I have made new wikis for my schools. Check them out and let me know what you think I should add. You also might want to take a look at the teacher wikis. I am so proud of everyone that is trying to connect with their students electronically. Some teachers are old hats at this medium, but we have a few newbies that are testing the waters. Good for them!
Until next time ~ Danita
WOW! Remind me never to apply for 3 session at a conference again! I thought I would apply for 3 sessions in hopes that NCAECT would accept one. Surprise! The good thing was that we presented back to back to back in the same room and all on the first day.
Our best session was our first one, Digital Photos, now what?. We had people sitting on the floor. Kim and I were expecting maybe 20 tops. You can only imagine our surprise when people kept coming in. It was great! Of course, we had a few stumbles, but since it was our first time presenting on digital photos, it went very well. Our Animoto didn’t load in time, but Kim was a huge hit with Gogofrog. If you haven’t tried Gogofrog, you have to – it’s great!
We then presented Wiki This Way. We have done this particular session before, so it went off fairly well. I hope everyone learned something. We had some great comments from the teachers. Again, we had a huge turnout, but not standing room only.
Finally, we ended with Creating Magic with Web 2.0 Tools. Again, this was a rerun for us, but it still went well. Not as many people this time since it was also during Tammy Worcester’s session. She is so good, that I really didn’t blame people for attending her session. In fact, I suggested that a couple of teachers go there and view our wiki later. But, we did have a good turnout. I think that we need to refocus if we use this session again. Web 2.0 tools is just too wide open. Skypeing with a NASA trainer was the highlight. The teachers loved that!
Even though we didn’t get to attend many sessions on the last day, there were a couple of teachers presenting their lessons on SmartBoards in the hallway that I thought was one of the most beneficial I have ever attended. Susie and her partner, whom I’m sorry I have forgotten her name, had some great ideas! I’m so glad that she made a wiki. I volunteered to make one for her is she would send me her lessons. They are great – check them out!
The NCAECT conference was really good this year. Scott Smith and Marlo Gaddis did a wonderful job. It was one of the best conferences I have attended in recent years.
Until next time ~ Danita
That’s exactly how I’ve been feeling for a couple of weeks now. I can’t seem to shake this bug I’ve caught. Wonder if I just might be allergic to the new kitten that Jeff brought home. Hmmmmmm……
We had an interesting workshop on Thursday with the teachers at West. We started with Powerpoint activities like Tammy Worcester’s activities, then we moved on to online games. The real learning took place afterwards when we started talking about Voice Thread. The ideas were flying.
On Friday, I took pictures of my mentees class’ collages. They are going to record their voices and book reports on Voice Thread next Thursday. I’m very excited!
One of the teachers in the workshop asked if I would have a session on the new web2.0 tools I have found. Are you kidding me??? Tell me when you want it and I’m there! So, I have gone from begging teachers to come to my workshops to them asking me to give them more. Tell me, how fabulous is this?
Until next time ~ Danita
What a wonderful week I had! It began Monday with my friend Kim and I presenting at the North Carolina Elementary Education Conference. We did our Web Wizards Web 2.0 presentation. How fun it is to have someone you can work with so well. She’s great and really does know her stuff. The best part was when we were asked at the end of the session to present wikis to 15 LEA’s in Western Carolina. How cool!
Thursday, I had an advanced wikis workshop for my teachers. We had about 8 teachers there, but the sharing and learning we did was phenomenal! I need to have a sharing session soon. While we were talking about wikis, we got off on tangents (reminds me of my teaching days) of other web 2.0 applications – Skype was popular. Now that the fire is spreading, people are spending more and more of their time discovering new applications. I would love to be able to sit back, listen, and facilitate a great web 2.0 discussion. It’s coming! How exciting!
Today was the awesome closure to a great week. We took my 12 year old St. Bernard, Katie, to the Lee County Fair for the 4-H dog show. Nothing fancy, but it sure is fun. Katie loves it! She gets all the attention she can stand and has everyone eating out of her hand, uh, paw. She won several blue ribbons and a couple of 2nd places. She didn’t win Best in Show like she did in 2005, but she had a great time. Now, she will sleep for days to recover 
)
Until next time ~ Danita
The far reaching Internet has proven itself to me once again. I’ve had 2 very unexpected emails from people I have never met in person and probably won’t ever see face to face. But, we are communicating and discovering how we can help each other.
The first email I received was from a company in the United Kingdom. Mediasnackers does training in the UK; not only to teachers, but also to companies. Through Twitter, they found me and now want to interview me. How cool is that? DK posted in his blog a comment that I loved. He referred to discovering new connections as digital breadcrumbs.
Digital Breadcrumbs
breadcrumbs[SUMMARY—Follow them.]
(GBR) One of our favourite mantras we throw around in our training is: follow the digital breadcrumbs.
If you find a weblog you like click through the blogroll, if you find someone bookmarking the same site you have check out the rest of their links etc. Here’s a real life example:
MediaSnackers is on Twitter. We got an email this morning that someone new is following us. We checked out their twitter page and clicked through to their weblog to discover their role as the instructional technology facilitator for Lee County Schools, in North Carolina, USA.
After some more clicking and reading we found out some amazing examples of teachers using wikis, sending newsletters out via SlideShare plus a great post with a huge list of resources (most of which we haven’t heard of before).
Follow the digital breadcrumbs folks and you never know what pearls you will find.
The second email came from another techie who was just now beginning to work with other teachers about wikis. She found my blog and wanted to share the post on wikis with her teachers. Of course, I said yes (I mean, how flattering is that??), and directed her to my wiki so she could also share that site. We have “talked” a bit and are now sharing ideas.
On another note, one of my Twitter friends, Kim Cofino, was looking for a 4th grade class that her 4th grade class could correspond. She is in Bangkok, Thailand. I sent out a request to the other ITF’s in the county and one of them found a teacher in her school that is interested. I am so excited!
This is what makes my job the best! Gotta love it!
Until Next Time ~ Danita
This has been a great week. I’m having more and more teachers approach me and ask how they can make a wiki. I knew the fire would catch on, but I had no idea how quickly it would spread! The wikis range in ability, like our kids, and some teachers have put in quite a bit of effort. I’ve been very impressed with what the teachers have produced. This is the link to the teacher wikis on my wikispace.
My next fire to kindle is getting the teachers to allow their students to publish their work on the wikis. Some have with fabulous results, but some teachers are a little apprehensive. It is hard to “give up control” of your classroom. I like what Jenn “Technospud” says. It’s all BS (baby steps). 
We do have to learn to crawl before we walk.
Last year, my first year as an ITF, we began with a few tumbles while learning to crawl. This year, I hope we stumble a bit while learning to walk. Watch out for us next year! We’re going to be running full steam!
Not too many people can actually say, “I love my job”, but I honestly do. My Mom asked me last night, if I could go back and change my life and do anything I wanted, would I still be a teacher. Without hesitation, I can truthfully answer “yes”! How blessed am I?
Until Next Time ~ Danita
Friday, August 31st was Blog Day 2007. This was something new to me since I wasn’t even blogging at this time last year. Bloggers around the world are being encouraged to highlight five newer blogs that might target a different audience than their own. Larry Ferlazzo nominated me as one of his five. WOW! What an honor. And I thought no one read this but my mom Thanks Larry for the boost!
Still struggling with my neocounter. For the life of me I can’t figure out what I’m doing wrong. Sigh…..
Until next time ~ Danita
Whew! We survived the first day of school. Actually, it was my first year in 15 years not being in the classroom. It was kinda sad – but I sure didn’t miss all the butterflies! From what I saw, both East Lee and West Lee opened very smoothly. At the end of the day, the kids were still smiling and the teachers had a look of exhaustion. Boy oh boy, do I remember that feeling. I really do miss all the excitement.
I spent the greater part of the day organizing my classroom office. I say that because I actually have an extra classroom to use as an office. Wow! A lot of room to spread out all my important “stuff”. I would love to have a few computers so that I could have a mini computer lab, but alas, not this year. Maybe I’ll put that on my Christmas wish list.
On the bright side, my calendar is filling quickly. The wikis have taken off this year. I’m so excited! I’ve had several teachers ask me to show them since they have heard such good comments from other teachers. So, that fire did spread like, well, wildfire. The teachers all have different ideas of how they are using their wikis and I think that’s great! Not all want to use as a student work display and not all want to use as a homework webpage. I’m happy they are using them. Just think, this time last year, no one in our district was even using wikis. Now, almost all the schools are using them. Yippee!!
My neocounter isn’t working and I can’t see who has visited. If you have suggestions on what might be wrong, please let me know. Being the noisy sort, I enjoy seeing how many countries have visited.
Until next time ~ Danita
Recently, I have been working with my former teaching partner’s students on making wikis. These students are extremely bright and only needed a starting point and off they went. While we were working one day, Cynthia wrote a poem concerning her dilemmas with wikis. She agreed to allow me to share:
Ode to a Wiki or My Wiki Web Wart
by Cynthia McFaddenMy wiki is ugly
is has very few charms
such as whistles and bells
or attention alarms.Unorganized, haphazard
without HTML,
I’m embarrassed to reveal
it’s illogical as heck.It’s all my fault,
I did not attend
offered workshops
designed to amend.The warts and scabs
are unorganized whim.
When it’s time to manage,
I’m out on a limb.So why do I continue
to post potpourri
for my kids to sort
so ineffectively?When the hour is late,
and homework’s not done
students stumble to the wiki wart
where the info’s par none.Oh, Ugly Web Wiki,
you deserve better than me,
but until I have time
you’re all you can be.Sigh …..
Until next time ~ Danita
Flickr: Wiki Wiki
Okay, I must be losing my comprehension for directions – maybe because I read them so infrequently… I have been working on adding the YackPack widget to my wikispace and am having zero luck.
Maybe, I’m wanting something that YackPack can’t offer. I’d like for people to leave messages on the wikspace. I’ve tried embedding and linking. All I can do now is link and you will be taken to the YackPack group.
Anyone know what the heck I’m doing wrong??
Until next time ~ Danita
Ok, we had “the discussion” this afternoon. The conversation of what should/should not be included in acceptable use policy. Also, what websites we thought were appropriate. Of course, YouTube was at the top of the list.
I understand that allowing student’s free reign to YouTube probably isn’t a good idea, but I also believe that teachers should be able to show videos from there. I have an account where I have saved educational videos that the teachers would love to show in their room. It’s difficult to find good math videos, but there are several on YouTube.
Two hours later, we still hadn’t come to a consensus. So, my question to you, what do you allow and why or why not? Does your county/school district have an acceptable use policy? I’d love to know.
Until next time ~ Danita
flickr: YouTube
I previously posted my notes from the NCAECT Conference on my blog (see previous entries), but I want to leave the links if anyone is interested in reading. Remember, my head goes faster than my fingers or is it my fingers go faster than my head. Whichever one it is, there are typos (I can guarantee that!). I’m having problems publishing Monday’s notes. That’s a shame because it was a day long session with Will Richardson.
Until next time ~ Danita
Flickr: Notes
I was so excited about the teacher making his wiki, that I forgot all about my exciting day on Friday.
My friend, the one that I think is the best Language Arts/ Social Studies teacher I know, called and asked me if I would help her class make a podcast.
Yippee! I was more than happy to do it. I think I ran down the hall to get to her room. When I got there, I realized that one of my podcasting young men was in the class. All I did was ask him if he would be okay teaching the other kids and he said yes. So, I was able to sit back and watch as the kids took control of their own learning. Ain’t education grand? According to Cynthia, in a matter of a few minutes, he had divided out jobs to the other students and was well on his way to taking control.
After the first class, Cynthia asked if I would work with her second class to teach them about podcasting. Well, hey hey. Pinch me. I’m beginning to wonder if I am dreaming!
I must be living a charmed life (remind me of that the next time I mess something up). When I went into the 2nd class, there sat another one of my podcasting boys. He, like the first student, took control and was teaching the others how to podcast.
I can’t wait to listen to the pods after they are finished. Both classes are working on the Linus Project which is too cool. I’m not going to spoil the Project by telling you about it. I’ll wait until the pods are finished.
You gotta love it!
Until next time ~ Danita
Flickr: Yippee
Yahoo2! How often do we get to post the good great stuff? Well, I have 2 great items to post tonight.
The first great item was that my presentation went well Thursday night. We had probably 100-150 people in attendance and I had a really good turnout at my sessions. That may not seem like much to you, but we normally have about a fifth of that amount at our PTSO meetings. Hopefully, next year will draw even more parents. I have volunteered to do another Internet safety session later in the year. I will have about an hour for that presentation. Much, much better than my 10 minutes. I don’t know about you, but I can talk – and 10 minutes was just enough to get me started.
The second great item, and I did have a conundrum of which of these to post first, was about the teacher wikis. Remember the teacher that couldn’t understand the difference between wikis and blogs? Well, he called me this afternoon asking me to help him add pages to his navigation page. He went on to say that he LOVES the wiki and is excited about adding to it. Let me repeat that, he said he loves the wiki and is excited about adding to it. WOW! To say I was surprised is the understatement of the century. Check out his wiki. It’s really pretty good for a first try.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to bask in my happiness for awhile )
Until next time ~ Danita
Flickr Smiling Dog
Splat! That was me hitting the wall on Friday night. Hubby and I were having our normal Friday night supper with my school friends. The H.O.T.’s (husbands of teachers) were sitting at their end of the table discussing important stuff (I think I heard North Carolina and Kentucky basketball) and the teachers were at the other end.
One the teachers asked me to help him with the difference between blogs and wikis. He had attended both of my workshops, but ‘just couldn’t get it’ – his words, not mine. Well, the conversation from that point went from bad to worse. When I tried to give him another explanation, the other teachers started talking about wikis and blogs and how they weren’t impressed. Keep in mind, at this point it’s 4 against 1 in the web 2.0 debate. The more I tried to share the importance, the more they shot me down. I was so disappointed by the time we left.
The reasoning behind my disappointment lies in the fact that one of the teachers there is one I hold in very high regard. She is not only the most intelligent person I’ve ever known, but also the best Language Arts/Social Studies teacher I know. I just couldn’t sell her on the idea of student blogs.
I think that having language arts classes write compositions in a blog is a wonderful idea. They could comment on each other’s blogs. Great way to build a montage of writings. But, I’m going to have to come up with a new sales pitch because what I’m doing now isn’t quite working.
She is working on a couple of wikis, though. The first one we did was about the civil rights movement. She had initially typed out several pages of information to hand out to her students. I suggested, why not put it on wiki and let the students add any new information they discover? Well, that worked great and she’s thinking of doing more projects that way. She has a ton of information with some great links. I look forward to her next wiki.
The teacher who couldn’t understand the difference between a wiki and a blog, was adamantly opposed to letting kids have the power to change/add information to something for which he was responsible. I tried to explain that that was the beauty of the wiki. Kid’s take authorship very seriously, and yes, there may be a few bad apples in the bunch that will enter inappropriate or bad information, but the majority won’t. Do you think we should ban all music because some artists produce inappropriate material? Nope, no sell.
The assistant principal that was with us said the point that stunned me more than any other in the conversation. He made the comment that “this wiki and blog stuff is just another phase and will be gone soon.” Oh my, I was speechless. How do you respond? I have to admit, I now have several comebacks, but at the time, I sat there with my jaw on the floor. Hindsight is always 20/20 isn’t it?
The fourth of our ensemble was a parent (we taught her son last year) and works at the school. She didn’t have much to say other than she didn’t understand “blogs and wikis and all that stuff.” But, she said she had read my blog and was impressed that I had taken so much time to share what I have learned with other teachers. Now, that’s a positive step!
I wanted to burst out and explain to these educators that we must change our teaching or our kids are going to be left behind. I daily read many, many blogs on education – the last count was near 200 – and I can see where the web2.0 is taking so many innovative teachers. I think of everything I would do differently in my own classroom if I were still there. Wow! The opportunities for our kids are endless! We just have to open the door and let the dogs out. So to speak. Kids are so much more advanced than we adults.
One of the teachers on Friday night suggested that many people are simplifying their cell phones because they don’t need or know how to use all the extra gadgets. She equated that to the new technologies I’ve been introducing to them. Too much “stuff”. I’m sure that many people are simplifying their cell phones, but I would almost bet a paycheck none of them are under 30. As for the new technologies, I’ve tried to spread out the workshops I’ve done and explained to the teachers they can come to as many or as few as they desire. Wide open to their interest and comfort level.
So, how did the night end? Amicably. We are all friends and know we can disagree and still remain so. Isn’t that the beauty of true friendship? But, hubby sure did get an earful on the way home.
As soon as I could get to my laptop, I emailed my other friend, Kim, who is also a new ITF. She and I share very similar thoughts on web2.0. I can express my frustrations and celebrations with her and she understands. Long story short, she responded to my email and completely agreed with me. She said she had decided to focus on the teachers who were willing to try new ideas. Gotta love her! I think I’ll do the same.
Not all the teachers in my three schools are opposed to the new technology. There are some very good beginning wikis. Judy, Gregg, and Teri are doing an awesome job! If you can, take a minute and check out their wikis. Three completely different uses of wikis, but all really good starts. It amazes me that they all only recently learned about wikis. I can’t wait for their next projects.
So, I appeal to you, whomever you are that might be reading this dissertation, to give me ideas and thoughts to share with the teachers that prefer not to jump onto the bandwagon of the 21st century.
I feel like I’m taking 1 step forward and 2 steps back.
Until next time ~ Danita
Flickr: Step by Step
I have forgotten how to work with 6th graders. After teaching 7th and 8th grade for several years, I forgot how you have to go slower and step by step with 6th graders. I worked with a group today using Gaggle as an editing tool. God love ‘em, they tried. But, between me not talking on their level and them not being experienced on computers, we about had a train wreck. Hopefully, the next time will be a bit better. I hope.
I did introduce Gaggle to 7, yes 7, classes yesterday. Boy, was I tired! I don’t know where in the world my head was when I did my scheduling. I wanted to be busy and I’ve accomplished that goal. Better busy than slow.
Still working on my wikis. I’ve had 4 teachers make wikis and share them. They are too cool! I’m so excited!
I could use some help on one of the wikis I’m working on. I’m trying to design a wiki where teachers can go to find uses for web 2.0 applications. Aptly named, Great Idea Wiki. I’m welcoming any ideas you can add. Maybe together we can invent the better mousetrap.
Until next time ~ Danita
I had another 3 am brainstorm. Wonder why our most impressive ideas come during inconvenient times – in the shower, in the middle of the night, in the bathroom?
Well, my bright idea was to make a wiki for teachers to find ideas for using Web2.0 in their classrooms. Not bad, huh?
Now, the problem… I can’t find the time to do all this myself. I need help. I have copied ideas from other websites and authors, giving them credit of course. The wiki is in it’s infant stage and very rough. Please feel free to help with the design, too.
I’d love for you to add ideas to the wiki so we all can benefit. Please pass this along to others so we can have a great wiki for teachers new to the Web2.0
Until next time ~ Danita
Flickr
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