Hi,
Where to begin... Like all of us, I've been hearing and reading about Web 2.0 for months now. While I've known that there are many applications that can be used by educators, the problem was finding time to learn about them and try them out so that I could begin to see how I might use them and help others at school learn to use them effectively, too. There's just no time during the school year to reach that comfort level with these new technologies.
That's what makes this program so exciting. Not only is there time to play with these "things", there's a structure, some guidance about how to begin, and the opportunity to see and hear about what others are doing through their blogs. I find myself reading a few new CSLA blogs each day for support and inspiration.
Looking ahead, I'm anticipating the lesson on RSS feeds. I first heard about them in a church communications training I attended about a year and a half ago. Then at the CSLA conference last November I was at [Joyce Valenza's workshop] (NOTE-Irmapince reminded me that it was Alice Yucht' s workshop. Thanks for the correction.) When Alice talked about some of the new technologies, including RSS feeds. I was a little daunted because it seemed like subscribing to RSS feeds would be like subscribing to the list servs. it would be one more thing to check each day. I'd start receiving floods of information and have no time to digest it properly, let alone use it effectively! I've noticed that several program participants have mentioned that very problem, so I'm going into it with my eyes open (not to mention some good tips from them on staying in control.)
I've also been intrigued by the idea of using podcasts to highlight books and/or authors and am curious to know if that would be a good feature to add to my website and if so how I could do it.
The lesson on RSS feeds is coming right up, but I see that podcasts are near the end, so I guess I have a good incentive to keep on playing!
Friday, June 29, 2007
Thursday, June 28, 2007
#6 Mashups, etc.
Hi,
I had a lot of fun with this "thing." A couple of hours have passed and I've made a movie poster, tried my hand at trading cards, turned a photo into a sketch, looked at making calendars, creating color palettes, etc.
I immediately thought of a project our second graders did last year where they had to draw an animal they were researching because it was becoming too expensive to print the photos they found online in color (and also because we wanted them to learn even more about their animals by coloring them). An app at www.dumpr.net/ allows you to turn photos into sketches and would be perfect for this assignment. You can see my example of a salamander sketch below, made from a picture on the website our computer specialist created for our second grade students.
I had a lot of fun with this "thing." A couple of hours have passed and I've made a movie poster, tried my hand at trading cards, turned a photo into a sketch, looked at making calendars, creating color palettes, etc.
I immediately thought of a project our second graders did last year where they had to draw an animal they were researching because it was becoming too expensive to print the photos they found online in color (and also because we wanted them to learn even more about their animals by coloring them). An app at www.dumpr.net/ allows you to turn photos into sketches and would be perfect for this assignment. You can see my example of a salamander sketch below, made from a picture on the website our computer specialist created for our second grade students.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
#5 Flickr
Hi,
#5 As I was exploring Flickr, I found a series of photos taken by a summer camp group in Texas today. This photo showed members of the group inside the state capitol building in Austin standing on a tiled floor with six flags. It reminded me of my visit there several years ago when I first saw the six flags, learned the history behind them and finally made the connection with the well-known amusement park name.
I enjoyed looking at the explore section, the June calendar, where there were some incredible photos.
#5 As I was exploring Flickr, I found a series of photos taken by a summer camp group in Texas today. This photo showed members of the group inside the state capitol building in Austin standing on a tiled floor with six flags. It reminded me of my visit there several years ago when I first saw the six flags, learned the history behind them and finally made the connection with the well-known amusement park name.
I enjoyed looking at the explore section, the June calendar, where there were some incredible photos.
School Library Learning 2.0 #1-4
Hi,
#1 When I first read about this program I thought it would be a wonderful way for me to get up to speed on Web 2.0 applications and uses. Then in the crush of end of year duties I forgot about it. What a pleasure to finally have time to get started. I enjoyed reading the overview of the program.
#2 When listening to the lifelong learning pointers, I thought about the hardest thing for me and decided that it was viewing problems as challenges. When I first encounter a problem, I tend to get frustrated and can't see it as a way of growing. It's only when I come back to it later that I'm determined to find out how to overcome or get around it. Then I can be obsessed until I've figured it out!
The easiest thing for me is setting a goal and then accepting responsibility for my own learning. I enjoy expanding my horizons.
#3 Setting up my blog was easier than I had thought it would be. At the end of May, our school district had offered a Google training and I had set up a Google email account then, so setting up the blog was very quick. In order to get going, I chose a template, but it could be fun to design my own.
It took longer to make all the selections for my avatar. While what I chose is pretty conservative, it was fun to see all the varied options. Again, exporting it was easier than I had thought it would be.
#4 Now that I've registered, I'm really ready to go!
#1 When I first read about this program I thought it would be a wonderful way for me to get up to speed on Web 2.0 applications and uses. Then in the crush of end of year duties I forgot about it. What a pleasure to finally have time to get started. I enjoyed reading the overview of the program.
#2 When listening to the lifelong learning pointers, I thought about the hardest thing for me and decided that it was viewing problems as challenges. When I first encounter a problem, I tend to get frustrated and can't see it as a way of growing. It's only when I come back to it later that I'm determined to find out how to overcome or get around it. Then I can be obsessed until I've figured it out!
The easiest thing for me is setting a goal and then accepting responsibility for my own learning. I enjoy expanding my horizons.
#3 Setting up my blog was easier than I had thought it would be. At the end of May, our school district had offered a Google training and I had set up a Google email account then, so setting up the blog was very quick. In order to get going, I chose a template, but it could be fun to design my own.
It took longer to make all the selections for my avatar. While what I chose is pretty conservative, it was fun to see all the varied options. Again, exporting it was easier than I had thought it would be.
#4 Now that I've registered, I'm really ready to go!
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