Monday, March 28, 2011

C4K 2

Mr. Barks, Rm 18 - Pt England School,

Chanel's blog was about a water safety class she participated in on a field trip. There was a picture of her in the water in a life jacket and she had a smile from ear to ear. I told her that when I was younger, I too lived near the water and water safety is very important. I also checked out some of her other posts. It seemed that Chanel was having a great time learning in and out of the classroom and she had really embraced sharing her experiences on her blog.


Mrs. Lagitupu, Rm 21 - Pt England School
In Stephanie's blog, she shared some of experiences while on holiday. She enjoyed hanging out with friends and spending time with family. She also mentioned rocking chairs in a movie theater, which I had never heard of, and told her that we didn't have anything like that where I lived. I noticed that her blog was posted in February and I asked her what holidays were celebrated in New Zealand.

Mrs. Phares' Fourth Period
In Savannah's blog, she wrote a couple of sentences in regards to bullying that she had observed in her school. She stated that she herself had never been bullied but that she didn't agree with it and thought it was a very bad thing. I told her that it was good that her and her school were becoming aware and talking about bullying. The more people learn about and talk about bullying, the less it will happen.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Blog Post 9

Drop of Water

"What I've Learned This Year" by Mr. McClung

As a first year instructor, Mr. McClung wanted to look back on that year and evaluate what he had learned. He sets a great example just by doing this but we can look at what he has learned and try to apply these lessons in our own teaching careers and our lives in general. Mr. McClung says, "In order to be effective you have to be able to let your audience drive your instruction". As I read this, it brought to mind how most teachers are strong armed into teaching to the test. As educators, it will be easy to "lose touch with our audience" when we will be pressured to provide results in the form of good standardized test scores. Mr. McClung may not have had this particular situation in mind when he wrote this, but this was a reminder that the students are the number one priority and we have to be able to relate to them if we are to reach them. This goes hand in hand with listening to your students. Students have to know that they matter to you. Like Mr. McClung says, you may be the only one that does listen. Establishing a relationship with students can have far reaching effects, much further than the classroom. Teachers can change lives.

When Mr. McClung spoke of being reasonable and being flexible, I felt these also went hand in hand. You can't expect perfection from your students or from yourself. I really like the message that he gives us in regard to this. Set the bar high, but if you don't meet the goal, learn from that and use that, instead of becoming discouraged. Like his title said, stay positive!

Communication is probably the most difficult thing about Mr. McClung's post. Those of you who know me are probably laughing right now because I usually do not lack for something to say. True communcation can be difficult for me. If I have strong feelings (anger, confusion, embarrassment,etc...), it can be hard for me to express that. I do know that Mr. Mcclung is right; communication is the best medicine. The older I get, the more I realize that. This is an important lesson that should apply to all areas of our life. Communication is the lifeblood of relationships.

Don't be afraid of technology and never stop learning. Doesn't that sound familiar? I think this is the mantra of this semester. If I haven't learned anything else this semester, it will be these two things. So far, I have been dipping my feet in, trying to feel out the waters but I am going to trust Mr. McClung and just jump in head first....he says the water is fine!

Monday, March 7, 2011

C4T 2

Ms. Jenny She posted a video on her blog about a little boy who was walking down a beach, throwing starfish back into the ocean. A man approached him and asked him why would he do that, he couldn't possibly make a difference. The little boy pointed out that he did make a difference to the ones he threw back. Ms. She used this as an example of why we should never give up on our students. If a teacher can make a difference in one student's life then the teacher has succeeded. I have seen how defeated teachers can feel sometimes. It is easy to do when you have a hectic class and your list of things to do is too long and maybe you have a parent on your case or administration is pressuring you for paperwork. It is easy to feel like you don't make a difference. The video that was posted was very encouraging and uplifting.

Ms. She's second post was a fun one, motivated by her desire to purchase an Ipad2! The video is hilarious and I have chosen to share it with you guys as well. I told her that a discussion of the Ipad 2 took place in our lab just days ago. Apple technology is truly amazing. I also asked her if she planned on using her Ipad for classroom use.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Project 9b - Early Ming China Timeline



Photos and some information from Wikipedia.org was used in the making of this timeline.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

C4K 1

Blog 1: Ms. Naugle's 5th Period Math

Malik posted on the class blog to help students define and understand lines, line segments and rays. Along with the definitions and descriptions, he posted pictures so the other students could visualize what he was talking about. I thought that his post was simple and straight forward and that using pictures was a good accompaniment to his definitions.

Blog 2: KEPTV

Kobe and Unaloto did a presentation on "Little Fish, Big Fish" by Melanie Drewery. Kobe interviewed Unaloto to see what the book was about. The boys seemed to really enjoy not only the book, but the process of doing the interview and making the presentation. They inspired me to look up the book and order for myself and my son. They did a wonderful job!

Blog 3: PT England Room 11

Mikaiah posted some of his animated art on a volcano. He explains what a volcano is and in his art, he showed us what it can look like. His drawing was very vivid and bright and the animation was perfect. I look forward to seeing how his art progresses. I told him that when I was younger, I too, was interested in volcanos. I also encouraged him to never stop drawing. I asked him if he had ever heard of Mount St. Helens and gave him a link so he could look at pictures and get information about it.


Mount St. Helens