Glogster -- SUCCESS!

Patience...it pays off!
Of course, I think I have used a month's worth and will have to save up.

Thing #2 Glogster, Part 2 and Some Help

Glogster update...I said I was not giving up and I haven't...although this morning I came VERY close again when my password would not work. Big Red will tell you that!

Of course, it works much better when you finally realize that you NEVER created a password, you never registered for an account, and that is the reason I kept having to start over the other day!

So...be SURE you create your account before starting! You glog will disappear after a very few minutes if you step away...yes, I had that happen to me today!


With an account, you CAN stop working before you are finished, but you will want to save you glog as private...means no one can see it until you are ready for all of it to be seen!


o and btw, a Glogster person read my frustration from my previous post and gave me a help number. So if you need help, 888-GLOGS4U.

So I feel much better about the whole Glogster thing. I am going to shelve my serious project for a bit and play with one not so important...and therefore, needing less attention. I want to get one posted!

Thing #3 Skype's The Limit

Have talked all around Skype for years. Never had anyone far enough away who was interested. Have now seen it in use enough times at conferences that I know I need to know how. And now I have some long distance reasons for using as well. My daughter is finally going to have internet at home (another benefit of marriage) and my sister is getting a new computer, so not only will we share pictures, we will be able to converse!

So I downloaded it to my work PC. No problems. Then I started reading... and reading ... and reading...

I have to find my headset...in the back of my mind I knew that, but I don't where I put it and I can't get one from the office this week...so...


Headphone means I have to use the audio part of my computer and we have had less than a stellar relationship. For some reason, audio, headphones, and recording are not my strong suit. BUT I am determined to make this work...and not just work sporadically!

I would prefer to have someone who already has successfully set it up and used it show me what to do, but that is not always possible in the 2.0 world so I am going to try to get this going on my own! The perfect setting would be two of us sitting next to each other talking to each other from Skype until I "get it!" (Remember I learned email by sending one and then walking across the hall to see my friend received it!)

And yes, I will do it on my MAC as well, but my work PC has way more support should I mess something up. My MAC is still new enough, I want to get the bugs outta my brain before playing on it.

In the meantme, if you are willing to be the other half of my practice team, let me know, and when I find my headphone, we can take dip in Skype!


P.S. So here goes ANOTHER Thing half-done. This is not the trend I intended to set with my visit to the beach. Stay tuned...I'll load up the ice chest, get some more suncreen and be back to work on the sandcastles.


Credits:
Skype symbol from site
Character from Microsoft Clipart

Thing #2 Glogster, Hanging by a Voice Thread

I REALLY want to learn about Glogster and Voice Thread and I just can't seem to string enough uninterrupted time together to get far enough in either one to get the job done.

I want to create a Glogster to overlay our Curriculum wiki opening screen and jazz it up a bit. It is not the concept of what to do that is getting in my way. I really do understand how to do it, but between the zillion choices that I HAD to go thru and all the color changes I insisted needed to occur, I kept forgetting there is no way to save a partially made Glogster...it is either all or nothing!! Grrr.

Tonight I decided to move onto Voice Thread. I created an account and then carefully re-registered for an educational account because I thought I saw where a basic k-12 account was free. However, after filing out several information sheets and getting the email that signified I was accepted, every time I tried to move forward to actually creating something, I kept getting a pop up asking for $60 dollars!!

So I quit that also...for now! I will try again to see exactly how I went from free to 60 in less than 6 minutes! A challenge for another day. I am only temporarily defeated.

photo credit: by JunCTionS in Flickr CC

Thing #2 Bookr Your Thoughts, Ideas and Even Memories

This is just a quickly thrown together sample of a Bookr possibility. I knew one of my favorite beaches in the world would be available in the picture file...not the best photos I know could be available but enough to get the job done.

The question that has come up and I have it too. How can you use "better" pictures be they yours or someone else's? I think it may be the search term you select. I am pretty sure you have to open an account and upload your personal pictures and add a tag that you can later use to have them come up as bookr choices. I will see if I can find out any information to make these even more personal. Maybe someone who has used it longer can help with this question.

More samples from the tag cloud:

A Day at the Beach

My Poems book

A Moment I'll Never Forget

See lots more in the BookrArchive

Thing #2 Wordle Action and Word Sifting Some Thoughts: Sea Fever

I must go down to the sea...

I actually prefer going the way of a Wordle than actually going...at least to the Gulf. Now if it is Hawaii...we might have to talk!

I think using a Wordle to study poetry would present an interesting way to pull things out of the poetry that may not come in the more traditional way.  The classic poem Sea Fever by John Mansfield came to mind recently (as I was collecting all my bits and pieces of beach/sea trivia in light of this current adventure!) I learned it in 6th grade as part of our monthly poetry memorization work. Not sure I really understand it any better all these years later, but I do get a sense of  longing when repeating "I must go down to the sea..."

It's good to have something pulling you...be it the sea, the mountains, a time, a memory, a passion...for something or someone...  Anything tugging at you these days?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Putting the poem through Word Sift brought up some interesting visual cues...what a tremendous benefit for anyone who tries to help students understand vocabulary on any level of any kind!

Just look at the visual cue that came out my Word Sift of Sea Fever for the word spum...

How can you not now understand what it means when you connect "foam or froth on the sea"with this exquisite view.

Credits:

Wordle: http://www.wordle.net/

Photo: Bob Harris

http://www.treknature.com/gallery/North_America/United_States/photo171637.htm

Thing #2 Animoto Sample: Bluebonnet Titles

It's no secret that I love Animoto. And I am so impressed how they continue to add more excitement to the site. You can go here to see all kinds of samples that librarians and teachers have shared. Some of them were created way back before some of the features were available, but still serve a purpose. Would you like to add one to the collection? Share the link and I will add it!

PS: Can you guess which title is my favorite?

Thing #1 Networked Student

If the video is not viewable, click here for another source

Connectivism is an exciting learning theory in light of the digital world and how easy it is for students to learn from many more individuals in places that just a few years ago were only pinpoints on a wall map in the classroom.

With all the cool tools available, hopefully in school, students can learn in so many different ways and are not so totally dependent on the teacher to bring the information (aka knowledge) to the table. Learning styles are more easily accommodated through the variety of means, and that in turn means the students are more likely to take responsibility for their own learning. 

The teacher's position, and yes, the librarian-teacher, too, is to facilitate and guide the learning. The learning can come from so many directions and in so many ways, the teacher/librarian must surrender the position  of "know-it-all" and be willing to learn along with and from his or her students.

This is a hard concept for many educators...that of giving up control and I think is one of the major reasons teaching-learning methods haven't changed in many classrooms and libraries. 

We just have to accept the fact that world is a different place, our students are different learners, and we must adapt in order to help our students be successful in the appropriate ways. 

Besides...it is a WHOLE lot more fun this way!

Leapin' From the Lily Pad to the Deep, Blue Sea

I am looking forward to leaving the comfort of the 23 Things environment in which I have spent an exciting two years learning and sharing...and just plain having fun using all the great stuff that is out there on the Web for the taking...to take on an even wider range of opprtunities found in the 11.5 More Things.

I have met and worked with some great new friends through this online way of learning. Can't help it, I'm still a fan of f2f learning. I need the body language and "intimacy" of being in the same room with others while learning...if that choice is available. BUT, I would not have had opportunity to work with most of the people who shared the 23 Things adventure with me had it not been for the online world. I am very grateful I had the option!

Although frogs don't venture to the sea (I did do some research...there is one salt-water species) in real life, the virtual world we find ourselves in so much these days allows for adventures of a magical sort so that is what I'm doing.

Froggy is off to play at the beach and see what happens. Grab your sunscreen and your towel and come along. The water's fine!