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Another Cool Thing

Wow! I feel like Rocky Balboa at the top of the stairs. Can you here the music? This has been such a wonderful experience for me. First, I would like to thank the academy. . .oh, wait that was a different speech. I would, however, like to thank everyone in my Education 5540 class. I have enjoyed reading your blogs, watching your videos, and just getting to know all of you better, really, thank you. And many thanks to Dr.Wall for giving all of us way more than what we paid for, really, thank you.

Thanks to the "thing" experience I've learned so much more about myself. Things like: I really want to be a Mac, I can survive on very little sleep, I enjoy having a blog, I really enjoy exploring the net, Facebook is not as bad as I thought it would be, Animoto is way too cool, Google has tons of cool features that I can't imagine having to live without, mashups are fun! Flickr rocks! Zoho writer is awesome! And I am so thankful for creative commons, wiki's and RSS feeds.

I will continue to keep up on the latest web 2.0 developments by reading blogs and by playing around on the internet. I have also subscribed to the RSS feed for the learning 2.1 blog. It's important for me to keep up with all the new developments because of all the awesome tools it provides for me as a teacher, a student, a lifelong learner, a social being and as a human being.

I would like to keep this blog but with different content, you know, re-fashion it into something else. And I hope that I will because I believe it is therapeutic; it's a means for expression and heck it makes me feel sorta artistic and even a wee bit smarter, and how bad can that be. Will anyone read it, you ask? Well that's not really the point is it. Is it? Nah, I don't think so. I mean sure, I really want others to share their comments, but if I am the only one who answers my questions I will never be wrong. On the other hand, if I should connect, now and again, with another soul who gets my insanity, that would be way groovy also. Either way I consider this knowledge, about blogging, that I have obtained from working the 23 things program, to be a gift, for which I will always be truly, truly thankful for.

Cool Thing #23

The original 23 things was created by a library technology director named Helene Blowers. She designed this program as a way to encourage her staff to explore technology. Since then 23 things has gone global! There are a hundreds of people and a plethora of sites that are using modified "things". In fact, 23 things has gone global!
So, as a result of Helene Blower's ideas and cool teachers like Dr. Wall, here we are actually doing, actually exploring and actually learning about technology, isn't that cool! But the coolest thing about these "things" is that we get to give all of this knowledge away. We get to help our future leaders get excited about learning all of the awesome unlimited number of ways they can succeed by using technology. We will help people obtain their dreams my friend. . .isn't being a teacher cool! Need I say more? Seriously. Okay, let me end by saying this: As teachers, I believe that Creative Commons will help us and our students to create and to collaborate in ways that may seem unimaginable to us now. We need to continue to explore. Are you with me? Come on, the sky's the limit! Free at last, free at last. Thank God almighty, we are free at last.
Let us create, let us share, let us remember that we are one!
Man, I'm having fun! How do you feel?

Cool Thing #22

A podcast, hhmm. I never even considered listening to or researching what a podcast was because I just figured that I needed an iPod. Well, thanks to this awesomely cool thing, I am dumb no more! Because today I learned that podcasting is available to me, as a PC.*
Of all of the directories listed in the discovery exercise I really (and I mean REALLY) loved the site LearnOutLoud.com. This site offers many podcasts on a variety of different subjects. AND in addition to the multiple podcasts offered, they also have a wide selection of audio books on the cheap. So, I listened to several snippets and added the rss feed to my Google homepage. There is so much content on this site I'm thinking of withdrawing from the university, and life, just so I can listen and learn and learn and listen to all of the cool stuff on this site. . .seriously. And who knows maybe in the future, after listening to some more self-help stuff, I will be ready to venture out into the world of podcast making, but until then I must listen to this personal growth podcast. Will you join me? You don't have to stay for the whole thing, just listen for a couple of seconds (by clicking on the link).
PERSONAL GROWTH POD

Lets Have Some Fun!

*Disclaimer: I'm not proud to be a PC. Someday I will be a Mac!

Cool Thing #21

These "things" just keep getting cooler! Animoto is a terrific site! It was incredibly easy to set up an account and equally as easy to create a short video. I wish I had more time to play! This site is also way cool because it can access my photos from flickr.
I uploaded a song from the Animoto library because I haven't done my creative commons homework yet and I was unsure about using other music. . . I mean I don't want to end up in the poky for violating some kind of copyright legal mumbo jumbo stuff.
Here is another great excuse, albeit it's true: I don't have a lot of photos on my computer yet because I have been too busy playing on the internet, um, I mean doing research, so the video is composed entirely of my dog, Gilda. I do plan on making videos in the future, with like real video footage, because it is so much fun. I usually use Windows Movie Maker but I hope that Santa will bring me an Mac, I mean Santa is real, right? Don't tell me, I don't want to know.

Cool Thing #20

YouTube Rocks!! It is where I go to escape. On the Tube, I can watch movie trailers, check out videos of my favorite motivational speakers, like Zig Ziglar, Tony Robbins and Joyce Meyer; I can chill out while watching my favorite bands such as, U2, Coldplay and The Killers; I can watch funny shtick, created by my favorite comedians, or funny stuff, created by crazy people, from around the world. Oh yeah, and I can even research various stuff for school. What's not to love? If I was ambitious I could become a member and upload my own videos but. . .well you know how it is, right?
Anyway, I found this video about Cyber Bullying. It's a serious problem that we, as teachers and parents, desperately need to be aware of. Let's be part of the cure. Please watch this short video.

Cool Thing #19

OK I signed up for TeacherPop and left a message for Jessica Watson, who is way smarter than I am, and I posted two pictures of my Corgi, Gilda. It's a cool site, I like it a lot but I am not sure what will happen with it after this class. I mean don't get me wrong, I really want to continue on with the social networking thing, hoping that I will be able to converse and share stuff with awesome teachers, but who knows.

I love to read and watch movies so it's no surprise that my favorite online communities are GoodReads and Film Crave. Have you seen any good movies lately?
I think I will start my own online community! Yes! What a great idea! As soon as I figure out what it is I will let you know.
Until then,
HAVE FUN!

Cool thing #18

For this "thing" I decided to create a Facebook page. Social networking is fun but it can be addictive. Since creating my page last night I have done little else.
Facebook is a cool way to stay connected to friends and acquaintances and as a way to make new contacts. It's a small world after all, and by using Facebook we can really test the theory that there are only six degrees of separation. Have you heard of that before? Like, we are only 6 people away from everyone on earth. Am I making any sense at all? Tell me what you think, please.



Anyway, instead of posting a link to my page [here], I decided to create a Facebook badge that is visible to the left of this text. See it? It's right there above my picture. Click on that and it will take you to my page.


I think that it's important for educators to know how this stuff works because for students it's as common as talking on the telephone, and we want to understand how their brains work, right?
I believe that Facebook would be a great place for a classroom site (as a way for students and parents to connect), I think. I will need to explore social networking further before coming to a final decision.
It is my opinion that teachers need to be professional when managing their own personal sites. That is, I believe it is inappropriate for teachers to invite students or to accept students as their friends on these sites.

I have to go now, I must get back to Facebook, uh, I mean to work.
Later

Cool Thing #17

On my computer, I have extremely long line of unkempt sites that I have bookmarked. It's so messy and unorganized that I may never be able to look you in the eyes again because of the shame that I feel. But there is always hope, and today I saw hope spring eternal from a site that I originally thought was a mail order bakery. That site is called del.icio.us. I have never used del.icio.us before but, when I saw how it can be used to learn and share new information, well, it's so cool that I must begin to use it immediately! I especially like the fact that the bookmarks are easily accessible from any computer. Yes!

Del.icio.us also has the another fun and helpful quality, and that is that friends can not only use a shared account with links and tags that are pertinent to their topic but, they can also find other people who are interested in the same topic (and how bad can that be).

Teachers could use del.icio.us to tag sites that they want students to look at. It would be a good way to organize resources and make it easier for students to collaborate with others and to retrieve quality information. What say you?

Cool Thing #16

I have Google as my start page. Google is my also permanent homepage. . .it's where all my stuff is. I can check the weather, view spotlight videos, keep track of my favorite sports, see what's in my inbox, get today's joke from comedy central, get recipes, see the top news stories, check the television listings and so much more; it's all on one page!

For the online to-do list, I created an account with Ta-da. It was so easy to do! I just created a user name and a password and BAM! I was all ready to create my first list which was entitled: Tech Stuff. I used this list to write down all of the assignments I have left to complete for EDUC 5540. After creating the list, I became somewhat overwhelmed and a little depressive, So, I had to go lay down with some tissues, a warm compress and some milk chocolate. You feelin' me? Holla!

Moving on. . .

I had already set up a calendar on Google for an earlier assignment, but I am ashamed to say that I haven't used it too much. I guess I still prefer the "old school" method of writing stuff down in the Mead calendar that I purchased at Wal-Mart. I do like the Ta-da to do list though, and I feel that it will be beneficial to me (and you if we ever have to collaborate). It's a fun tool that I will use to stay organized (so my lights don't get shut off) and to keep up with my various lists. Seriously, if you haven't checked out the Ta-da list yet, do it now! And let me know what you think, alright? I mean it! Don't make me put you on my Ta-da list!
Peace!

Cool Thing #15

What another great collaborative tool. A wiki, huh. . .who would have thought that this odd sounding thing could benefit so many people. It's a cool thing for large group projects because members can just "jump in" and edit work. . .brilliant! I enjoyed the video that explained the wiki in plain English. It makes so much more sense to use a wiki instead of email when working in groups. I will definitely introduce this concept during my next group project.

In the classroom, this would be a great tool for students and teachers to use to share their ideas. Teachers could even use it with other teachers to coordinate field trips.

But the best thing about a wiki is that you don't have to be some technological genius to use one. It's a quick and easy tool that allows everyday people the chance to work together and to share their ideas.

Cool Thing #14

For this cool thing I chose to create an account with Gliffy and Mindmeister. I have never used an online flowchart or mind map but I will now! I liked the fact that it was so extremely easy, fast, and free to set up these accounts.

I liked Gliffy because it was easy to use and, although I didn't actually create a flowchart, I see myself using this tool in the future (I really do).

I chose Mindmeister because hey, what a cool name. But also, I like Mindmeister because the idea of being able to work simultaneously on the same map with friends is so awesome. I love brainstorming and when Santa brings me an iphone this Christmas, I'll be able to access my mind wherever I am. . .how about that for creativity.

But while flow charts and mind maps are both collaborative tools, I like the mind map better. Flowcharts to me are more stuffy, used for analyzing and managing where as a mind map is more creative, intuitive and non-linear. What do you think?