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Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Happy Holidays 2012

Another year is about over...we are having a great family Christmas with both boys home.  I received a Kensington keyboard for my Ipad 1 that I am using to write this...it works pretty well...much better than the onscreen touch for sure.

I have been thinking about the first semester for this year's seniors.  Many of them did well, but several cannot sustain the effort needed to do well.  Writing is hard work that takes effort...we have too many of the same mistakes being made that need to be corrected and resolved. However,  students must concentrate on pronoun-antecedent agreement and focus on organization and completeness in their writing.  Follow instruction...if you don't understand, please ask...

I will teach about two more weeks, and then my student teacher wlll take over.  He will face challenges but will do fine with lots of hard work on  both our parts...I will write more about this as we progress.

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Wiki-Wikity-Wikity Whack

I love the collaborative spirit of wikis...as a teacher of writing, I love to put students together to create ideas using words developed from thoughts pulled, prodded, and blended from within. In some ways, it appears nearly spiritual at its essence. Watching ideas percolate and then expand into cognitive, rational expression is a powerful learning experience that I get to witness at times. Prior to discovering wikis, this was a cumbersome process, but wikis provide a platform that enables the creativity and promotes the sense of oneness in collaboration. I have used on several occasions a wiki from wikispaces.com to promote this learning. I have found that the platform does not guarantee this happens...the dynamic of the group, coupled with appropriate pressuring activities are essential aspects of the process that cannot be skipped. I have made this mistake before...need to remember their importance to the process that wikis promote.

Monday, August 1, 2011

YouTube and OnlineVideo

The current generation of students loves video...they have never not had it around, so using video in the classroom is a great way to enhance instruction and engage students. I find Youtube to be incredibly useful in the classroom. That being said, I will readily admit there is much that is not classroom appropriate on the site. The educational usefulness of the site lies in the ability to access thousands of clips related to film and literature easily. Also, I find much of tutorial type video, such as Common Craft, etc, to be very helpful. Nearly every technological advance has a multitude of videos associated with it. I use those videos often. However, I fully understand education's reticence about allowing open access to Youtube. Luckily, a number of other mediated sites offer great video resources to use in the classroom. I find the TED Talks to be phenomenal...current and past great thinkers discuss a wide range of topics related to our culture and the world, which we can access and watch to help push discussion and promote higher level thinking. Of course, this is just one of many sites worth exploring, but we, as educators, certainly need to embrace the use of video and media in our classrooms.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Google Docs

This web-based productivity site has intrigued me for some time. I have used it sporadically for collaboration, but have not used it enough to feel comfortable with it with my students. I am thinking getting my students to use this site would be a great idea, but problems with blocked sites and accessibility are issues that must be addressed. I need to talk with my tech support at school to see about making these more readily available.

Once those issues are resolved, then I would really like to see students using Google Sties to build their own online portfolios. We do portfolios each year with our students and being able to do them online, so they could take them with them electronically after they graduate would be awesome. Of course, the movement to electronic portfolios will not be an easy one to make...some of my students are not the "digital natives" we would like to be they are. They struggle to do basic keyboard entry and using Microsoft Word, etc. So, how can I help them to not only produce their writing, but then organize and set it up so they can develop their own website, their own portfolio? I am going to look further into Helen Barrett's work with electronic portfolios to see if she and her work can offer some insight that may be helpful. Wish me luck!

Using a RSS Reader

Like most people I have been (and am) overwhelmed by the amount of information the Web provides. As most people have, in the past I have had a listing of bookmarks that I would visit arbitrarily to see if there is any new news of interest. I admit it was not very efficient and, if I really spend my class time teaching instead of jacking around, then something had to give. Luckily, Google and others came us with "readers" that allow me to subscribe to blogs, etc from which I get updates. Oh my, these may be the Holy Grail of the Internet!

As an educator and sports fan, I have been able to setup accounts for each area of interest and now receive updates that I can skim through to pick which ones I want and need to spend more time reading...awesome and so helpful! I love having everything in one place...where have you been all my tech life? Everyone needs one of these...

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Technology in Teaching...


I have written about the changes that have occurred in my classroom over the last two years with my classroom now having 24 networked computers that we can use in a vast array of ways. It has been an exciting time to be in our school as three of our four English teachers now have labs in their classrooms. In my room, I have used Moodle exclusively to organize and administer my classes. We upgraded to Moodle 2.0 this last spring and have discovered some issues I am trying to work out this summer. Otherwise, the use of Moodle has been beneficial to my students as they have felt much more prepared for the tech requirements they face in post-secondary education at even our local two year community college. The four year college students rave about being ahead of their peers--that makes me smile...

I like using tech in my teaching...it helps keep me fresh, but there are challenges. Dealing with blocked sites and applications, keeping students on task, and dealing with the wide range of tech skills that these "digital natives" bring with them to my room are just a few of the challenges. Additionally, Web 2.0 is so fluid...one can find a great site or online app that works great one day and the next it is down, costs $, or is gone. That being said, I try to approach the tech as just another part of the learning that is occurring in my English classroom. Some days it goes very smoothly--just like I drew it up--and others not so much...either way there is learning...even it is merely learning to deal with a frustrated teacher! Ha-ha!

So, tech is a constant in my room...trying to offer students as many responsible, authentic opportunities to explore and learn will continue...and even on those days when it seems like nothing is working as planned, we will move forward...that's what learning is all about...peace out!

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Indiana Prospects

Indiana Prospects...
Summers Traveling


For the last four years, Caleb has played on the Indiana Prospects Blue team. During that time, he has traveled far and wide as a member of this elite baseball program. This year he is on the 17U Blue team, which just won the Pasttimes Tournaments Midwest Classic at UIndy and Butler University this past weekend. Caleb pitches, catches, and plays nearly everywhere else they might ask him to play. In this photo from last year's tournament at East Cobb near Atlanta, he is catching and involved in a rundown. This team has helped provide him opportunities to play against the best competition in the Midwest and around the country while also getting him the chance to pursue his dream of playing Division I baseball. This weekend, the team is playing in the Cincy Flames Tournament of Champions in and around Cincinnati. Many coaches from around the country will be at this event. It should be fun...

Thanks to the coaches who help with this team and quality group of young men...play ball!