Moving Forward

During the WEB 20 class I have learned a great deal.  What I am thinking through now is how to effectively use the tools that I have learned.  Many of the students at my school are not as technology savvy as is assumed and this now gives me the opportunity to support their growth in this area.

I am currently collaborating with a science teacher and we are going to have her students create a blabberize and a paragraph about what a scientist does. I am going to take their work and put it into a photo story to present to the other sections of science.  This is a project I would not have tackled without this class. I know this is just a beginning but it is a start.

A quote from Will Richardson in his book about blogs seems to fit my thinking, “Learning in this environment is about being able to construct, develop, sustain and participate in global networks that render time and place less and less relevant.”

I plan to use Google Reader to keep up with the amount of information that is available and now in an organized fashion, not just all over the place.

I am still in the early stage of how to effectively use blogs and wikis with my students but think this may take the shape of collaboration with several teachers and have students use them to communicate their progress on a 6 week project.   

Book Review: The Magical Misadventures of Prunella Bogthistle

The Magical Misadventures of Prunella Bogthistle by Beva Fagan

 Publisher: Henry Holt, 2010
 ISBN: 978-0-805087437
Student Interest Level: 3rd-8th grade
Subjects: heroes, witches, magic, curses


Plot Summary: Prunella is a lost cause as a witch. She cannot do even a simple spell, in fact her efforts usually produce a negative effect. When Prunella tries to help an intruder she is banished for her efforts. This leads
her on a personal journey to retrieve stolen items.

Critical Analysis: Prunella is a very spunky character who carries on  despite what seems to be insurmountable odds that include strong magic, giant alligators, and the hatred of the villagers. The theme of being who you are is threaded through the narrative. The ending, while predictable fits the fairy tale quality of the story.

Review Excerpts:

Horn Book (Fall 2010)

Prunella aspires to be a wicked bog-witch like the rest of the Bogthistles, but she can't even muster a proper curse. Her grandmother's exasperation with Prunella drives her (and reluctant ally Barnaby) into the magic-wary Uplands, where she discovers her talent lies in helping rather than hexing. Themes of looking beyond differences and making one's own destiny deepen this playful adventure.

Other Books by the Same Author:

Fortune's Folly

Screen Shots

Well, just when I think I am able to deal with technology then technology comes back and says oh no you're not! I tried to do the screen shot following the directions and ,of course, it didn't work. Then I tried to go online and chat with Johnnie last night and I was not allowed access to chat. So now this morning I will have to re-try until I get it right. It seems for me nothing is as simple as it should be but I guess that is the challenge to think it through and work out the kinks. I always feel great when I get it right. Sometimes to get there the journey is very confusing. Must get started with the library duties but will keep trying today to make it work.

Is it a Blog or is it a WIKKI

At this point I sometimes have trouble separating the two but this is my understanding:
   Blog is a type of journal, usually written by a single individual that is updated on a regular basis. The topic can be about anything. It is similar to a diary but instead of being ones private thoughts it is now published for anyone in the world to see. That is an interesting thought for me growing up in world where one was introspective but did not share these thoughts so freely but only with people they knew and felt comfortable with. My mom always said,"don't put anything in writing you would not want others to read." Interesting we now put everything into writing-how things change and grow .

WIKKI is a collective work that is published by a person or group and then others are able to edit, change, or add information to the topic.

Web 2.0

This blog is set up for my class entitled; Web 2.0. I am taking this class because I am very technology challenged. I want very much to be able to use technology to support my students and be comfortable enough to share this knowledge with them.