Monday, March 29, 2010
Update about my Embedded Widgets
It appears that at least one of the two embedded widgets that were on my blog were causing all kinds of problems. I was able (not easily) to delete the two widgets, and my blog appears to be working OK now. To delete a widget, go to the "Layout" page. Click on "Edit" by the widget you want to delete. When the change page comes up, you will have to click on "Remove" and then "Enter" (and very quickly if your blog has already been affected.) I had to try this several times until I did it quickly enough to get the widget deleted. The "bad" widget causes the page to go off somewhere to other sites, that is why you have to accomplish the edit quickly. If your blog has not been affected by one of these "bad" widgets, I would recommend that you delete widgets that you are not sure about anyway. My blog was not the only blog affected by embedded widgets.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Thing 23
The video has quite an impact. It really makes the point about how the internet, and all the technology that supports it, has evolved and is continuing to evolve. The rate that technology is evolving is quite literally too fast for any one individual to keep up with. I think this rapid march of technology is possible because of the "new" collaborative and interactive internet.
One way my thinking has been changed is that I am now wondering if we are adequately preparing our students to live and prosper in this 21st century technology. Do high schools have staff who are trained and current in teaching technologies that probably change before the semester is over? How would staff keep current--given that teaching is a full-time activity already? The way we teach technology will probably have to change--with more interactive and actual on-line training in real time. All staff will have to use technology as an integral part of their content areas--just as we have tried to incorporate writing skills into content areas.
I will most likely use screencasts for "make-up" lessons for students who are absent. I will definitely go back and use Flickr to bring images into my lessons, and for organizing my own personal photos. I will also learn more about the wiki and continue to fine-tune mine. Videos from YouTube and United Streaming that demonstrate art (clay) processes might be used in my high school classes. I have made copies of all the text in 23 Things and most of the tutorials so that I can re-study them in the future--"practice makes perfect," so it is said.
I am not intuitively a "techie" kind of user--but this course has given me a bit of confidence by refreshing skills I already knew (but had sort of forgotten,) and given me some really cool and current new skills. I have become really excited about what I have learned and am eager to do more exploring on my own.
This has been a great opportunity, and I would like to thank the district for offering it and the two moderators for a job well done. I feel this course really needs to be taken by every staff person in the district at some point.
One way my thinking has been changed is that I am now wondering if we are adequately preparing our students to live and prosper in this 21st century technology. Do high schools have staff who are trained and current in teaching technologies that probably change before the semester is over? How would staff keep current--given that teaching is a full-time activity already? The way we teach technology will probably have to change--with more interactive and actual on-line training in real time. All staff will have to use technology as an integral part of their content areas--just as we have tried to incorporate writing skills into content areas.
I will most likely use screencasts for "make-up" lessons for students who are absent. I will definitely go back and use Flickr to bring images into my lessons, and for organizing my own personal photos. I will also learn more about the wiki and continue to fine-tune mine. Videos from YouTube and United Streaming that demonstrate art (clay) processes might be used in my high school classes. I have made copies of all the text in 23 Things and most of the tutorials so that I can re-study them in the future--"practice makes perfect," so it is said.
I am not intuitively a "techie" kind of user--but this course has given me a bit of confidence by refreshing skills I already knew (but had sort of forgotten,) and given me some really cool and current new skills. I have become really excited about what I have learned and am eager to do more exploring on my own.
This has been a great opportunity, and I would like to thank the district for offering it and the two moderators for a job well done. I feel this course really needs to be taken by every staff person in the district at some point.
Thing 22
This Thing was fun! It will take a lot more playing with my wiki to really get it going, and I especially need to explore other wikis that are similar in nature to mine to garner ideas and tips. A wiki offers quicker responses/communication than a blog, and is definitely more interactive. Wiki members can edit or collaborate on the information that appears on the wiki. Blog viewers cannot edit content--only post comments. A blog is more a passive activity for the viewer. A blog is probably more appropriate for presenting information when no real interaction with the viewer is expected.
So far I have only invited a few people to join my wiki--it's still in its "beta" stage. Click here for a link to my wiki: http://cabernetcabaret.wikispaces.com/
So far I have only invited a few people to join my wiki--it's still in its "beta" stage. Click here for a link to my wiki: http://cabernetcabaret.wikispaces.com/
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Thing 21
Wikis are great. I registered on Google Earth and then tried to download Google Earth here at school, but only an administrator can do it. I plan to download it at home later. (I want to zoom in on my house from space!) The educational links on Google Earth seemed outdated. Does this mean that educators are not using it much? It is not the best wiki for my content area anyway.
I did find a useful wiki at "Examples of Educational Wikis" set up by an elementary art teacher. She uses the wiki to inform and plan with the classroom staff and administrators in her building. This is a great idea to collect info on what each classroom is doing in other content areas (curriculum maps) so that art projects could become more relevant to students as well as interdisciplinary. Teachers could add ideas for projects and also pick up ideas from the art room on topics for writing activities in their classrooms. A wiki like this would make my planning of the annual grade one field trip to the Wadsworth Atheneum so much easier--eliminating emails all around with the five, first grade teachers. A wiki like this would take a bit of time to set up, and it will definitely have to get put on the back burner for now--my time from now through May is pretty tight.
My favorite/most fun wiki (and the one I spent the most time exploring,) was wikiHow. I searched all kinds of topics--and thought the "Howcasts" were great. One of the topics that gave me an idea for a fun/personal wiki was "wine"--how to learn to appreciate wine, how to taste wine, how to store wine, how to decant wine, how to remove and use wine bottle labels, how to use wine corks, how to open a wine bottle with no tools, etc., etc. My husband and I are really into wine and belong to several clubs and a tasters' group. (The tasters' group meets infrequently because we all live busy lives.) It would be great to have a wiki where all our friends (and other wine lovers) could list what wines they have tried, where they purchased it, and review it for the whole group. Others who have tried the same wine could add their ratings also. Bargain hunters could share tips. People could trade wines. Members could share thoughts on pairing specific wines with specific foods. Etc., etc. This wiki would be easier to get going and not as formal.
Well, with Thing 21 "under my belt," I am heading home. I hear a Pinot Noir calling my name!
I did find a useful wiki at "Examples of Educational Wikis" set up by an elementary art teacher. She uses the wiki to inform and plan with the classroom staff and administrators in her building. This is a great idea to collect info on what each classroom is doing in other content areas (curriculum maps) so that art projects could become more relevant to students as well as interdisciplinary. Teachers could add ideas for projects and also pick up ideas from the art room on topics for writing activities in their classrooms. A wiki like this would make my planning of the annual grade one field trip to the Wadsworth Atheneum so much easier--eliminating emails all around with the five, first grade teachers. A wiki like this would take a bit of time to set up, and it will definitely have to get put on the back burner for now--my time from now through May is pretty tight.
My favorite/most fun wiki (and the one I spent the most time exploring,) was wikiHow. I searched all kinds of topics--and thought the "Howcasts" were great. One of the topics that gave me an idea for a fun/personal wiki was "wine"--how to learn to appreciate wine, how to taste wine, how to store wine, how to decant wine, how to remove and use wine bottle labels, how to use wine corks, how to open a wine bottle with no tools, etc., etc. My husband and I are really into wine and belong to several clubs and a tasters' group. (The tasters' group meets infrequently because we all live busy lives.) It would be great to have a wiki where all our friends (and other wine lovers) could list what wines they have tried, where they purchased it, and review it for the whole group. Others who have tried the same wine could add their ratings also. Bargain hunters could share tips. People could trade wines. Members could share thoughts on pairing specific wines with specific foods. Etc., etc. This wiki would be easier to get going and not as formal.
Well, with Thing 21 "under my belt," I am heading home. I hear a Pinot Noir calling my name!
Thing 20
One could spend a lot of time browsing here, as I kept clicking on related links. Looking over the NHS eBook collection did not turn up any books specifically devoted to art. However, I was able to uncover many resources within other books. Searching under "Mythology," I found an article titled "Painting the Story," which described Aborigine bark paintings and Navajo sand paintings--both of which I use in my elementary classes as inspiration for art projects.
In "North American Indian," I found an article titled "Art Second to None," and found images of the Kwakiuti tribe's shaman's elaborate ceremonial masks. Clicking on the "List of illustrations" showed several other images of Indian artwork.
The Gale Virtual Reference Library site seemed easier to use than the Marshall Cavendish site. The Gale site was less cluttered and it was easy to skim the titles. Many of the items in the NHS catalog had links directly to one of these other sites. An initial search under "artworks" at the Marshall Cavendish site under "World Cultures" produced "no results." I searched again for "pottery" and found 148 results. I liked the feature at each of the links where clicking on the "Image Gallery" produced thumbnails of the pottery featured. I was able to get larger images and to print them.
Browsing under other headings ("Photographs," "People of Eastern Asia, Australasia and the Pacific,") produced other images and information on pottery. In the past it has been difficult to get students to do any kind of research on art topics. However, I think it might be possible to have my Ceramic students search for and create a personal collection of images that would serve as ideas and inspiration for the clay work that they are asked to produce for me. I have magazines and other hard copy images available in my room, but these are mostly ignored by students. If I required students to save a collection of pottery images to a folder that I would check, this would certainly increase their exposure to visuals that would enhance their clay work. One of the greatest problems students have is coming up with ideas for shapes and forms, textures and details--mainly because they lack a background of visual experiences. I think students would be more inclined to search for images online than to thumb through magazines--and I am sure their "searches" would be more productive and interesting as well.
In "North American Indian," I found an article titled "Art Second to None," and found images of the Kwakiuti tribe's shaman's elaborate ceremonial masks. Clicking on the "List of illustrations" showed several other images of Indian artwork.
The Gale Virtual Reference Library site seemed easier to use than the Marshall Cavendish site. The Gale site was less cluttered and it was easy to skim the titles. Many of the items in the NHS catalog had links directly to one of these other sites. An initial search under "artworks" at the Marshall Cavendish site under "World Cultures" produced "no results." I searched again for "pottery" and found 148 results. I liked the feature at each of the links where clicking on the "Image Gallery" produced thumbnails of the pottery featured. I was able to get larger images and to print them.
Browsing under other headings ("Photographs," "People of Eastern Asia, Australasia and the Pacific,") produced other images and information on pottery. In the past it has been difficult to get students to do any kind of research on art topics. However, I think it might be possible to have my Ceramic students search for and create a personal collection of images that would serve as ideas and inspiration for the clay work that they are asked to produce for me. I have magazines and other hard copy images available in my room, but these are mostly ignored by students. If I required students to save a collection of pottery images to a folder that I would check, this would certainly increase their exposure to visuals that would enhance their clay work. One of the greatest problems students have is coming up with ideas for shapes and forms, textures and details--mainly because they lack a background of visual experiences. I think students would be more inclined to search for images online than to thumb through magazines--and I am sure their "searches" would be more productive and interesting as well.
PS--Thing 19
Still no luck uploading my screencast to Twitter on the second day of trying. I may try to record a new screencast on my home computer, and I will try to upload the screencast manually later. But I must leave Thing 19 behind for now in order to finish my remaining Things.
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