FInal Project Update!

Hey guys, guess what?? My Wikispace has been updated once again. For my final project I decided to create a wikispace all about photography. Dean said we could use inspiration from another project we were doing in another class, to my advantage I used, like many, EAES 201 Personal Arts Project. My EAES project was learning photography. So i decided, why not create a wikispace using all of my research and putting it all on one page later on for my reference.

Using a wikispace is brand new to me so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for my ECMP class to learn a new technology:P Starting out was a little on the rough side because when it comes to technology, i tend to depend on other people a lot. I am considered "technologically stupid". Aka. why i said earlier in a previous post, that Robin was my life-line this semester lol!. Anyways, so as I began this wikispace I learnt that I am fully capable of learning technology on my own! IMAGINE THAT!!! WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT, ME??? ON MY OWN!!! TECHNOLOGY!!! As you can evidently tell I am very excited to have my independence back:) lol.

A wikispace is very challenging, but very resourceful. I learnt how to embed videos, add pictures, insert links, and even create a table of contens for each individual page. For most, this would be very simple. For me, this was quite challenging. So, I think this project was great for me to learn on my own. My wikispace is not finished, and probably won't ever be because information and technology are constantly changing! So, this page will change also.

Learning the basics of a wikispace was a great project for this last big project. I plan to use this in the future because as an Arts ed teacher, I will need a variety of resources available to me for quick references--photography being one of them.

Mentorship Overview

For my mentorship, as I have previously posted, I have been working with George Mayo. Our first contact looked like this (this is his first email to me):

Hi Nicole,

Nice to meet you. Really looking forward to having a mentor or two for my 7th grade Reading class. Here's the link to my teacher webpage and our class blogging page where all the student's blogs are located.

http://mrmayo.wordpress.com/

mrmayo.org

George

After a few more emails back and forth we arranged to skype on the occasion just to get a general idea of what we both wanted to come from the experience for his students. Mr. Mayo finally arranged for the beginning of the experience to start. This was the initiating email I received to start off the new experience:

Hi Nicole,

So I added you to the blogroll on our class blog homepage. Cindy, Johana, and Rocio are the students you are mentoring. Rocio left you a comment today on your blog during class. Maybe our next step could be you stopping by their blogs and dropping them comments. When we are in the computer lab this Wed they will see your comments and approve them to be published. That would be very exciting for them to get a comment from you on their blogs! Here is the link to our class blog where you can access Cindy, Johanna, and Rocio's blogs in the sidebar. Your blog is there as well.

George
As the weeks passed, the blog i created for those 3 students developed. This blog was called: Mentorship09
Although the posts and responses are few, I believe each of the students received valuable lessons from the experience. One student, Johanna, loves to read! Each of her posts to me were about the books she was reading and how they made her think. On the occasion she would ask me questions based on what I thought. I also suggested my favourite books to her and why. This was important for her because as she explained it to me, "reading was her way of escaping the real world." This really got me thinking about my life. Taking a closer look into my life, I realized that I do not take enough time to value reading. Language is fascinating!!

As my semester came close to an end, my mentorship students were unable to respond and leave me messages as often. We all seemed to get really busy and the mentorship experience kind of faded off. I am sad to say that I have not heard from these students in a couple weeks. Overall, I believe this experience has been extremely beneficial to me as a teacher. It is important to consider that all students are uniquely different. They each have their own set of strengths and weaknesses. As I read their posts, I could really see that they were still learning the basic concepts of english sentence structure. At the beginning, when i read the posts, my attention went immediately to the mistakes they had made in their writing. After a while i began to look behind the mistakes and actually read the words these students were saying. Sometimes, as a teacher we must learn to look past a students weakness and find the strengths within the student instead. If we only focus on a students strength, the student will only feel negative feedback. If we acknowledge the strengths a student will become confident in their daily work, and inspire them to continue their hardwork into the things they seem to struggle with.

I have definitly benefited from this experience, even if it did not carry on for very long. I answered all of their questions, and even gave them a bit of insight onto how my life as a student has inspired me to become a teacher.

Johanna discussed a book that she was reading, and asked me that if I had the power to know things before they happened, would I use this when doing homework or writing tests. I think I gave valuable advice to her: "To answer your question about the character in your novel, I think that if you were to have such powers as those, their would be pros and cons to the power. It would be great to know things right at the beginning. As a student I know we all wish sometimes we had the answers to the tests. But, the negative thing about it would be that she would never be able to socialize and find stuff out on her own. Getting to know someone is sometimes the best part in creating a great friendship or relationship with someone. If you always had the answers to tests or assignments then eventually you wouldn’t learn anything. Experience is important to an individuals growth, and learning is part of it. If you never failed or did poorly at something, you would never know the feelings of accomplishment or satisfaction in accomplishing a personal goal. Just think about it, how awesome do you feel when you know you worked hard and got an A an assignment or test?? That feeling should tell you that it is important to not know all the answers all the time."

That response I wrote, proves the experience I recieved from this experience. Before this experience, I would have said yes to wanting that power and to always know what will happen next. I have grown significantly over the past year, and I am very happy to have gotten the chance to work with Mr. Mayo's class:)

Tech Task #13

For this tech task we were to create our own podcast that was between 1-3 minutes. I talked with dean the other night and I asked if it was possible for me to just discuss what my podcast was about and a bit about the process. The reasons for this are because my computer decided to keep losing the my file of my podcast, so I ended up doing it 8 times before I gave up. So instead of stressing myself some more I decided to talk about podcasts. I found a video that tells you exactly how to create a podcast, starting out by telling you what you need to make podcast and how to get the correct software.
Here is the video:

For this tech task I made my podcast resourceful to me personally. I have been reading novels for my english 110 class, and realized that I had to read a novel for my final exam. In hopes of being able to study on the move I decided to begin reading my book so i could put it on my ipod. This will definitly help me because I work so much, so I can just listen to the novel while working instead of sitting down and reading. This is a great resource for me to have as a teacher, because it would allow me to give my students who may struggle with their reading to still listen parts of the book and create less stress for them.

Social Learning

If you are not tired of reading my last post, here is another post to add to those tired eyes of yours:) lol! In this class I have learnt a great deal about talking efficiently with my peers. Although I have not had many replies to my posts, I have had a select few individuals and who brought great insight to my thoughts.

Robin : has taught me not to scare my self so easily with challenging assignments. She was amazingly helpful in all of my progress and I couldn't imagine getting the same experience I did without her! Even in class, she was the first to get grab a link or answer a question for someone. Thank you Robin for all of your help this semester!!!:) You were my life line:)

I have learnt a great deal also from reading Robin's posts. Some are just a simple photo with a bit of insight, the others are random bits of information or tech tasks. I have learnt that tasking risks is all about the experience. It is not really an experience without the risk. Another way that I have learnt through social learning is being online for class. Most of the time it was just sitting and listening to insightful conversations about a wide variety of topics. We had guest speakers and fantastic presentations from teachers all over the place! As a teacher it is important to recieve and give feedback!! Just because we are teachers, this does not mean we stop learning. For example:


Wikispace Update:
Robin Howell said...
Oooh, Nicole! Your wiki looks so good - I'm so happy you figured out how to change the Look and Feel; it makes a huge difference. Are you planning on adding more pages? I guess a better question is; what is your end goal for your wiki?

Having this feedback encouraged and motivated me to continue with my final project. But one thing you might not know just by reading this post, is that she had just finished helping me that night with my wikispace and giving me some good pointers, OUTSIDE OF CLASS!! Then she was more than willing to follow-up with me and let me know that I was getting the hang of this. This was important to me because that night I was really frustrated with myself and techology in general lol!

I have learned a great deal from Robin, as well as from reading my fellow peers' blogs. I did not comment as much as I would have liked, but most of the time reading was all i needed to get me thinking. I was a little disappointed that people did not comment on my blogs as much as I had hoped, but o well. Even if my social learning was considerably small, I have learnt a great deal about others as well as myself!

The Experience of ECMP 355

As the semester comes close to an end, I would like to reflect on my experiences within ECMP 355. In the beginning, I thought this class would be very easy to tell you the truth. I thought, "o this class will be a breeze..because it is online and all i have to do is blog." Well I OBVIOUSLY thought wrong!!!

As the class took off on a good start, I began to recognize that technology is not what I thought it was. Technology has come a loooonnngggg ways. As a teacher I need to acknowledge the fact that our world changes everyday, and so does the classroom environment. Using technology in the classroom will advance our schools to a whole new level. Personally, before this class I was considered "techologically stupid." I knew NOTHING!! I had no idea that Google good have so many amazing gagets that I now use on a day-to-day basis. Things such as google reader, google docs, google alerts, gmail, etc... I couldn't even imagine my life without these simple little gagets. As a teacher, I need to learn as many little short cuts as possible. Our world has hit the technology era, where our list of new "toys" become endless/

Once I learnt about Google, we moved onto the fascinating life of EDtalks. These videos are a great resource for me as a teacher that I can use. Not only does it supply me with neat little teacher facts, but there are videos that also teach me about the fun stuff TOO!!! One important thing that I have learnt in this class is that teaching is meant to be fun, and technology does not have to be SO scary. The fear of technology is in our heads! If we make an opinion on an experience without personally experiencing it ourselves, we lose out on the true experience!

Another neat thing I learnt in this class, is a thing called a Podcast. I had heard this term many times in my life before this class, but never really thought about or wondered what it actually was. Podcasts are fascinating really! Exploring itunes store allowed me to see the wide variety of podcasts created. Educational things like grammar tips, Interesting things like the Best of Youtube, and fun things like The Daily 10's Hollywood Rap. Having podcasts available at your finger tips are a create way to incorporate technology into your day. Also, even as a student, reading certain novels for certain classes are a drag, but now, there podcasts of the novels we are reading to make our lives a little easier. If you listened to that podcast of your novel, every student would be more productive in the learning process. Personally, reading to me makes me tired. Reading is the one thing I always put to the very end because it is my least favourite thing to do.

This brings me to my final thoughts. The one thing that got my thinking from this class is how far will technology continue to develop? Will this negatively effect our classrooms and be a disadvantage to our students' learning? How do we make sure that technology doesn't replace the basic fundamentals of any young individuals development (things like reading, and writing)?

Another thing I have realized this term, is that the profession of a teacher has changed drastically over the years. I mean before it was the basic, teacher in front of the room all day reading from the text while students are taking notes from the chalkboard. Now, the classroom environment is encouraged to adapt to the technological world and use technology within the learning environment. This scares me greatly!!

The only negative thing I can think of about this class is that it has me questioning whether or not teaching is the right thing for me, if this is what it is going to become?! Overall, I believe this has been a great experience for me. I have learned new things about technology and how they positively have become a part of my life. I blogged about twice a week all semester, if not more sometimes, in hopes of sharing my thoughts. Thanks to everyone for making this experience so wonderful!!! Thanks Dean for all of your help this semester, it was all extremely appreciated!!!

Tech Task #3

For this task i decided to post about a blog i read on Betchablog. The post I read was called Human Tetris The video he choose to embed on his blog is a really cool.
Here is the video.

On this post, he discusses that a student of his, with a learning disabilty, finished her work early and asked if she could play tetris online. He discovered that she was amazing at the game. This is from a girl who really struggles with many other intellectual tasks. So he decides to call her main teacher and discuss the new discovery with her. Her regular teacher had never really tried Tetris, so she was not very good at it.

It is important to note that teachers are not perfect or good at everything. If teachers were more hopeless at things, our classroom environment may be a little different. He concludes his post with this, "Often in schools we judge our students performance based on the things that we deem to be important to us, rather than what is important to them. I’m not suggesting that everything should always be a game, but I suspect we should always be actively looking for opportunities to let our kids be “smarter” than us."

As a future teacher, I have realized that it is important to focus on my students strengths rather then my own. Adapting my lesson plans and assignments around my students would allow them to be more successful in their day to day lives. As a teacher, I am not there to show my students my strengths, but I am there to expand their strengths and encourage them to succeed.

Tech Task #15

This is an image of my map from google earth. These are the most recent places I have been lately, but this doesn't mean you should stock me. I avoided giving any details of who I am or where i work so i did not include those places.

Tech Task #14

For this tech task, we were told to find two podcasts (1-educational, and the 2nd-interesting to us). For my educational podcast I choose Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing. This is a great podcast because it gives you a simple overview on basic concepts that are easily misinterpreted or misunderstood. This is good for me because sometimes I can forget even simple grammar stuff as I write my essays or assignments. Having these podcasts handy will be a good resource for me to have on my Ipod touch during my daily routine. The other podcast I have selected is The Best of Youtube. I am a huge fan of youtube so having the popular videos at hand is great entertainment for me. I don't know about other people, but I get horribly bored in some of my classes (not this one of course;)), but I do, so I use these videos to help me pass the time. Let me know what you guys think?!?!

Tech Task #12

Hey guys, so I have noticed that I am a few Tech tasks behind. Here is number 12. This task asked for us to find a video that incorporates the elements of a good movie, including shots, angles and production value. We were to post it the link on our blog and write a short review. Well here is my embedded link. Even though this video is definitly different, and animated, it still incorporates the elements of a good movie. You see a wide variety of angles, as well as a cute little story. I am curious as to what inspired this video artist, but in conclusion I think the individual who created this video understood the concept of what makes a good movie besides its story line.

Virtual Hair Cut

Hey guys, a friend of mine suggested this site to me because it's really neat!! Its called a virtual hair cut. It is based on full audio through headphones (headphones are a must!!). Everyone definitly needs to listen to this because its amazing how the brain works and picks up a sound and knows exactly where it is coming from. Please do this! You will find this very cool i PROMISE!!:) If you listen to this you must have headphones, and you MUST close your eyes during the whole thing. Sit comfortable, and upright (not lying down on your bed). Make sure your surroundings are quiet so you hear nothing else but what is on the headphones. This is soooo cool so please listen to virtual hair cut and tell me what you guys think!!! Here is the link... Virtual Hair Cut

Wikispace update

Hey guys, so I have been working more on my final project the last few days and I think I am doing it properly! I added some information that I found online as well as a few photos for illustrations. I also figured out how to imbed a video onto my wikispace. I am excited to see that my page is developing slowly, but if anyone has any ideas or suggestions please let me know!!!!

Creating a wikispace has created some stress in my life, but i think it might be good stress. Learning new things, especially technology related, scares the crap out of me!! I tend to depend on a lot of feedback from other people because i care a lot about what others think. So for me to work on something so brand new to me is very intense and scary. It has taught me that i am capable of learning and trying something new on my own. Its not so scary once you get to learn the new territory and experience it on my own. I still have a lot to work on since i am a perfectionist at heart.

Please feel free to give me feedback or any comments on my wikispace. I could use all the help that I can get!!!

PhotographyforBeginners

Mentorship Update

Hey guys, just wanted to give you an update on how my mentorship is going. As most know I am only working with one classroom right now. I am working with George Mayo and his gr. 7 esl classroom (english as a second language). I have been assigned to 3 students who have been asking me a series of questions about anything. This has been a great experience for me. It is very interesting when reading their comments,because sometimes it is very difficult to understand their sentences sometimes. I catch my self editing their posts because english is still really new to them so they do not understand simple sentence structure. Being exposed to this has allowed me to see and consider the different possibilities of how students learn. Each student is unique in their own way, and this mentorship
is a great way to connect and see things from the students' perspective. Here is the link to my mentorship blog where you can view their comments as well as my posts. Mentorship09

This SOO Cute!!!

A friend of mine just suggested I watch this youtube video, because supposedly its a "nicole video". So I decided to watch it because my day has not been the greatest, and I really needed something to lighten it back up. Once I watched this video I couldn't help but smile, simply because that is all you can do once you watch it. It looks stupid, but its quite cute!! So, if you are having a bad day, I hope I can make it a little better. Enjoy guys!!

50 Ways to tell a story

Here is my 50 ways to tell a story video that i created using ImageLoop. I thought this was really cool because it allowed me to put all my images that i got from flickr, and organize them into on structured format. I was able to add music and text into the slideshow.The effectiveness of this in communicating would be that you can use each way of telling a story in a unique way. The also allows the opportunity to express oneself in the most efficient way that works for them. Enjoy!

Final Project in the making...

Hey guys, so i have decided on what i am going to for my final project...i think. I am thinking of setting up a wikispace about photography. I am hoping it can be used by anyone who is thinking about starting photography. It will consist of the basic concepts of photography as well as what makes a good photo. I Have never set up a Wikispace page before so any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated. Also, if anyone has any good ideas or thoughts about my idea please share them...Everytime i post a comment about my final project i will leave a link so that you guys can see my progress. So please keep replying give comments on my wiki space and don't be afraid to be harsh and mean. I can take it:P Its called a learning experience for a reason right? Wikispace

Mind Blown...

So I was just catching up on reading my classmates blogs, and I came across Marcy's Blog. I watched her Mastercard commercial video, and my jaw dropped. We had the exact same concept, and believe it or not, the same exact music for the background. I cannot believe it!!! I just want to make it clear that i made this video without seeing her video, because i JUST watched it literally 10 minutes ago. I immediately skyped Dean Shareski about this situation, and all he had to say was "great minds think alike." Then he suggested i watch a certain video on youtube that might make me not feel so horrible, and this actually can happen to certain people with similar minds. Please watch this video. And marcy, i apologize if you thought i stole your idea!!! I got my idea because on sunday my boyfriends cat had to be put down, so thats all i could think about. So i created the video hoping to create something sentimental. Here is the suggested video...It is a hyperlink because the embedding option is disable upon request. Derren Brown-Subliminal Advertising

Tech task #10

For this task, our assignment was to choose 4 photos that we think best describe ourselves. These photos that i have chosen are things that are very dear to my heart. My love of nature- i love the environment and do my best to take care of the world around me. Knowing who i am- it is important to me to know where I stand as an individual and standing up for what I believe in. Music that sings my soul-- I use music to help me cope with any issues or situations that come my way. Lyrics are a way i communicate with others, and it allows me to express myself without even speaking. Lastly, discovering the roads untraveled--exploring the unknown and taking risks, are what life is about. I try not to let things get me down, even when the roads are not always a postive experience. I try to take things one thing at a time, and learn from any mistakes I make in the process...

Tech Task #9

For this task our assignment was to create a mastercard priceless moment video using only four images. I have chosen this because sometimes our pets can drive us nuts, but if any one has ever lost a pet, you begin to realize that you would rather have those crappy moments then not have them at all. So here is my video and let me know what you guys think...

Tech Task #8

Sorry, i have been a little behind on my tech tasks. For this task we were told to come to class and be prepared to talk about a TED talk that we had watched recently. We were seperated into small groups and we each talked for a few minutes about what our video was about. I watched a video call Robert Lang's TED talk on Origami.
It discusses the concept that with any idea and a square piece of paper, you can make a beautiful origami. This is done by using math and engineering techniques to create really cool designs.

As our groups talked, i became intrigued with Robbie's video, Jill Bolte Taylor: My strike of insight.
I found it very interesting that a scientist could experience something they new so much about. She was able to experience and watch her functions decrease, and yet able to understand how and why it was occuring. I think this is a great story to be heard, and that everyone should definitly watch this video. Thanks Robbie!

Enjoyable reading week

This week my boy friend came home from saskatoon. He has gone up there for school (engineering) so i don't get to see him very often lately. So it was nice just to hang out again like old times, and just catch up on old times. We had a very laid back valentines day. Which was great because not all valentines days' need to be big romantic gestures. Sometimes even the small things like sitting on the couch and watching a movie is an easy way to spend valuable time with a loved one. I think in this overall experience of him moving away for school has shown us how to appreciate the small gestures or actions, like holding hands, or a simple kiss on the cheek when its unexpected.
As the week progressed, i woke up with a bad eye infection. My boyfriend immediately offered to drive me to the doctor even when he had his first chance to sleep in. I did feel guilty but he just wanted to make sure i was okay and healthy. A relationship is meant to be an experience where you finally want to put someone before yourself. I am just very happy that he is here, you know we have been dating over 3 years already!!!:)

A Harsh Reality

As most people know i work at a group home for people with intellectual and/or physical disabilities. Well i was working this weekend, and the individuals i work with cannot understand any basic understandings past the age level of a 5 year-old. Well, at work we received a phone call telling us that one of our residents' father passed away two days ago of two brain aneurysms. When i got this phone call, i realized that telling this news to my resident would mean nothing to her since she cannot understand something so tragic. This really got me thinking about what the life of an individual with an intellectual disability. This resident will never understand death, or the happiness of accomplishment for that matter. Maybe this individual is lucky to never have to experience those feelings of loss or tragedy. Then again, she is missing out on the opportunity of experience and happiness.
Another thing to consider is the fact that it is common for individuals in group homes not to have their families involved in their life. This resident has not seen her family in over a decade, and the first time they want to see her now is because her mother is in town for the funeral. I don't want to be mean or judgemental because i know life can be rough, and it would be hard to deal with that situation. But i honestly do not think it would be that hard to be part of your daughters life, even if its a visit once a week, or simple phone call to check in on how your daughter or sister is doing? I mean is that a lot to ask of family??? I find it hard to see this reality and accept it for what it is.

Bad Sense of Humour

I was browsing youtube the other day and i came across a video of a baby laughing and clips of people falling or getting hurt really bad. I find this video hilarious, and i know i am a horrible person because i find it just as funny as the baby seems to find it. Please tell me what you guys think, or if you recommend any videos please do. Here is the link...

Who else hates stupid drivers?

I was driving on the ring today (people from regina know this road all to well), and i couldn't believe how some people even managed to recieve their license?! I mean changing lanes without signal, getting as close to your bumper as possible just to piss you off, those slow grannies out there who don't know where the gas pedal is, etc... But the thing i still cannot wrap my mind around is those drivers who always seem to find a way to get into the ditch. No matter how nice it outside drivers still find a way!!! HOW?!?!?! Personally i think people drive just to piss others off, no purpose or place to go, they just drive for the sake of making someone's day horrible. Well to all those people who do this, you have made my day off to a great start!! So thank you.

Does anyone have any good stupid driver experiences? Please share them with me so i do not feel so alone and targeted. Thanks

The Mentorship experience in the making....

I am really looking forward to my mentorship experiencee in the two classrooms i have chosen. I have chosen an interesting selection based on my background and personal experience. One class is ELA gr. 7 for the learning disabled, and the other is ELA 9-12 where english is a second language to the students. I have been in contact with these teachers in hopes of becoming a great mentor for their students. The plans so far have been arranged that i am to meet a select few students on thursday through Skype and the other class plans are still in progress.

I am also setting up another blog for the students of the gr 7 class for those with the learning disabilities because i feel this may make it easier for the students to keep track of blogs directed only at them rather then them getting confused on my posts/assignments that they know nothing about. I am so excited for this mentorship i can't tell you guys enough.

Is anyone else having as much success as i am? I am so excited and thrilled to take part in such a wonderful and most beneficial experience! I'll keep you guys up to date on my experience so keep reading!!!

Tech Task #7- interpretation of k-12 conference

So, in this assignment we were to find a video on the K-12 conference and post which one we watched and how we felt about the discussion it included. The video i watched was called Prove It “We Like Our Blogging Buddies: The Write Stuff with Blogging Mentors”. the link is http://k12onlineconference.org/?p=319. Basically what this video discusses is a teacher from moosejaw who teaches grade one students, and a professor from the u of r who studies teaching kids from the ages k-3. The two teachers together had created the concept of blogging buddies. His students are paired individually with one of her students and they comment either through blogs as well as using SKYPE for video calls to their buddy. I found this concept very cool due to the fact that it allows younger students to have someone to look up to and also teaches them how to use a different type of technology within their learning process. For the university students on the other hand, are now able to see how younger students learn and what their level of understanding is of technology. Learning that to younger students they find that blogs let them type rather then handwrite, and it also allows them to learn proper sentence structure (such as period, capitals, etc.).
Something that got me thinking on this video was that i think that typing is a great concept for students to learn at such a young stage, but one thing to keep in mind is that teachers cannot replace paper and pen for the computer and keyboard. Students all need to learn to write because it still remains as an essential form of communication in their lives or futures. Technology is a great advantage for students, but should not be a replacement to the basic needs of any individual!

Advantages of Google for educators

I believe that these tools on google could benefit an educator because as our society complexes so does the learning process of understanding it. Taking a look myself at the tool options i discovered a whole new world beyond my knowledge of understanding what technology has come to. I mean think about a simple application on google is the calendar. Easy access for the teacher, and easy to edit for any changes. A teacher can struggle with not only keeping her classroom organized but her students due dates also. Believe it or not, it is possble for a teacher to forget about a test date and or assigmnent. Google groups is another really cool application i discovered. This allows student and parents to see important posted information, or host group discussions, etc. My favourite two applications on google though are the blogger and igoogle pages. Blogger allows students and teachers to post, respond, and teach each other a little about themselves. Also, teachers can incorporate this into the learning process for their students based on their age groups. Younger grades may not be able to use this tool til a little later. But older students can learn to use blogs as a way of communicating with fellow students, as long as it is done in a mature and appropriate way. Teachers can evaluate their students based on their participation and willingness to try something new. Teachers need to take that first step and make learning a new experience for a the new generations. Eventually students can learn to post assignments and give eachother feedback. If anyone has anything to add please let me know what you think???

Igoogle is the new personal organizer!!!

Hey guys, well as most know from my ECMP 355 class we were assigned this week to create an igoogle page and take a screen shot of it for our blogs. Well here it is!!:) I am very excited to be learning about this igoogle thing. Will save lots of time of for me when browsing the internet. Also think of the advantages for google documents. So cool!!

Another thing to add, we were also assigned to create a new form where we would ask for each other's emails, so here is the link, please complete this form! I can't wait to see how this whole semester turns out, i am already learning more than i could ever imagine! If i finished class now i would be already extremely satisfied. I know i will be using these new tools in my teaching practice.

Here is the link: http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?key=pThVj8gApGvBMGWBywCKxSQ

Thanks guys and i hope to see your responses soon!!

My Experience with Technology's development

Throughout the years of my life i have experienced the influence of technology in several ways. As kid in elementary school we all had those days where we would be in the computer lab a few times a week learning how to type correctly, spelling of words, learning games, etc. Then as i got older i learned how to you power points, projectors, word, excel, or any other sort of advanced program. Now that i am in university, i see students with lap tops and these high tech ipods, etc. Its amazing how easily technology has grown!

A Bitter Winter

Originally i am from Ontario, and i lived their for the majority of my childhood. Growing up in Ontario was a great experience, but for me, when i moved to Regina i couldn't believe that the winters could ever get so bitter cold! Maybe as a child i couldn't really appreciate a warm car in the morning, or a shovelled drive way when leaving my house for school, etc. I think that as i grew up and moved to Regina, i learnt to appreciate even the smallest things, especially during the winter. But now that i have my license and more responsibilities, i can't help but get depressed when i think about scraping off my car windows in the morning, or helping my parents shovel before school. Does anyone just feel sad in the mornings just by looking outside or is it just me???

Beginning of a new experience!

Hey guys, this is the first time i have ever thought of creating a blog. As i began to customize i learnt several tricks into how technology has come about. Learning how to add new gagets such as useless information, youtube search, or things even like popular games or videos. I am now a huge fan of blogging and i can't wait to see how my blog develops throughout this semester of ECMP 355.