and really hope that at the end of this I have a superfantastic new open classroom in my school!
Cheers....
Wednesday, 10 September 2014
EC&I 831?
September 10
Well this is my first blog...so here it goes. Last night during our first web conference I was a little nervous because there were many names, terms etc being thrown around that I have never heard of before or have but never tried. This course will be really good for me because I feel so behind when it comes to technology and its possibilities personally and professionally. This morning while I was having my coffee I was reading about Twitter and what a hashtag is and how it is used or why it is used. Now I get it lol.
I have always fought technology, especially the social media piece because I see it taking over personal interactions so much. I do however understand how important it is to learn and use technology today. My hope is that through this course I gain an understanding of how to use technology in my classroom more and be more open to its possibilities. So my motto during this course will be..."Enjoy the Journey".
Well this is my first blog...so here it goes. Last night during our first web conference I was a little nervous because there were many names, terms etc being thrown around that I have never heard of before or have but never tried. This course will be really good for me because I feel so behind when it comes to technology and its possibilities personally and professionally. This morning while I was having my coffee I was reading about Twitter and what a hashtag is and how it is used or why it is used. Now I get it lol.
I have always fought technology, especially the social media piece because I see it taking over personal interactions so much. I do however understand how important it is to learn and use technology today. My hope is that through this course I gain an understanding of how to use technology in my classroom more and be more open to its possibilities. So my motto during this course will be..."Enjoy the Journey".
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