Thing #14

Thng #14
As I have been checking out some of these sites I found the Timeglider https://timeglider.com/login.php. This site allows you to make a timeline.

My first thought was how this could come in handy when preparing students for a project, sharing history, doing a family scrapbook etc. So it was one I chose to try out.


As you can see I just did a few dates and hope to use in many different ways than this in the future.


I was also attracted to TaDa List @ http://tadalist.com/! This is a great tool for those of us who are natural list makers. I have made one that I would like to share about registration requirements. I already have such a list but used this as my dummy try.

Registration Requirements
If you live in a house provide one of the following: gas,electric, or water bill in the parents name.
If you live in an apartment provide a lease with the parent and students names on the lease.
Students Birth Certificate
Students Social Security Card
Students Immunizations
Students most recent TAKS scores
Students last report card
Students withdrawal from last school attended
Parents Drivers License or other State ID

The cool thing about the TaDa List is that I can make it public if wanted and it can be emailed back to me also. So you have your list right there to use. Pretty spiffy and useful. Until next time. cv

Thing #13 - Mashups

Thing #13

I have had quite a good time with the mashups. The word "mashups" even makes me think of the Munsters TV series from years ago.

I made a sign for one of our dogs, Jackie. She is a welsh terrier.
dog-k9-guard-dogs_www-txt2pic-com


This second sign is about Orientation which I handle in the spring at Wilkinson Middle School. I think some of these tools will come in handy when getting ready for such events. We can print and run through the sign maker for a large version.


I also made a playing card with myself and one of my lifelong friends, Carrie.



The three things showing here were made at the following sites:

Trading Card: http://bighugelabs.com/deck.php
Signs:http://www.signgenerator.org/

OK - So making the items is not a hard thing. Each site listed has step 1, step 2 and so on directions. Then I saved directly back to my computer under my pictures. The hard part for me was simple early on in the class, I am having trouble linking to my blog. I push the link button and nothing happens. Anyway, it seems I am making things harder than they need be. And like I said the making is a blast. Thanks for the intro into mashups.

Thing #12 Slide Show

Thing #12 Slide Show


Thing #12

Wow, I have already created a slideshow in very little time with the three pictures I had downloaded earlier. The program I used also added music by Sara Barellis which is a plus for me. I really enjoy her songs. Ok, so things were going really well until I tried to download the slideshow that I made and kept getting an error report. So I went to Slide and made a slideshow there. I have not been successful at getting it to download either. So I will try one more time.
http://www.slide.com/r/cBTfmxuk6D8ho6S9TpvZ1wazQVs77o4y?previous_view=lt_embedded_url

Thing # 11

Thing #11 Flickr Photo Fun

I really liked opening a Flickr account. The Most Interesting Pictures were all very well taken photos. The ease with which Flickr is navigated was delightful. Getting the hang of not spacing when searching was my biggest challenge.

For some time I have known about Flickr and its uses. Mostly I thought of it as a way for people to share photos with friends or post professional photos. The use of slideshows, geotagging, and adding notes to photos will enhance the use of photos in classroom projects. One thing that will be a concern for student use is the wide variety of pictures available. They will definitely need screening before students use them at school.

As a counselor I chose to download pictures that had to do with Red Ribbon Week. The red door I have included above was done during October and has played off of Halloween with the ghost theme. I found this unique and wanted to include it for that reason. The teacher that took and submitted this photo to Flickr was Wm. Chamberlin. http://http://www.flickr.com/photos/wmchamberlain/4071862981/

So until later....

Thing #10 -- CC = Creative Commons

Thing #10 -- CC = Creative Commons

I have not really been looking for the CC logo. My system seems to be on overload from all of the colors, music, pictures, podcast, etc. I will now be keeping my eyes open for it though.

I believe that CC will impact our students in a positive way. They will be able to use works from other people with their permission via CC. Also, they themselves without being charged may also lay claim to their own creations. Say of photos, templates, papers, podcast, etc.

I have been using digital images in my newsletters, emails, etc. But after seeing all that is out there on the web realize how limited I have been by using only those images I have purchased up to this point. I will now have more resources.

The materials that I create I have not shared on the web. I have accessed things made available to me from other sources though.

Some negatives can be just learning how to navigate the CC and use it. To make sure that you are very clear about the permissions you are giving others with the materials that you have created.

I do know that some photographers have built a career on that first award winning photo. So now people must decide what will be sought after and whether to place it in the CC or not.

Until next time.

Thing #8

Thing # 8 Educational Wiki Projects

I looked at:

1001 Flat World Tales

Code Blue

Discovery Utopias

Grazing for Digital Natives

Room 15 Wiki

I found that all of these while being organized to fit each of their unique needs that each wiki had specific perks.

The 1001 Flat World Tales has contributors from Seoul, Korea - Honolulu, Hawaii - and Littleton, Colorado. The main page explains the premise for the writing workshops these students are participating in. They had a Project FAQ section that had recordings of the teachers from each country talking and explaining the wiki function, premise, and how to use it. I found this very helpful and interesting. Done at the 9th Grade Level.

Code Blue - Set its wiki home page up differently in that it gave good links for research by topic and resource. The topic of vaccinations was very informative with a history of vaccinations all the way up to a time schedule for vaccinations. They also used the sixth grade student art work on each page. You accessed their pages on the left and the links as the main home page.

Discovery Utopias - Had Discovery Blogging Rules with a parent and student signature required. This was a class rules of order so to speak. Very beneficial.

Room 15 Wiki - Is classroom teacher, David Lindsey's classroom hub. Not only is student work posted but also included here are - News/Events, Homework, Student Blogs, Teacher Blogs, Parent Help Desk, Brainteasers, and Curriculum. This set up was not only helpful for the students and teachers. But also integrated parent info.

I really was impressed by a wiki. This seemed to me off the top of my head to be a great resource in many business settings. However, the first thing that popped in my mind after viewing the video on wiki's with the camping trip demo was my daughter planning with her college roommate for their dorm room appointments. What we have and what we need. They can both collaborate without emailing back and forth so much.

These are really useful sites.

Thing #7 ---Comments

Thing #7 ---Comments

Comments are a way to communicate with other educators and people with the same interest. Sometimes I understand that people with different views and ideas may reply as well after taking offense to a posting. However, the blogs and feeds I have solicited are ones that I have an interest in reading and felt comfortable giving a comment to. Most of my comments will be positive.
Why say something unkind? I would rather say nothing at all.

I'm not talking about disagreeing but about being negative. Anyway, the comment assignment was reflective and fun.

Commenting gives a voice to all who care to have one.

Thing # 6

Thing #6
I have really enjoyed this activity. I love reading and now see that the reading choices on blogs are endless. They are not just about our educational or professional arena but also about hobbies and outside activities as well. The more I investigate and learn about the web the more vast it becomes.


I find it very enlightening to read weblogg-ed. It is refreshing to be up to date on the classroom teachers perspective of new technology and how it is being used in their classrooms. Also, I found a sight for Free Technology for Teachers.

The Google Blog Search brought up info on my favorite hobby of scrapbooking. I am also following two of our classmates blogs. Which I find very encouraging as they are both on the final stretch of this course. Thanks guys.

The fun feed I added was Rotten Tomatoes.

Thing #5

Thing #5

I have been looking at the TechLearning Blog and realized that I had an interest in The Top 10 Sites For Creating Digital Art. This site was particularly interesting to me because it has digital art sights for adults and children. One spot called bomono was very easy to use but I found that I had little controll when using it. However, the crayola site had your choice of medium and you could paint or draw with each tool using your own hand. Pretty much the same as if you were at your desk or easel. I really like the more literal art. I did not like the bomono site as much. I also went to one of the sites that was very much like photoshop which is very interesting to me. I love to scrapbook and find that this link could come in handy. At any rate, I would recommend that all of you check out this digital art site and enjoy your creative side.