Thing #10

I haven't decided which I like best - Google Reader or del.icio.us. They both do basically the same thing - keep favorites organized and subscribe to feeds. After debating and working back and forth between the two, I finally decided I'd use del.icio.us for school and Google Reader for home. That seems to make sense to me - not sure why, it just does. :)

I do want to keep the home and school accounts separate because I have a lot of entries for each. Del.icio.us seems more suitable to the social networking that I hope to do with my students and their parents. Google just seems more suitable to my scrapbooking and genealogy interests. Since I plan to create a blog for my scrapping, and I already use Google mail for my email connected to the scrapping, I thought it would be less confusing to leave it as it is.

One thing about the exercises for these classes that is a little bothersome is the repetition of some of the questions. I have answered the same question more than once and I feel like people will get tired of reading the same thing over and over again. I guess each module was written as a separate entity, or maybe I'm misreading them! LOL

Anyway, to answer, again, the question about how I would use these readers at home and school - I plan to set up a networking with my parents, students, and myself. I want my parents to be able to go to a specific site and get information on what we are doing, read the blogs I share with the students, and be able to respond or contribute to the discussion/information. I think it would be very exciting to have that open access between home and school where parents can see what their kids are doing and have some input. I want my students to be able to blog with me or with other students throughout the year, and hopefully to create a real sense of community among my students.

First, I think it will make a difference in their behaviors in the classroom. Second, I believe it will give them valuable experience in reading, writing, and gaining computer skills beyond game playing. Finally, I hope the parents will become actively engaged in the education process. I can only see positive benefits from the use of the social networking, which will include the RSS feeds I include.

I really wish we had more time to develop these skills in every class. Can you imagine how great it would be if every child in the district could have their own laptop and spend the majority of their time at school on it?

I do have some students who will not be able to take advantage of this new concept. Unfortunately they have disabilities that preclude their participation to a large extent. But the majority of my students are capable of some level of participation; and the two who are not, their parents can still be involved.

Using Google Reader at home will simplify for me what has been taking hours to accomplish. I monitor around 25 scrapping blogs on a daily basis. That takes an enormous amount of my time and once school begins in the fall, I won't have that kind of time. I also monitor several ancestry websites where members share information and photos. That requires a lot of time as well.

Gathering all those feeds into one place, and having the updates come to me, will save me hours and make it possible for me to get other work completed. I design scrapbooking kits and create page layouts; I've been researching my family for almost 30 years; I'm creating a family album for my sisters and our children. I also spend the summer preparing lessons for the next school year.

Wow! I just realized how much I'm trying to do and how little time I have to sleep or rest...no wonder I'm so tired!!! LOL I also talk a lot! :)

Thing #9

I am having way too much fun here!! I could sit for hours and play with these programs. Here are my first two creations made at http://www.fototrix.com/



I had an old coat that was worn out, so instead of throwing it away, I gave it to my kittens to sleep on. I kept getting up and finding that coat in the hall, in the den. I could not imagine how it got there. Then one night I heard a strange noise while I was on the computer, looked out my door, and there were my two babies dragging that heavy coat down the hallway!! They weren't even a year old at the time. Needless to say, I had to grab my camera!

My next creation was also at fototrix but is a magazine cover:



Rusty likes to get inside anything he can, or cannot, fit. My son had just emptied the bottled water package and set it next to the trash can. Next thing I knew, Rusty was in it and having a grand old time. I'm glad I keep my camera handy...

Finally, my news headline from http://www.imagechef.com/ It was easy too...just type in your words and it automatically generates the headline in all caps.



Fototrix was very simple to use. Simply upload a photo from your computer, or you can do a web search for one, using their upload tool. Choose from hundreds of layouts, click on the one you want and it automatically inserts your image. Save it to your computer and it's there for whatever use you have in mind.

I tried to use the Body Switcher, but I could never get a picture that fit into the body just right. All I got was a corner of the face, or an ear - the pictures were either too big or in the wrong place on the photo. I gave up on it. I'm sure I'll go back and try it again. I saw many possibilities for funny pictures, but tonight I was more anxious to move on and see what was next.

The last picture, the headline, was the one I thought I might use with my students. I can see them using the headline to report the main idea of a specific passage, make a cover page for a report, create a headline using required parts of speech - any number of ways. Image Chef has so many templates in so many different categories that I believe my students would be able to find several they could use for demonstrating learning.

I also can see using both FotoTrix and Image Chef myself for some of my family photographs and vacation pictures to add some humor to our family album or to my scrapbooking pages.

I had no idea there were so many great programs out there to use - free! I've found myself wanting to sit for hours and just browse, play, create. Unfortunately I have a house that needs cleaning, pets that need feeding, and a bed that really needs to be slept in!!! Time flies by when I'm playing...er, I mean working...and all of a sudden it's after midnight, one o'clock, and I'm still at the computer.

I'd really like to hear how some of you are planning to use the toys we've found in your classrooms. I think it's great to be able to share our ideas. Can you imagine what it will be like when our students get involved in online education. I think it's a good move. Now if we can only convince the government to back off and let us get about the business of teaching....

Thing #4 Addendum

I have been reading my classmates blogs - especially the six I chose to respond to as the course progresses. I hope to become part of a network of teachers who are developing technology skills and can serve as supporters, encouragers and sources of ideas as we attempt to move with out students into the world of education online and beyond.

I offered a suggestion to Ms. Brownie about how to find her files that keep getting lost whenever she downloads. I used to have the same problem! On JJ's Summer Time Fun blog I shared what I had found to be potential classroom tools in Flickr. Her idea for a department blog sounded like a good idea so I want to keep monitoring her blog to see how it progresses.

Kimberly's Corner had a great idea for another use of the magazine maker. I commented on that and decided I need to use some of her ideas.

I enjoy reading the other blogs...every one is so different. I assume as I get into the "things" I'll be creating more features on my blog. Right now it's just kind of plain vanilla. As I get more comfortable with what I can do I plan to create another blog for use in my scrapbooking. I'd love to do that right away, but I need to get these courses behind me first!

Back to the "Things" so I can see what's in store for me next. I am loving it...

Thing #8

I'm so glad I'm not doing summer school!! I've been able to spend several hours the past two days catching up on our 23 Things. So far, Flickr is my favorite - well, the Flickr Tools, that is. I had so much fun playing that I almost forgot what I was supposed to be doing.

I tried out many of the tools listed, but my favorites are the Puzzlemaker [I am a jigsaw addict] and the Bead Art Maker. I love how the Magazine Cover looks, but I prefer using my scrapbooking programs where I can customize more. However, I've included the cover I did - I think it looks fantastic. One of my favorite Grand Canyon pictures makes a great jigsaw puzzle - just wish I could have it for real. I think there was an option for that. I'll have to go back and check. Finally, my favorite result was the Bead Art Maker. I had to decorate an old '70s VW bus for a scrapbooking challenge. I used flowers [ala the Partridge Family bus] then put it in the middle of a flower garden surrounded by trees in front of a real photo of a lake. It turned out fantastically with the Bead Maker. I have to find time to experiment with that again and again...

Here are the results of my "hard" work - hehe

I can definitely use Flickr and the tools for my personal use, especially with my family albums. I believe some of the tools could be used in the classroom as well. I can see using it to let the students create something then write about it. Creating illustrations for projects and papers would be a lot of fun for them and for me when I evaluate them.

Map Maker and Poster Maker could be used by the librarian, teacher and students. Without naming them all, I can see most of the Flickr Tools being used to stimulate writing, engaging students, encouraging reluctant readers and writers to attempt reading and writing. Who says learning cannot be fun? I found that if kiddos are having fun they are more likely to learn something and may not even be aware they are learning.

Now I've gotta get back to those Flickr Tools - some of them are calling my name... :)

hummm

Now I have to figure out why my pictures don't show! The links work great. The pictures are ??? I have a little more studying to do on this blog thingy!!!

Finally! I figured out how to add more than one image. Now to get the links - I just reread the instructions and found out I don't have to put the links back to Flicker. At least I think that's what it means... The chances are next to none that I will be doing that for my personal blog, but I do want to do that for my students. Back to the Help files to see what I'm doing wrong.












On second thought, I think I'll take a break and work on my scrapping for awhile. I'm behind on that, my dog needs a bath, my cats are vying for my attention, my stomach is empty........But I'm having a lot of fun with this class! I'm learning so many new things and remembering so much I had forgotten.

Onward and upward toward #8.

Thing #7

I viewed all the information about Flickr and proceeded to open an account. It asked if I wanted to use the new name or the former one. I was a little confused but I clicked on the old one out of curiosity. Was I ever shocked to see photos of my students and various activities we did in class. My first thought was - those kids look just like some of mine! Then I discovered they were... :) Once again, I had an account at a website I had completely forgotten about!


Those photos are marked private for reasons of confidentiality; but the ones I uploaded today are for public viewing. I guess I must like Flickr - - since I've used it in the past. I also used Webshots, but it's just such a chore to keep up with everything. I usually copy all my photos to a DVD, then if something happens to the computer I still have them. In fact I'm in the process of scanning all my photos - hundreds and hundreds of them - into the computer and saving them to a disk. Many of my old photos are in the albums with the paper that sticks to the backing...not a good way to preserve them. I'm switching to photo sleeves as I scan. I may grow very old before it's all done.

I guess I don't really have a concern about making the photos public, at least not the ones of scenery. I may have second thoughts about the ones with identifiable people. I'll probably blur out the faces of underage subjects, maybe even adults. However, most of my photos would be for family and friends anyway so that probably won't be an issue.


As for using Flickr - yes, I believe I will use it. It's really easy to use and I like the way things can be organized and displayed for viewing by others. I can see that it will really be helpful to my students for saving illustrations they find for their papers, and locating pictures I have for them to view. I like to show them a photo or illustration or painting, then have them write about it. Sometimes they have to write descriptive phrases; sometimes what happened before or after the picture; sometimes just make up a story about the photo. Flickr would be a great tool for such projects.

I really can't compare Flickr with Webshots because it's been such a long time since I've used Webshots. As near as I can remember the process is basically the same. They are divided into albums with a place for captions, ability to email, etc. I did go back and look - had to search awhile to find where I wrote down the sign-in, but finally succeeded. I uploaded the last pictures in 2004!! So much for sharing files on the web...

Here are a couple of the photos I put on Flickr today. My sisters and I took my grandson to AZ last summer to see the Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest, Painted Desert, Indian ruins, and lots more. We had such a great time! I told him he was a unique kid - 13 and vacationing with three old ladies [two of us teachers] and he actually had a great time! LOL Now to the pictures:

Thing #6

After last night's torrent of words you'd think I wouldn't have anything left to say. :) I don't think that's ever been a problem for me - at a loss for words. I usually come up with something to say.

I chose MyHeritage to explore. As I looked down the short list "genealogy" jumped out at me. Since it's one of my greatest passions I chose it for my assignment. There were others listed but this one was #1 and I didn't care for the others just from a cursory look.

I was curious about Amiglia and took the tour of the site. I really liked the mapping section much better than MyHeritage, but to use the site required registering for a free year and I was afraid I'd forget to cancel it! :)

Back to MyHeritage- It's very user friendly: simple and easy to use. The funny thing is that when I signed on to experiment with it, I was informed I was already registered! Apparently I had tried it out some time ago and forgot all about it. Oh well, senility hits us all eventually.

I did go ahead and input information to see how the program operates. It has a lot of good features, easy to navigate and even offers several languages with which to work. Reports can be generated for ancestors of a specific person or descendants of a single person. Relationships between family members can be determined. I don't like the map feature since it wouldn't zero in on a specific town, just the state. Amiglia showed the actual place and an aerial shot of the area. That was pretty neat.

While I think MyHeritage is a great beginner's tool, for the more experienced genealogist it's too simple. I guess I'm spoiled to the program I use that has so many more features and options. It's like using an outline instead of the whole document. But for those just starting, it's great.

I'm not sure I can see its use in the school library; possibly in the classroom as part of a unit of study in history or sociology. When I was in college one of my history professors was excited about her ancestor who was the subject of a poem about a Revolutionary War-time hero. She encouraged us to do some research on our family. The next year an English professor chose a photo journal of our family as one of our required assignments. I was hooked after those two assignments. I can see students using research tools [a TEKS objective] to discover information about their family and using the website to store the information. Using information from their family tree they could produce written documents for English, history, etc. It would definitely be a fun way for them to learn.