What happens when you forget to press publish?? A life lesson that can be shared with students...I found this post never having actually been posted so thought I should share!
Today I decided it must be time to do something about the incompetence that's been plaguing me in EC&I 831. What does one do when unsure how to do something? Google it, of course! So I Googled "Twitter Basics" and found that I would've been able to learn everything I needed right there in Twitter! (I realize that this should have occurred to me without the Google search but, alas, it did not.) Armed with Twitter Help Center and a few Twitter for Dummies documents, I fumbled my way through organizing myself on Twitter.
Feeling somewhat confident in my ability to Tweet, I was ready to look for tweet worthy items.
Since Benita and I were getting together to work on our major project this afternoon, I thought that I should go looking for some helpful Math resources. Our school currently owns and underutilizes not one but 3 iPads so I decided to narrow my search to iPad apps. Call it dumb luck or skilled searching but I managed to stumble upon Appsinclass.com, a website dedicated to iPads in the classroom. The app of the week happened to be MathPad so I thought, in the interest of my major project, I ought to check it out. I was quite excited to find that this app enables users to write Math equations and have them converted into digital print. Sweet!! I've never been able to figure out how to make most of the symbols required to write equations on the computer... Next stop, another recommendation of the website, ShowMe Interactive Whiteboard. This one can turn your iPad into a whiteboard...I can see possibilities here! Last but not least, I decided to take a quick peak at an iMovie tutorial because it makes a lot of sense to use iMovie (and our beloved iPads) for the video project we are planning for students later in the year.
By the time Benita arrived at the school to work on our project, I was feeling like I had a few things worthy of sharing. I still wasn't sure how or where or when we would fit them into our project, however, I had something and that was better than where I started!
We pulled together our thoughts on Math and what would serve our students best. Flipped class?? Honestly, chances of our students accessing anything academic outside of class time are beyond low. That being said, they do enjoy working on the computer and interaction is always a plus! They tend to be lacking in multiplication skills, place value, etc. So the plan now is to come up with supplemental resources that students can work through in order to help boost those skills. Now to uncover the best methods to get what they need to them in ways that are interesting and valuable!
Monday 6 October 2014
Wednesday 24 September 2014
Figuring out Twitter, Tweetdeck, Blogging and Google+; as easy as getting a kitten to poop.
You are probably wondering what in the world social media has in common with getting a kitten to poop!?!
I should start by saying that I grew up on a farm and live on an acreage and, as such, I am an animal lover at heart. Due to a series of unfortunate events, I am currently in the process of bottle feeding and mothering three almost 4 week old, orphaned kittens. Sounds easy enough, right? I'm a mother of three kids and they've turned out okay so far so surely I can handle these kittens. Here's the thing - no one told me that I would have to figure out how to "make kittens poop" - that they couldn't handle that job on their own. Seems like a natural thing to me, food comes in and waste comes out. Apparently, for kittens, not so much...5 days and no poop despite repeated attempts on my part and I was starting to think they were destined to die from constipation! My greatest personal accomplishment this week has been finally getting my kittens to poop. I know that's a sad statement BUT it is where I am at.
Well, my journey into educational technology seems to be working out a lot like making my kittens poop...a lot of sad statements! I used to be on Facebook and I like to think that I can navigate around the web; I know how to do most day to day tasks on the computer and on my iPhone. Much like I want to believe that I can competently care for children and animals, I'd like to think that I am competent with technology. Then suddenly I'm faced with a task I'm not sure I know how to approach (Twitter for starters) and I'm right back to the kitten poop problem!
When I needed to figure out how to get my kittens to poop, I went straight to YouTube...I've discovered that I can learn how to do almost anything there. It has taught me how to put the halter on my horse, adjust my saddle and yes, even how to poop a kitten. I recognize that technology has brought learning to my fingertips and I LOVE that. I don't have to wait for education to come to me, I can go out and find it! (Which saved me having to admit to my old farmer/cowboy father that I didn't actually know how to adjust his saddle...the shame that would have entailed is indescribable!) This, to me, is the beauty of educational technology; I see the possibilities as endless with regards to who can learn what and where! I know that many of my reluctant students, afraid to appear "stupid" in class, would much rather quickly figure something out on their own via technology than admit (in a class full of peers) that they don't understand what's going on. I'm telling you, no one wants to admit they don't know how to get a kitten to poop...
When I need to figure something out for ECI831, I go to Google+ or Twitter to see what my colleagues are posting that might help me. This week's gem for me has been Kelly's Twitter tutorial because I was having trouble figuring out how to get where I wanted to go in Twitter to see what I might like to see. Kelly made sense so I finished watching his tutorial and grabbed my phone to download Tweetdeck...only to discover that it didn't come up on my phone as an optional app. What??? Do I have to be on my computer for this?? Heck, I can't remember how to get into Twitter on my computer...I put it on my phone, never to be forced to sign in again! There are so many things that I didn't know I needed to know! Hmmm...well this isn't as easy as I'd thought! But, much like pooping a kitten, all it requires is some guidance and the time to get things going and I will be fine! I've got an understanding of the basics and just need to make it happen. I've been telling myself that I don't like Twitter and it's not a useful tool for me because I don't know how to use it and haven't the time to invest to learn. This is kind of like telling myself that the kittens clearly don't have to poop just because I am not doing "it" properly or long enough...kittens need to poop and I need to learn and then we will all feel much better!
My goal for this class is going to be to figure out how to effectively use Twitter. Will I use it after the course is over? I'm not sure...I still see myself more Google+ bound...but darn it, if I can make a kitten poop, I can figure out how to follow and post Tweets. Right?!?! I know that there are many more things that I should be taking away from class and I am, however, my time is divided in such a way that I have to prioritize. Benita and I will work on our final project together, I will check out as many of the suggestions from my colleagues as possible BUT for now...Twitter needs to be conquered because I'd hate to die of constipation...
I should start by saying that I grew up on a farm and live on an acreage and, as such, I am an animal lover at heart. Due to a series of unfortunate events, I am currently in the process of bottle feeding and mothering three almost 4 week old, orphaned kittens. Sounds easy enough, right? I'm a mother of three kids and they've turned out okay so far so surely I can handle these kittens. Here's the thing - no one told me that I would have to figure out how to "make kittens poop" - that they couldn't handle that job on their own. Seems like a natural thing to me, food comes in and waste comes out. Apparently, for kittens, not so much...5 days and no poop despite repeated attempts on my part and I was starting to think they were destined to die from constipation! My greatest personal accomplishment this week has been finally getting my kittens to poop. I know that's a sad statement BUT it is where I am at.
Well, my journey into educational technology seems to be working out a lot like making my kittens poop...a lot of sad statements! I used to be on Facebook and I like to think that I can navigate around the web; I know how to do most day to day tasks on the computer and on my iPhone. Much like I want to believe that I can competently care for children and animals, I'd like to think that I am competent with technology. Then suddenly I'm faced with a task I'm not sure I know how to approach (Twitter for starters) and I'm right back to the kitten poop problem!
When I needed to figure out how to get my kittens to poop, I went straight to YouTube...I've discovered that I can learn how to do almost anything there. It has taught me how to put the halter on my horse, adjust my saddle and yes, even how to poop a kitten. I recognize that technology has brought learning to my fingertips and I LOVE that. I don't have to wait for education to come to me, I can go out and find it! (Which saved me having to admit to my old farmer/cowboy father that I didn't actually know how to adjust his saddle...the shame that would have entailed is indescribable!) This, to me, is the beauty of educational technology; I see the possibilities as endless with regards to who can learn what and where! I know that many of my reluctant students, afraid to appear "stupid" in class, would much rather quickly figure something out on their own via technology than admit (in a class full of peers) that they don't understand what's going on. I'm telling you, no one wants to admit they don't know how to get a kitten to poop...
When I need to figure something out for ECI831, I go to Google+ or Twitter to see what my colleagues are posting that might help me. This week's gem for me has been Kelly's Twitter tutorial because I was having trouble figuring out how to get where I wanted to go in Twitter to see what I might like to see. Kelly made sense so I finished watching his tutorial and grabbed my phone to download Tweetdeck...only to discover that it didn't come up on my phone as an optional app. What??? Do I have to be on my computer for this?? Heck, I can't remember how to get into Twitter on my computer...I put it on my phone, never to be forced to sign in again! There are so many things that I didn't know I needed to know! Hmmm...well this isn't as easy as I'd thought! But, much like pooping a kitten, all it requires is some guidance and the time to get things going and I will be fine! I've got an understanding of the basics and just need to make it happen. I've been telling myself that I don't like Twitter and it's not a useful tool for me because I don't know how to use it and haven't the time to invest to learn. This is kind of like telling myself that the kittens clearly don't have to poop just because I am not doing "it" properly or long enough...kittens need to poop and I need to learn and then we will all feel much better!
My goal for this class is going to be to figure out how to effectively use Twitter. Will I use it after the course is over? I'm not sure...I still see myself more Google+ bound...but darn it, if I can make a kitten poop, I can figure out how to follow and post Tweets. Right?!?! I know that there are many more things that I should be taking away from class and I am, however, my time is divided in such a way that I have to prioritize. Benita and I will work on our final project together, I will check out as many of the suggestions from my colleagues as possible BUT for now...Twitter needs to be conquered because I'd hate to die of constipation...
Friday 19 September 2014
The Uphill Climb
Every day my phone is inundated with dings and whistles as Twitter and Google+ let me know that my classmates are coming up with more share worthy ideas. I feel as though I am adrift in the unknown...how do I find something worth sharing? I go searching for noteworthy sites to pass on to my colleagues, only to realize that I'm not techno savvy enough to know what makes a site noteworthy. I'm not sure what I should share and so I end up sharing nothing and worrying about how my mark will suffer from my ignorance. You see, I am a teacher and used to being held accountable to a specific standard...with this newfound freedom, I'm not sure how to succeed. I don't have a rubric to tell me what is share worthy and I feel lost. Yes, I know how very sad this is and it for this very reason that I am in this class. I need to learn to escape the cookie cutter definition of valid/valued education.
Having (I think) figured out how to post my own blog, Benita and I have decided to work together to get our students blogging. We are both a little old school in that we needed to print off the instructions, rather than follow them on screen. Now, armed with instructions and blog prompts, we are about to stretch our students as well...or are we? What I'm discovering is that many of the "new things" I'm discovering are those that they have long been aware of. Most likely, had I paid attention instead of pitying their lack of "real connection", I would've heard my students talking about blogging. In fact, as I sit and think about it, I'm sure I've had at least a couple of students who were bloggers.
The final project weighs on my mind as Benita and I have decided to work on a Math supplementary unit but I am also tugged in other directions. In the spring we sat down and decided to work on a video project with our students this year and now Twitter and Google+ postings have given me access to what colleagues have deemed good technologies for doing just that. I still want to do the video project because I think it will give the kids a voice they haven't had but first will do the Math unit because it is also something for which our students have a need. So I guess technology will come into play a lot in our building this year.
So much for my head in the sand....now I just have to figure out how to become a contributing member of the social media required for my class and I will be good to go. I still feel overwhelmed by the social media - so many ideas coming through in a day that I can't keep track and don't know how to filter.
Having (I think) figured out how to post my own blog, Benita and I have decided to work together to get our students blogging. We are both a little old school in that we needed to print off the instructions, rather than follow them on screen. Now, armed with instructions and blog prompts, we are about to stretch our students as well...or are we? What I'm discovering is that many of the "new things" I'm discovering are those that they have long been aware of. Most likely, had I paid attention instead of pitying their lack of "real connection", I would've heard my students talking about blogging. In fact, as I sit and think about it, I'm sure I've had at least a couple of students who were bloggers.
The final project weighs on my mind as Benita and I have decided to work on a Math supplementary unit but I am also tugged in other directions. In the spring we sat down and decided to work on a video project with our students this year and now Twitter and Google+ postings have given me access to what colleagues have deemed good technologies for doing just that. I still want to do the video project because I think it will give the kids a voice they haven't had but first will do the Math unit because it is also something for which our students have a need. So I guess technology will come into play a lot in our building this year.
So much for my head in the sand....now I just have to figure out how to become a contributing member of the social media required for my class and I will be good to go. I still feel overwhelmed by the social media - so many ideas coming through in a day that I can't keep track and don't know how to filter.
Thursday 11 September 2014
So many things to keep up with, so little time!
Ok, I now remember why I quit Facebook months ago…not enough daylight hours to keep on top of all of the posts chiming in on my phone while maintaining some degree of sanity! LOL While I sometimes think I'm on constant information overload, I'm enjoying reading about other people's journeys and find that I enjoy blogging.
A grade 6 student told me today that hashtags were just words that you wanted to make popular so you started putting them in everywhere and people would start saying them, too. For all I know, he could be right! :-/
My 12 year old son was instantly disgusted with me when I told him that I didn't really understand the point of hashtags…like I was the only one in the world that didn't know what it was. "Really mom, you seriously don't know what a hashtag is? C'mon, it's just a link!" I redeemed myself, however, when I asked him to help me tweet and he didn't actually know how to go about using a hashtag in Twitter (I recognize that it probably says something negative about me that my redemption was actually his failure but for now I will take what I can get!).
I am realizing that Google+ is more my style than Twitter. It's not that I dislike Twitter (although I may have at least once called myself a Twitter hater), but that I truly don't get it! I feel more connected on Google+ and as someone who prefers real-life connection to people, that is important to me. I am a conversationalist and Google+ strikes me as more conversational. Twitter to me is more impersonal and abrupt and I just can't seem to figure out what the heck I should add for a meaningful hashtag. Wait, are hashtags always meaningful? Do I need to know what they link to, if in fact they link to anything at all?!?!?
I still have so much to learn! I'm quite sure that part of my Twitter frustration is that I need to sit down and do some serious reading about it so that I feel like I know what the heck I'm doing!!! Well, since it's already after 11pm and I have to make the kids' lunches and get ready for work in the morning, it's not going to happen tonight!
A grade 6 student told me today that hashtags were just words that you wanted to make popular so you started putting them in everywhere and people would start saying them, too. For all I know, he could be right! :-/
My 12 year old son was instantly disgusted with me when I told him that I didn't really understand the point of hashtags…like I was the only one in the world that didn't know what it was. "Really mom, you seriously don't know what a hashtag is? C'mon, it's just a link!" I redeemed myself, however, when I asked him to help me tweet and he didn't actually know how to go about using a hashtag in Twitter (I recognize that it probably says something negative about me that my redemption was actually his failure but for now I will take what I can get!).
I am realizing that Google+ is more my style than Twitter. It's not that I dislike Twitter (although I may have at least once called myself a Twitter hater), but that I truly don't get it! I feel more connected on Google+ and as someone who prefers real-life connection to people, that is important to me. I am a conversationalist and Google+ strikes me as more conversational. Twitter to me is more impersonal and abrupt and I just can't seem to figure out what the heck I should add for a meaningful hashtag. Wait, are hashtags always meaningful? Do I need to know what they link to, if in fact they link to anything at all?!?!?
I still have so much to learn! I'm quite sure that part of my Twitter frustration is that I need to sit down and do some serious reading about it so that I feel like I know what the heck I'm doing!!! Well, since it's already after 11pm and I have to make the kids' lunches and get ready for work in the morning, it's not going to happen tonight!
Wednesday 10 September 2014
The First Day #eci831
This is it - I am creating a blog...did I say that out loud? Not really - I typed in on a screen.
At 37 years old, I have effectively managed to live my life thus far as an ostrich when it comes to embracing social media. I have not cared that my students have been talking about things that I couldn't understand because I have pitied their lack of understanding of how to connect with real live human beings in a room instead of "people" (words) on a screen. Blog you say??? I thought that the idea of journaling (how I saw blogging) online was crazy...heck I barely wrote my thoughts in a book for fear someone might find them later and realize just how nuts I was!!! LOL
Along came ECI 831 and I thought to myself, "Maybe it's time to figure out how this all works!?!?!" I participated in the first class and found myself having to google terms like "ping back" and "hashtag" just to know what the heck people were talking about. 20 mins in, I felt over my head and very old and I yearned for the ability to allow that ostrich reflex to kick in...instead I texted my niece and told her that it was time for her to repay aunty for all of the proofreading of papers that I'd done. I needed an inservice on all things social media so that I could figure out what I was doing without an aneurism!
So, as I have confessed, I have started this journey fairly ignorant and somewhat resistant to the road that I am about to travel. I know that I will grow tremendously through this class and I believe that it will be good for me to replace my current misconceptions about social media with knowledge about its usefulness. I will continue to believe that real life interaction is most often more meaningful than anything that can be done online, however, I have to move into this world in which I live...both for myself and my students.
At 37 years old, I have effectively managed to live my life thus far as an ostrich when it comes to embracing social media. I have not cared that my students have been talking about things that I couldn't understand because I have pitied their lack of understanding of how to connect with real live human beings in a room instead of "people" (words) on a screen. Blog you say??? I thought that the idea of journaling (how I saw blogging) online was crazy...heck I barely wrote my thoughts in a book for fear someone might find them later and realize just how nuts I was!!! LOL
Along came ECI 831 and I thought to myself, "Maybe it's time to figure out how this all works!?!?!" I participated in the first class and found myself having to google terms like "ping back" and "hashtag" just to know what the heck people were talking about. 20 mins in, I felt over my head and very old and I yearned for the ability to allow that ostrich reflex to kick in...instead I texted my niece and told her that it was time for her to repay aunty for all of the proofreading of papers that I'd done. I needed an inservice on all things social media so that I could figure out what I was doing without an aneurism!
So, as I have confessed, I have started this journey fairly ignorant and somewhat resistant to the road that I am about to travel. I know that I will grow tremendously through this class and I believe that it will be good for me to replace my current misconceptions about social media with knowledge about its usefulness. I will continue to believe that real life interaction is most often more meaningful than anything that can be done online, however, I have to move into this world in which I live...both for myself and my students.
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