All of my favorite Things! Done.

 
I wasn't excited about this assignment at first. I knew that I have a hard time keeping up with things (like the pun?) like this. I did lag behind at the end but I found that I learned some things along the way. I have a hard time blogging because I talk way too much. You'll notice at the beginning my blogs were very lengthy. This took up a lot of time to make sure that what I wanted to say was said and was understandable. I realized that reading the same kind of activity from everyone in class gets old even if they have something different to say. I don't feel as though this was a true outlook on how blogging can be in someone life. Blogging and Google Reader has opened me up to reading other friends blogs, instead of just logging in when they post it to Facebook. Some people have a lot more to say than what other social networking sites give them time to say. I just might try blogging about something more interesting after all. 

I learned that while there are many sites out there to help you accomplish things I like to keep one site that I use the most for many different things. Have you heard that I love Google? I also learned that I am knowledgeable in quite a few things and was able to complete with ease. Some assignments kept me searching for more info. Web 2.0 was one of those. I just couldn't grasp how it worked and how it was different. Then once I understood I couldn't help but keep learning about it. I also found that I like the Common Craft guys. I even follow them on YouTube now. 

I hope to take away some of the learning objectives from the blogs, like how to find good resources and how to store them for easier access. My goal in all of this is to not be overwhelmed by all that I find and keep the good stuff and know how to find it when I want it, instead of searching over and over and repeating myself. 
 
Blogging didn't turn out to be to bad after all. What an experience to say that I had to do all of this my first year of Master's classes. I'm sure I can now impress my husband the IT professional with some technology knowledge.

Thing #23

This statement taken from the about page of the apsu23things blog clearly shows how creative commons is used:

Learning 2.0 - 23 Things for Teachers is based on Learning 2.0 - 23 Things. That program is based on the Learning 2.0 program that was designed by Helene Blowers, Technology Director at the Charlotte Mecklenburg County Public Library system, with the support and assitance of several staff. Helene's program was loosely based upon Stephen Abram's article, 43 Things I (or You) might want to do this year (Information Outlook - Feb 2006) and the website 43Things.

So there is a lot of things about Creative Commons to follow. I like that there is an organization putting the info out there about the rights of original work and that they are providing a way for people to put it out and allow other to use it. It does however begin to limit what a person might use for their work. I do find that this is something we need to teach students as they grow up because they need to understand the importance of the rights to other's work as well as their own. It begins by having them put their name on their work. They need to be taught to have pride in that it is theirs. They can begin to understand what those rights are and how to use them. I would hope the end result is a lot less cheating and plagiarizing. I think this also begins to open educators minds to be sure their own work is original or used work credited correctly. If we begin to appropriate everyone's personal ideas and creativity as well as our own maybe the world will begin to have a little more meaningful life.

That last paragraph is from my own writing on Livetext.com. I wonder if I need to give myself creative commons? 

Thing #22

Please tell me this is the last account I have to set up? I don't know if I can remember any of these sites, although there is no excuse for that with all the organizing sites we have researched.

This site looks pretty cool. I don't know if I need another place to keep a list though. I think that it would be helpful to create the different folders and embed into a wiki page or blog for parents or other educators to access, instead of having multiple links listed everywhere. This would allow them to search for what they are interested for.

Feel free to check out what I have added to my binder. LiveBinders by Sabrina Watson
This is by far just a start so be sure to check back in the future to see what else I come up with.

Thing #21 When the dog bites

Thing  "Thing was too cute." Although it is sad that I would have to pay for more services. If I can't get it for free I'm probably not going to use it. Here is what I did create:

 I like embedding the video this way which is so easy between the blogger and You Tube vs just having the link as through using it with Animoto:       My Animoto Video

I like all the options and what they had to offer, but I like the options I have through movie maker on my computer of which I can do a lot with and upload just as easily for FREE. In the end I don't think this site is for me because I see just as easy other sites and programs to use that won't charge me anything.

Thing #20 ...Dancing!

So this is my chance to share some awesome new music that I have grown to enjoy and also feature some great dancing! I found this video one day while perusing through YouTube and couldn't help watching all of it and sharing. The music is a style called Dubstep. You can find great sample on Pandora if you would like to hear more.

I like watching YouTube. It is a lot to search through when you are looking for something sometimes, but every now and then something amazing comes out. I have a few channels that I follow so I can find things easily and see when new things come out.

This would be a wonderful educational use if it could be controlled a little more. Currently my school does not allow the use of YouTube because of the bandwidth requirement, although I heard a dirty rumor that since Google (what do you know) bought them there are ways to get on and view.

I hope you all enjoy watching this video. Let me know how you like it and if you would like to know more about what I like to listen to.

Thing #19 ...that melt into Spring!

Not sure if I did everything I was suppose too. There is a  lot going on on that page. It is nice to have a place that APSU has for teachers to meet and connect without having to search all through other sites. I will have to take more time and see what else is available though TeacherPop. I used my real name so feel free to look me up.

I'm a little resistant to other networking sites. Not because I don't want another way to connect. I just spend so much time on the other one and I have so many people there that I know that I don't want one more place for me to spend time trying to keep up with everyone and their lives. I know that it is nice to keep work and personal separate so many this is something to look into for connectivity purposes.

Now I already worked ahead and am excited about Thing #20, so I'm going to move on for now.

Thing #18 Silver White Winters

At what point is using the word "love" to much in a blog. I probably should not say that I love Facebook, but I admit that I am a fan. I love the idea of social networking. I keep it private so when you link to it you should be able to see anything, but feel free to send a friend request. There are some things about Facebook I don't like. For instance, Timeline, when they make changes that you have no choice over. Sometimes you have to use the most popular option though if you want to be in touch with the most people. I enjoy staying in touch with Military friends and Family. I have some relationships that have grown that would never have had it not been for social networking.

I created a twitter account for this class. I don't use it very often because I cannot load it at work on my phone and I don't dare tie up the bandwidth at work. So that leaves me at night to page through everything. Not about to try that. I get a little overwhelmed with all the comes through and sometimes it is best for me not to hear everything everyone has to say.

I believe it is very important for educators to know about social networking and how it works even if they tend to not use it very much if at all. Its okay to not be comfortable with it or know how to use it expertly, but it is important to know how kids are using it. Teachers are the second (parents hopefully being the first) influence on students and have the opportunity to educate students to the correct usage of time and energy on the internet. If students don't have a lot of parental supervision with this subject I believe that teachers need to make them aware of what a student is capable of.

I know that CMCSS has a Facebook and a Twitter, I do not know about the school my child will attend though. I know that DoDEA schools has a Facebook page and the school I work at has a PTO page, but not sure about Twitters. The biggest problem with having those sites is that they have to be strictly controlled for proper language and use. They are great for putting out information for those people that use those sites but they are hard to manage when other people decide to cause drama.