Put It Into Practice

I decided to put my new found info to the test and use it with my students. I used a Google Earth path I created called "De Truscott Hasta Mexico". I wanted to take my first graders on a visual tour from Truscott to Mexico and then show them the places we've talked of and to explore the many environs of Mexico, particularly the valley to where the eastern Monarchs migrate.
The computer lab is open on Friday's so I arranged to have them join me there. Day 1, the projector wasn't in it's place so we rescheduled. Just as well because I found that the notation pins I made on the original path didn't transfer to the school computer (?) so I had to reset the pins on the computer room's computer. Ultimately, it was wonderful! The kids were engaged and excited and interested. It was great to give them visual cues to the words and places we had studied. Hopefully, I have a better handle on the technology (still miffed with Google Earth) and can more easily use it in the future.
I also ended a unit on insects by showing a video of the many strange and funky insects in the world. Unfortunately, neither of my second grade classrooms have projectors and the computer lab is in use during both their classes. I tried showing the video on the lap top. Arrgh! 26 second graders trying to shove and jockey for position which means "touching" and scootching into others' personal space and, "He's not sitting on his bottom. I can't see.", etc.... Fifteen plus minutes to show a 4.5 minute video!Can't say I'm anxious to do that again. We can hope we'll have more classroom projectors in the coming years.
Yes, there are a great many resources available through social media and Web2.0. I will be more willing to try and integrate them into what I do with my students. These programs can be a wonderful way to ignite learning and interest. Maybe part of my goal needs to be sharing these resources with my students' parents. Maybe I can prick the student's interest and encourage a shared activity with their parents.

Lest We Take Ourselves Too Seriously

I have several blogs I track that write of teaching Spanish. Today's post on "Teaching and Learning Spanish" is a video. I know not all of my classmates speak Spanish, however, I do believe the message will be understood. The video is simply called "Book". I hope you enjoy!

http://teachinglearningspanish.blogspot.com/2010/04/video-book.html

Is Anyone Out There?

So this BLOG is all about a Social Media class I'm taking through the school district. The intent is to explore the various forms of media and to examine how they might apply to the classroom or my professional development. Another effect of the class is for the students in the class to develop a personal social network. I understand the concept, can agree with the concept and can see value in the concept. Unfortunately, conceptualization and application are two different tiers on Bloom's Taxonomy.
It was my assumption that each of us would fulfill our requirements independently and on occassion, engage one another for details. So it has been. The truth is, I have a limited amount of time to accomplish the many roles I fulfill. I can't post a question or need and then sit about waiting for another person who might or might not be on the same module to come across my question and then hope that student can provide me answers. I could wait for a week or more for a response. I can see how this might work in a structured environment such as the work place. Not so much in a class format as this.
As far as I can tell, this BLOG site has been visited by you Val and only you. I hope I've not bored you to tears. Oddly enough, I have enjoyed writing to myself. (I often ignore the notion that you are reading it!) Long has it been a valuable exercise for people to journal. I perceive BLOG more as a 21st century journal than a social media.

The Beauty of Words

With so many social medias available to us, the number of words we "emit" can be tremendous. Do we take them seriously?
In my life, I have used five different languages to accomplish my daily living. We lived in China and learned Mandarin, however, we lived in Canton where Cantonese is spoken. We lived in Barcelona, Spain and learned Spanish. The locals there speak Catalan. I also have a fair grasp of English. Having lived outside of my own language gave me a great appreciation for words, their meanings, their uses, and their nuances.
Many languages in Asia utilize pictographs rather than letters to form a written language. These pictographs represent both verbal sounds and concepts. Combinations of those "radicals" create words. One of my favorite words is a combination of three radicals. The word is love. The top radical is "heart", the second is "roof", and the third is "friend". When viewed as a picture we see a friend who is housed is one's heart. What a beautiful description of love. Another favorite comes from faith vocabulary particularly important to Christians. The word for "redemption", which existed prior to the first missionaries, is composed of two radicals. The top being "lamb". The lower radical is the pronoun "me". As a picture we have me under the lamb. Christian faith defines redemption as me and my life made whole by the overseeing of Jesus, the "sacraficial lamb".
Never in my years living in China did I feel I had a sufficient grasp of Mandarin to be able to engage in casual conversation. Fortunately, we were being hosted by a university and it was our director's responsibility to be by our sides to translate in any vital conversation. That was not the case in Spain. I hit the airport tarmac in need of a second language. It would have been nice to have it! One of the prevailing images I have of myself is that of a three year old trying to conduct an adult's business. My language skills were immature, yet my need of language was not. "Estoy bien." was about as descriptive as I could be for months when asked,"?Como estas?" Quite often I was dismissed as a direct result of my language skills. How many times did I see that roll of eyes and down turn of the lips when I tried to explain myself? Our vocabulary, our word choices, our command of language all define us and cast an impression of our being.
Phrases and idioms which help to define a culture are also created from words. One of my favorite Spanish phrases is "a la mesa". Simply put it means "at the table". When used in the context of a leisurely evening with friends, a cool breeze coming off the Med, the scents of a well prepared meal, the tinkle of wine gobets toasting the evening "a la mesa" is an event, an expression of emotion, a way of being, a perspective.
One of the most difficult moments when living in a second language is knowing that you need words to communicate something vital but they are out of your grasp; a visit to the doctor with a sick child, an unexplained deficit in one's bank account, purchasing a $20,000 car. Our words can give us a sense of convidence, a certainty of our position in relationship to the rest of the world. It is also a basic need to express ourselves and to be engaged in communication with others. What child hasn't turned to their mother and asked, "Why?" after the mother said, "I love you." The words expressed at the side of a widow can nourish and sustain or damage. How many cards have I stored away in my top drawer over the years because I wanted to keep kind words at hand?
We have a great many new means by which to communicate, or do we have a great many new means to transmit communication? Ultimately, what we say and the words we choose is communication. Do these new forms encourage us to more wise and thoughtful in our word choice, or does the ease of transmission create laziness?

Learning Curves.

What a day! I've been very determined to finish up the bulk of the iKnow class during Spring Break while my son and husband are out of the house. I've spent over 12 hours today alone trying to do what needs to be done. It starts off easy and straight forward and then the beauty of technology steps in.
My computer's movie making program doesn't save in a format I need. This I learned after taking the videos and creating the movie which of course was a learning curve because I had never used the program before. So, I downloaded a trial version of another movie maker. Created the movie. Found out my computer didn't have the capacity to save the files, unless I wanted to wait 28 hrs for the process. By this time, the video camera's batteries died and I was off to the store. Ever noticed how we are using fewer and fewer cell batteries? I could only find one in the whole house! Well, third time is a charm. I found a bare bones, really bare bones download. Funny, the "Help" tab sent you to the purchase page! At last, I created the movie from my video clips.
Thank goodness, I was finally able to download to TeacherTube. However, I'm pending "acceptance". Guess TeacherTube reviewers aren't as dedicated to their task as I and have gone to bed.
Then there was VoiceThread. It took a few tries. I'm glad I spent time with it several weeks ago getting the basics. Of course, it's never as straight forward as one wishes it to be.
Don't EVEN get me started on Google Earth!!! I figure a user should be able to dink around with something 2,3,maybe 4 times and get it. If that doesn't work, the help section should be distinct and useful. Nope.
The reason teachers don't use all the wonderful options out there for them to move their students into the 21st century? Learning curves.

Another Password!!!

1- Personal email
2- Two joint emails with my husband
3- Business email
4- School district email
5- School district Infinite campus
6- Facebook
7- Wikispace
8- Delicious
9- Diigo
10-Picnik
11-Flikr
12-Skype
13-Voice Thread
14-Blogger
15-Teacher Tube

I haven't even begun to list the more personal passwords and accounts for banks and Amazon and the Denver Performing Arts and Visa verify and my health insurance company and AT&T and Points Reward through the credit union and Parks & Rec and CU Boulder and AIMS and Loveland Wedding Professionals web page and employee ID for subfinder and the password to verify downloads on my school computer and ......................

No wonder I can't remember my next door neighbor's name!

Faster Than A Speeding "Bullet"?

In 1990, my husband and I moved to Guangzhou, China to live and teach for 2 years. Guangzhou is a 3 hour "fast" train ride from Hong Kong. Soon after we first arrived, I learned of a concern with a family member so we went to a phone center to make a call to the US. We had to wait for over an hour while our trunk call was connected. Moreover, that 5 minute phone call cost us a month's pay!!!
In August of 1991, while still in China,I gave birth to our first child, Emmy. Nine months earlier, my God daughter, Jessie, was born. The process of exchanging photos was thus: We usually waited until we went into Hong Kong to have our film of Emmy developed (better processing but not 1 hour). We then sent those photos to Jessie's parents. If all went well, they received those photos in 2 weeks. If they were dilligent, we received photos of Jessie 2 to 3 weeks later. Easily a month's turn around!
In 2003, as a family of four, we moved to Barcelona, Spain. By then, internet and email had emerged. It was not uncommon to send a message,with downloaded photos to friends and receive a reply in the same day. We had calling cards which allowed us to speak to each other for a mere $.09 a minute, connecting after only a few dozen numbers and pins applied. Prior to our leaving, it was not uncommon for Emmy and Jessie to set up the internet camera and play dolls together!
In the summer of 2006, my daughter and I went to the UK for a visit. We were armed with our cell phones which we could use to call home at any moment. Had I chosen to pay the data package costs, we could have taken photos and immediately sent them to my husband and son back in Colorado.
In February, a tremendous earthquake hit Chile. This is a country we have visited on more than one occassion and where some dear friends live. Saturday morning we awoke to the news of the quake and immediately we had concerns for our friends. By 9:00 pm, we were "chatting" real time with them via our Facebook pages being assured of their safety.
Wow! What advances and in so little time. What will the next 18 years bring?

Social Media from a Business Perspective

As mentioned in my last BLOG, I have a business called Florals by Rhonda. I rely heavily on the Internet to provide my advertisement be it logo recognition, information, contact info or communication.
I use a web site to capture attention of potential brides. Because of a diligent effort to submit my site to various "local" and "business specific" search engines, I'm pretty assured of a bride finding my web site if she is searching for florist or wedding flowers in Loveland or Colorado. That's a first contact that I couldn't hope for in the traditional forms of telephone book, newspaper, or magazine ads. My web site is 24/7 , 365 a year and it has no monthly fees, which have become out of reach for a small business owner such as myself in more traditional marketing forms.
I also use a Facebook page as a secondary resource of presenting information. I can submit sites for brides to peruse, post flower specials or suggest events and vendors. It is far easier to submit information in this manner than changing my web page which is great, however, the nature of Facebook creates the expectation of change and thus I must be diligent at making new posts. I like Facebook because it links me with other vendors. When Ellis Ranch posts on their profile, it shows on mine, and vice versa. Such interaction not only produces more visibility, it creates logo association and affirms my professional image because of my relationship with other trusted businesses. The downside to this multi-faceted communication is the negative comment. In the past, a business could expect a dissatisfied customer to spread the word to 15 people. Social media has nearly tripled that effect. The average Facebook account has 40 friends!
I've not yet started using a BLOG to generate marketing, however it is to be seen in the floral industry, particularly with wedding services. It's a great media for displaying photos of ones work and more in depth discussions of floral options and designs. One of my associates has created a BLOG for her venue site and is doing a great job of promoting her venue as well as Loveland for brides. For now, I'll jump on her boat and become a "Follower".
In the last few weeks, I have had 5 brides contact me regarding their wedding flowers. One found me on a local search, a second from a web site's Preferred Vendors list, a third via a contact I made on Facebook and two from personal referals. I'm glad to see that social media/internet is working for me. 

Personal Space

In the last two months I have opened a Facebook account for my person as well as a Facebook page for my business, Florals by Rhonda, a web page for the business http://www.floralsbyrhonda.com/ , a Blog page, a Diigo account and a Delicious account. How many hours have I spent trying to assure these various accounts reflect my sense of privacy? I think Facebook was the most time consuming. I had to return to each Facebook presentation on several occassions to "tweek" the privacy settings. There were many settings that I simply stumbled upon, such as the one in regards to whether or not my "friend" can provide my data to other entities or whether entities dealing with my "friend" can upload info from her site which may contain my info!!! Was that sentence confusing? So was the process of securing my data and privacy. Seriously, there were some settings that required 3 or 4 clicks simply to find.
This brings to mind the topic of personal space and privacy. I am pleased to know that these settings exist. I have a great many friendships that are dear to me and these friendships are around the globe. Just today I emailed with friends whom I met while living in Barcelona, Spain. Via Facebook I was able to "chat" realtime on Saturday, the day of the 8.8 Chilean earthquake with a friend who lives in Temuco, Chile. Such technology helps me to maintain these friendships. There are few things I enjoy more than sitting with good friends here in Loveland over a good meal and a better glass of wine. Relationships are incredibly valuable to me. However, I choose my relationships. I choose what I share and with whom I share it. The idea that my life, my thoughts, my pursuits are splattered across this vast, nebulous existense called The Web does not sit well with me.
Is it my age, my personality, or my experiences that move me this way? Will my daughter and son feel differently and will that difference benefit them or not?

Welcome to My Assignment

As my fellow classmates know, it is a requirement for my iKnow class to create a personal blog. The intent of this task is to gain practice and experience using the "blog" format as a means to bring social networking into my classroom and into my professional development. In this class, we are exploring the various social networks and their potential use in education.
Myself, I teach Spanish in the elementary classroom and have found it difficult to see how I would utilize many of the social medias in a classroom. It is not as difficult for me to see the use of such medias for professional communication and development. The curriculum I teach is heavily dependent on play and personal interaction as oppose to the use of printed or written materials. However, in Loveland, there are three different Spanish programs taught at the elementary level. I have had very little contact with the teachers in the other schools. Social media could be a wonderful way for us to communicate and share ideas with one another as we don't have formal meeting opportunities. Likewise, the field of language acquisition is constantly building upon itself. Beings that my curriculum is experiential, new ideas and activities to introduce and practice concepts is welcome, a resource social media can provide.