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Time is flying by. I looked at my last post and realized it has been over two weeks.

This next week, I will be reminding students about blogging. My goal is to have at least two posts from every day with a word count of at least 150 each. That way, parents and family members who take the time to read the blog have an understanding of what we are doing in class. I am going to set the word count as students have not recognized they must explain in full what we did for the reader. Too often they are so brief, it is unclear what we did and why.  In addition, I am going to be reminding them about the ability to make comments on other posts. Look for pictures to be added here and there.

This next week will be our last SAT testing week.  This has affected our schedule/time together but I am pulling students as soon as we get the all clear. We will be talking about blogging, the Mississippi artist Walter Anderson, exploring the world of CSI, finishing up activities on the mathematician Pythagoras, brain games, and much more.

I hope all of you have a wonderful Easter and a relaxing Spring Break. I will be headed to Poughkeepsie, New York the last part of that week to meet with other Temari makers from the US and Europe. 

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Hi everyone. Enjoy the slideshow. I found the program this evening and thought I would give it a try. I am not too sure about the music background personally and wish I had chosen no music. When you start the show, there is an option to mute the music if you would like.

Life is calmer these days. The yearbook is done. Allergy concerns have subsided. The field trip was a success. I just need to get my coursework up to date. Hard to believe we are looking at the end of our 3rd quarter.

Keep an eye out when visiting the school for the student’s masks. Some are already out on display in the hallway leading to the cafeteria. Students have done a great job. We hope/plan to be working on Walter Anderson, CSI, finish Pythagoras, continue brain games, and much more this next week.

           Life is busy for sure. So much to learn and so little time not just for my students but also for me. I believe everyone is enjoying the rock and roll unit. It was interesting to see the student’s perspectives on the top ten rock and roll performers. The rock and roll timelines were also varied in what they presented. There were some great presentations but also apparent not everyone put forth their best effort in their project.    

         I am back in school once again, taking my 5th core course for my PhD. This one is about gifted education and technology. One more core course after this then I begin the research aspect. I am just a bit nervous about it as the idea of taking statistics online is just a bit overwhelming.

     Our class blog is going slow but well. I am trying to get students to understand they MUST elaborate. They must think of their audience/readers and on what level they may or may not understand what the blogger is sharing about Project Jubilee events. Give the details, people! Write more than you think you need to! I may start a minimum of 50 word posts or the student must wait until later when he or she thinks of enough to write.

             Podcasting has enormous potential. Students were asked to do a rock and roll interview with someone older who could share what rock and roll was like when they were growing up. You should have seen the looks when I spoke about seeing Bob Dylan and Joan Baez in concert. and Cat Stevens. and Bobby Sherman.  and David Cassidy. “Who’s that Mrs. Heald!?!” We recorded the interviews on an MP3 player and will be doing editing this next week using the free program called Audacity.

             We will also be back papier macheing our masks once again this week. The plan is to finish details and apply a layer of gesso to prepare it for painting. I hope to set up a display of the masks either at the Daphne Public Library or perhaps with the Eastern Shore Art Center.

          Somewhere in there, I have to get the yearbook done for a March 2 due date, prepare for the 4H trip at the end of the month, and try to work on the door project. Parents, get ready. I think I may be emailing you soon to get a volunteer to help me organize the doors  pictures. It could be a home project. Any good organizers out there?

I think our Rock N’ Roll unit is a hit. It will be a challenge to keep the students focused on the sound of rock and roll from every decade rather than what they are currently familiar with today. They seemed to have enjoyed the homework assignment yet not every student seemed to grasp the importance of “making sure your work was appropriate to hang in the hallway for others to read”. Yes, it was not part of the homework listed on my site but I emphasized it orally when giving the assignment. Hmmm. They have to learn to focus on details given by the teacher.

The blog seems to be a hit. Every class day, there are two official bloggers but any student is welcome to post any day they want to as long as it is about Project Jubilee. I encourage the students to speak from the heart about what we do in class so I can learn from what they enjoy and/or what or how they might like to do something differently.

We will be back to papier macheing our African masks this next week.

After one week back in school, almost all of the classes have been introduced to the blogging concept. It was interesting to note that many of the students knew the function of a blog. They seem excited about the idea. They realize (at least I hope I made that clear) that I will be learning right along with them. So, parameters may be set for now but they will also need to be flexible as we see what works and what does not.

1. They must write in full and complete sentences. No shortcuts may be used such as the ones seen in instant messaging.

2. They may contribute to the blog at any time: in our classroom, the regular classroom or at home.

3. They may not write negative comments about any person or their blog privileges will be revoked.

Ultimately, the blog goal is to write about what was learned in Project Jubilee, what activities we accomplished and life in general in our classroom.

Every student is registered as an author which means they are able to publish and manage their own posts. It is hoped that parents and family members near and far will register as a subscriber or somebody who can read comments/comment/receive news letters, etc.

Starting the week of January 12, two students from each class will be asked to be that week’s blogs contributors. Again, any student can contribute at any time but these two will be the week’s “official” posters.

Am I ready to get back to work? I love my late mornings and my chances for pleasure reading but I know I do better with a routine. So, yes, I am looking forward to being back with my students. There is a lot to think about, though, and with just one teacher work day – well, I need more time.  I know the students want to do CSI and I am not ready yet (don’t give up hope!). I want to oriente them to using our blog and expand on using the Moodle course. I want them to be able to work on their papier mache masks but that will probably need to wait until next week. I have new students starting this week. My lesson plans aren’t too extensive  – we will work on Brain Games using the Elmo. We will do Mayan numbers (I think all classes did Roman numbers already). We will review procedures (folder and planner comes every week, what to do when you walk in the door, etc.). We will also work on our home design sketch and, hopefully, do Adinkra designs. Keeping it simple this week will help us all get back in the swing of things. I look forward to seeing all of the door pictures start to come in. Now, if only I can get that 15 page paper finished and turned in by this Thursday.