Thing 12

Review the widget you selected. Are you getting comfortable with embedding code? 


I am fairly comfortable embedding code. It is often problematic when things are pasted in the incorrect space, but this has only gotten easier over the years. Most widgets and things can be added with very little knowledge of html at all.


Do you belong to other online communities? Are relationships formed online as meaningful as face-to-face relationships? 


I do belong to a handful of other online communities. The relationships I have on these communities are nowhere near as meaningful as my relationships "in real life." To be honest, calling them relationships at all is probably incorrect. I can only think of a couple people that I have interacted with in any regularity online and these were due to a unique health situation my son has.


Why do you think Facebook and other social networking sites are so popular with kids today?


This is a huge question that could be answered over several pages, but I think it boils down to the desire to be constantly capable of socializing. 

Thing 11

What do you like / dislike about leaving comments? 


Leaving comments is a good way to give feedback and advice to other people. I have often found that I prefer advice form an individual when it is directed towards me specifically rather than the results I might get if I searched for answers to the question at hand. For example, just yesterday I asked for advice on which software is good for a home recording studio. Sure I used Google to search for information, but this is far less valuable than the specific personal responses I received from other members of the forum.


How did you feel when you received your first comment? Why do you think commenting is so important in online communities? 


Receiving comments is always exciting because someone is talking specifically to you. It opens engagement that may not otherwise occur. In the above example when I asked for recording studio advice, the comments I received likely came from miles away. This interaction with someone that is interested in the same topics simply does not occur without web 2.0.


What might this mean for students who share their writing online?


I feel like I sound like a broken record, but the anonymity of the Internet means that the students may get extreme criticism in the comments. If you take a look at any post or video's comments you undoubtedly run across extremely negative feedback.  

Thing 10

Add comments to the video you embedded. Why did you select it? Were you also able to download a video?


This is an awesome video that depicts the effect of "adding another zero" or in math terms, increasing the power of ten. It's a great video that I use whenever teaching scientific notation or exponents. The Simpsons even did a spoof in one of their intros using the concept. 

Thing 9

What do you like or dislike about YouTube? Did you find videos that would be useful for teaching and learning? 
Is YouTube restricted in your building?


YouTube is awesome! I have always maintained that some students can instantly grab a concept if they get another person's perspective on explaining  it. YouTube is a seemingly endless supply of teacher created tutorials that are easily found and shared. I distinctly recall an Algebra student that asked, "Why didn't you just show me this video in the first place?" after I showed a video on graphing with slope-intercept form. Clearly the woman in the video said or showed something that clicked with this student. 


Thank goodness YouTube is not blocked, however I like to try and download the videos if possible, so that I have my own copy of the video file. This prevents potential problems if the Internet is down or the video is removed.

Thing 8

The Parraghi horse photographs I took in Summer 2011

I believe that using photo software such as those suggested in Thing 8 are where the educational value of images really takes off. For example a great assignment in Language Arts would be to create a magazine cover featuring the image of a main character and article teasers that contain plot information, themes, etc.

In math I used a website called Glogster that allows students to make online posters that has hundreds of themes, frames, animations, and so on. The students had to design a poster that demonstrated their knowledge of combining like terms, inverse operations, and the distributive property. It worked really well. 

Thing 7

My photograph of my cousin's roping horse. 

Think of ways you may be able to use Flickr in the classroom or in your work and share your ideas. What issues might you face?


Copyright issues are always an issue with using online images. Also, using the images of minors is something that I do not feel comfortable with without specific written consent. On the other hand, students are often very proud and therefor possibly motivated by the potential of their picture being featured on a website. Earlier we discussed a classroom project where the winner of a tessellation design project would have their design painted on the ceiling of our classroom. Having this design featured on website would be an additional motivator.


A link to my horse photo album. 

Thing 6

Why did you choose a particular photo?What is it about the photo that you found interesting?


I chose this photo for 23 things because photography is a hobby of mine and I was interested in the street photographer's edit of this shot. I don't really love the vertical composition (I would have cropped more form the left side) , but the lighting and depth are nice.