online exposure

check this out, future teachers....be careful how you represent yourself and that YOU are a role model to your students!!

Summer is almost over!!

I hope everyone is having a good summer. I know I am! I got a part time job at an awesome clothing store, AJ Wright, so my wardrobe has greatly improved!! something i definitely needed too. I am really looking forward to student teaching in the fall: I will be teaching 11th graders at West Gene H.S. for the first 7 weeks and then working with 8 and 9th graders at Lincoln middle school working with Gwen Maturo. I know I will learn alot from her! I had the opportunity to participate in her discipline presentation when she came to the DATE conference at Cortland this past spring.

I also can't wait to see all my classmates again! I missed you guys!! Staci, Savanna, Jessica, Megan, Jami, Diana, Barb, Jill--you guys are awesome!! and I get to have Karen Stearns as my supervisor for student teaching. aww, I love her, she is the best!

I'll see you guys in a few weeks! I will be moving in with my aunt around August 27.

I LOVE this song!!!

Friedman was right!!

What are the hardest teaching positions to fill?
Math
20%
Science
21.33%
English
1.33%
Social Studies
0%
ELL / ESL
6.67%
Special Ed
28%
Fine Arts
1.33%
PE / Health
0%
Foreign Language
20%
Other
1.33%
Total Votes: 75

I copied this survey from the LeaderTalk blog. interesting isn't it? hmmm I think Friedman was right. OUr education system is severely lacking in good math and science teachers. How are we going to keep up with the rest of the world in regards to the new world where technology rules and those that don't know anything about it or can't play the game, will fall behind? How will we learn to play the game if there aren't enough teachers that can teach the future of America the necessary skills needed to survive in this new "flat fiber-optic world", this read/write Web 2.0? Just something to ponder about. I enjoyed reading the blog posts this morning from my classmates and reading the latest from Will Richardson and the numerous insightful comments that spawn from his posts. By the time I get to the bottom, I forget what I was going to say in response to his post. LOL Blogging is a whole new way of communicating which I can't seem to wrap my mind around yet, but I'm getting there thanks to this class.

Text-speak...here to stay??

I just read this great article about teaching english through the discussion and use of text messages. I think it is a great way to teach voice and tone and discuss the different levels of language and context in which people write in as a comparison to writing letters, essays, stories, etc. The article also talks about how texting helps ESL students improve their English skills too because they are forced to "speak" in their texts all in English instead of a mix of her first language blended with ENglish. Check it out and tell me what YOU think. Ban cell phones and text messages in schools or incorporate what teens use so fluently???

talk to me!!

Job interview

In order to show what I can do in the world of technology, I would first show them the blog I have been maintaining in my classroom, show the delicious tags I am connected to, and take them to my bloglines.com page which I have a direct link to on my blog. I would take them to bloglines because that is the central page I like to go to when i am looking for new content from my peers, and show that I subscribe to the New York Times, Will Richardson's blog and various other blogs. I will explain that this is how I stay connected to information in the internet and how easy it is to set up your own account and subscribing to different blogs is like having their blogs delivered right to your door step. I would explain that my students would be setting up their own bloglines of individual content on the web that they are interested in reading on a daily basis as well as also creating their own blogs on blogger.com because it is simple and fast and helps students stay connected to one another outside the classroom. I would incorporate blogging and commenting on classmates' blogs as part of the curriculum and allow students to use their blogs to submit homework assignments, post them directly to their blog.

Having my students create their own blogs and using these will be the vehicle for turning in homework assignments and responding to their classmates work. It will provide students with the independence to write in the medium that they are used to writing in: in front of a monitor and typing on a keyboard. This relates to the NYS standards in that it allows students to write their own blog posts, read their classmates blogs and various other sites on the web. Here is a link to my blog for my new English writers

The url is ela7thgrade.blogspot.com

Please read...or you are likely to get sucked into the quiet vacuum and the world as you know it will be no more!

All this talk about giving our future students the tools they need to be critical thinkers of the media in all its forms--I think we also need to teach them to critically analyze literature/textbooks they are being given to read in their classes at school. But we already know that. Before we can do this though, we need to do this for ourselves and take a critical look at the books we are required to read for our college classes. After reading Friedman all semester (I'm a little slow) I started to realize that he writes with a political slant towards liberalism and anti-Bush. For example, Friedman said that after 9/11, "our president didn't summon us to sacrifice, he summoned us to go shopping" (326) and then only a few pages later he says "and most of all, (we need) the right inspirational leadership--to enhance and manage the flow with the flat world" (329) This implies that we don't have that leadership now.
So anyway, I want to invite all of you to be aware of what we are reading even in our college classes--why do our instructors select the books they do? I'm not saying I don't like this book. It is actually very interesting and it is opening my eyes to a whole new--dare I say it?--"flat world" we live in now.

I found dirty little secret 3 fascinating: the ambition gap. He discussed that the American culture work ethic has weakened. One teacher that wrote to him said students lack creativity, problem-solving abilities, and passion for learning. THe parents of his students from India and Eastern Europe don't think kids are given enough homework and it isn't challenging enough....and American white middle class parents say the 5th grade work is too hard!

I really liked what Friedman said on page 344 about an ideal country in a flat world is one with no natural resources because then they "tend to dig inside themselves"
Taiwan, for instance, has "nothing but energy, ambition, and talent of its own people--and today it has the 3rd largest financial reserves in the world." This is amazing to me and I'm starting to realize that we really need to open our eyes to the rest of the world and how fast they are catching up to us.

I will just leave you with this one last quote which I think sums up the US mentality to a T:
"In China today, Bill Gates is Britney Spears. In America today, Britney Spears is Britney Spears--and that is our problem."

High school students learn how to critically read the news!!!

At Concord High School in New Hampshire, ENglish 11 students got a crash course in news media after Al Gore came to visit their school. Gore was misquoted all over the newspapers and news shows from a speech he gave at the school. It was blown way out of proportion by the news media because they wanted to show that Gore "stretches the truth" and they wanted to catch him in lies. By the media manipulating one word in Gore's speech, it looks like he lied! Students were outraged to witness this incident and they collected the evidence for the classroom. They were furious that the media was not displaying the truth. The focus of Gore's speech was how young people--as individuals--can make a difference in society and kids got a clear message about problems of school violence "theme of personal empowerment was inspiring to them" (the students).15 The news media ignored student phone calls trying to correct this issue. They didn't listen until a teacher called an editor at the NYTimes and Bob SOmersby of Internet media Watchdog site, The Daily Howler, and finally a correction came out in the Washington Post about this incident. WHat the students learned from this was monumental. They learned that they need to "strive to be skeptical, not cynical" and "they need to read alot of sources and stay on top of things when watching the media".

In sum, researchers found that "content of curriculum, high educational expectations, and classroom climate where students are encouraged to actively participate by expressing their opinions are important factors in building a sense of political efficacy." Political efficacy is defined as a citizen's faith and trust in government and their own belief that they can understand and influence political affairs.

After reading this chapter six in Renee Hobbs book, it makes me want to go out to Concord High School even more now and observe their media literacy classrooms. I am in awe of what the English 11 classes are actively engaged with their community and the world at large and it is clearly empowering their students. THey are realizing that they can make a difference in the world and they are learning to look at all media with a critical eye.

This is an awesome music video!!!!

sit down and relax because it is like 7 minutes long =)

Inspiration

It's a new software program that teachers can use in the classroom with students to help them visualize ideas, concepts, and relationships of what they are learning from their reading. It also helps them organize ideas and research when doing projects.

Students can create graphic organizers to analyze and evaluate information and brainstorm through a tool called Rapidfire. They can search symbol collections to find images to represent any concept and insert and play multimedia files.

teachers can download for a free 30-day trial. I didn't do it yet, but I probably should do it to test it out further because the website so far just gives you a superficial summary of it and how it is used.

to be continued in the following edition.....

Holy toledo!!!

I just created a website in like 5 minutes...it was that easy!!! it is comparable to creating a myspace account, seriously. Teens can do this themselves!! I still have alot of work to do in regards to design, management, and pages to insert and tweaking that front page. But this is all I'm doing for today, I think I did pretty good! Take a look http://www.freewebs.com/writersedge/index.htm

Don't forget to sign my guest book too. I love visitors!!! hehehe....and feel free to shoot out any ideas my way for suggestions on how I can make it better, what other extra pages I should add and so on... Thanks for peeking!!

Personal goals

One of my dreams ever since i was a little girl was to go horseback riding, or take lessons--and of course to have a pony...but now I want to at least take some horseback riding lessons. and every year when the weather gets warmer like this, blue skies and lots of sunshine, it makes me think of that dream. I need to really make that dream of mine come true finally, after all i am 34 years old now. so I'm going to make a deadline: By the end of this summer of 2007 before I start my student teaching and thus the beginning of my busy teaching career, i would like to take a few lessons in horseback riding.

If anyone knows of any good farms around here that would be a good place to do it at and you are reading this, will you let me know? and any suggestions would be great or if you want to do it with me...the more the merrier!!

Thanks!

New Literacies in Action

Okay, I just finished reading chapter one "from Polytcychs to IM..." and my only question is Where is the rest of the book? I want to read about the actual classrooms that the author researched--the examples of how they integrate and weave the "new literacies" together as a whole curriculum and not just one unit. I felt like this chapter was just an introduction to the meat of it all. I want to read about the classrooms--these new literacies in action as the author states in the title. Bring on the next 6 chapters, Karen!!

Savanna

She's not just a pretty face
I admire her....
leadership and drive to succeed
dedication to world causes
ready smile just for you
nonjudgmental, easy-going manner
passion for teaching
striving to learn as much as she can

She's not just a pretty face
She experiences new things and pushes headlong for her dreams
She's a goal-setter, trendsetter, thrill seeker
dare I say fearless?
If she has any fears, she doesn't show it
She's confident and self-assured
inquisitive and open-minded

A genuine soul with a pure heart.

Barb's teachings

Barb taught me how to change the colors of the print in my blog. I learned that I can change the font, size, and colors of my blog titles....I was able to change the font of the sidebar titles. I know it seems really simple, and it was too, but it was something I didnt know how to do before and now I can confidently apply it on my own. Thank you, Barb, for helping to give my world some color.

WOW....video streaming....

That sounds really cool about the SAFARI montage program at the Baltimore school district. THis is an excellent way to instill media literacy into the entire school system...analyzing media at younger ages can really help to teach critical thinking skills to the children of our future. THis is exactly what they need because right now they are being bombarded with images and whether we admit it or not, they are having an effect on us. THe more we are aware of these subtle effects, the better off we will be able to handle them.

Virginia Tech tragedy

The gunman used this weapon he purchased for only $570. Watch the video to see how easy it is to use, reload and sadly kill 33 people and injure several more =(

sexualization of girls

I am writing a feature article on this topic because I believe this is happening to our girls at a rapid rate. I see it with my cousin who is 15 now and she is incredibly more sexualized than I was even at the age of 20. It's sad and I really think the media is to blame (visual media and music lyrics) and access to media has become omnipresent in the 21st century. A report in the APA found evidence that "the proliferation of sexualized images of girls and young women in advertising, merchandising, and media is harmful to girls' self-image and healthy development"
The APA says that "schools should teach media literacy skills to all students and should include information on the negative effects of the sexualization of girls in media literacy and sex education programs". Dr. Zurbriggen says "as a society, we need to replace all of these sexualized images with ones showing girls in positive settings--ones that show the uniqueness and competence of girls" But instead it seems like it is more important for girls to be hot than to be smart.

Teenvoices.com (haunting poem)

Masks
(Anonymous)

I carry a paint set
wherever I go
to make a mask that covers up the scars
of who I really am

My world is full of lies
a play which only I see
please be patient, my dear reader,
as I rip off one mask at a time
to show you the real me

A mask for friends
so I'll be what they want
strong not weak
outgoing not scared

Another is for kids at school
to be what they expect
morbid not preppy
disturbed not sane

A family mask
which I must mutate
day by day
respect not hate
love not argue
hide when the tears fall

A mask for the enemy
I hide from all but thee
for I have shown you
a glimpse of the real me

Now the last painful mask of all
the mask I show to only me
I tell myself
I like who I am now
and what I've become

Behind all the masks
is a terrified teen
who just wants to fit in
to be liked by most
and forgiven by her enemies

Reading Renee Hobbs' book Media Literacy is very interesting and I must admit I am learning alot! the definition of media literacy according to her reflects the "acknoledged task of schools to assist the young in interpreting the symbols of their culture". Media texts are the center of our cultural world because everyone watches TV and movies and plays in the internet.

Replacing the classic literature texts or analyzing them next to concepts that students see in the media every day--this helps students apply the critical thinking skills to their OWN culture and they learn best when engaged and motivated. Students are highly motivated by pop culture. AN article in the latest Alan Review says that "young people absorb each new technology effortlessly....cyberspace is their habitat, and if we in older generations don't join them there, we will be superfluous. Discounted. Quite literally out of it." The author says that "we must accept that exploring a Web page or a blog IS reading, blogging or posting comments IS writing, and chatting and instant messaging ARE reading and writing....IF we teach safe conduct online, cyberspace offers astounding opportunities for creativity, learning, and development."

This leads me to a wonderful field trip my technology in the classroom took last WEdndesday. It was amazing to actually see this media literacy program at work and succeeding too. Chris Sperry, the instructor at this wonderful alternative school in Ithaca, NY, is teaching media literacy to high school students and it works great no matter what level people are at. The program is called Project Look Sharp and it is looking at literacy in a different form than classic texts. Kids are bored by all the teaching of literary elements, but when you teach them in relation to movies or video games, kids can come alive and start to think about these techniques like characterization, theme, and flashback. Their attitude changes and suddenly they are thinking critically and enjoying it because they are engaged in something that they can wrap their minds around: tv, movies, video games, the Web.

Kids need to learn who is feeding us all this information and what is the motive behind media. We, as a nation, are consuming media at a rapid pace and so what we need is to learn how to decipher fact from fiction, who is trying to sell us something, and who is being genuine. WIth the world wide web, the gates or walls as Friedman says have come crashing down, in regard to where info is coming from and who is hosting what.

So let's help our future generation learn to deconstruct what is coming at us from all angles and teach them how to think critically in the world we live in. It is the most essential thing they will need to take with them when they leave school and what they will use the most in their life: their minds.

the ipod craze

All I can say is WOW! It is amazing to be alive during this rapidly changing, developing world right now and be able to see what's happening, but at the same time, my head is spinning. Just think: pretty soon CDs are going to be obsolete soon. Everyone is downloading music and songs from the internet now directly onto their ipods. I was just looking online at a band's website, and you can buy it right from the comfort of your home and then download the whole album right then and there. no more music CDs, and no more CDs with software and stuff on it. I feel like we jumped from floppies to those little cd keys, and CDs were just a blur--they are practically a thing of the past just like floppies. no more cd players, dvd players... everyone is watching movies on their DVR now or Pay Per View, and have you seen that website alloftv.net?? OMG check it out... you can watch all your favorite TV shows on that website if you missed it during the week--you don't even need the DVR/cable...a laptop will do for all your entertainment needs. WHich is why that is going to be my next purchase. I want a laptop, something I can carry with me whereever I go, when I travel, but also use in the comfort of my home too. Its not big and bulky like those stupid desktops...
I foresee that everyone will have laptops soon, and then those little blackberries. Look at the ipod craze: its just one step up from the ipod really....and cell phones are getting better too so you can check email from website on your cell now. Everyone is going to have a cell phone/blackberry/laptop all-in-one within the next 10 years, maybe even 5, who knows??? In this country and parts of Europe it could easily be 5 years...It is unfathomably amazing!!! (hmmm, that is a good word...i think i just made it up)

Killing Us Softly =(

snow patrol....this is an awesome song!!!

Classrooms without Books

The traditional teacher in me is thinking whoa! Hold on! How in the world can I teach English without books? How can I get my kids to read if they can't even take the book home? (which is happening in an urban school I observe right now) so I keep thinking, instead of panicking and being outraged at the system, I need to rise to the challenge and figure out how I am going to teach the ELA skills to kids for 1-so they can excel on the Regents Exam, and 2-so they can develop a lifelong love of reading and learn that writing is a powerful tool of communication.

But first, I think teachers need to step out of the box of the old ways and learn new ways to assess students. We say kids are not reading anymore--sure they aren't reading what we expect--which is the old cover to cover paperbook--but this is old school. In this new world, the Read/Write Web, the Flat World of internet and high tech media devices--kids are doing so much more stuff that confounds the older generation(teachers). We look at their ipods and scoff at them, tell them to turn them off--why are we so angry? Because they are so far above us in this new world. We don't know how to use ipods so we scoff at the whole notion and try to sweep it under the rug and go back to our chalkboards.

But we will never reach kids that way. We need to get to them at a medium they can understand--and that medium is through ipods and cell phones with cameras, glossy magazines, TV, video games, internet societies like myspace, facebook, google, Youtube, yahoo, wikipedia--virtual realities where people are chatting with others all the way across the world from their bedrooms--and not just chatting--viewing too. As teachers, we need to "face the music" and admit that we don't know as much as our students now because this new generation has grown up with all this information at their fingertips--with the touch of a button and NOT through opening a PAPERbook. These books are history now!

We need to redefine what literacy is. What literacy is to our students now is understanding what is out there on the web-- how to decipher truth from fiction, who is just trying to sell us something versus someone who just wants to get the truth out there. We need to teach our students to be critical thinkers and viewers--to critically analyze everything that passes in front of their nose (and it's alot!) Reading the media is a new type of literacy we need to be teaching with our students.

Media literacy is a favorite medium to students. It is highly engaging and highly motivating so they will learn naturally because it is fun. It is essential to teach them to read the media critically to understand the whys and hows behind everything being sent out in front of people. If we want people to be productive citizens in the world, we need to teach them how to use these new technologies to their advantage.

It isn't about paper and pens anymore. It is about typing and shorthand and video--we have enterned a new world of literacy--the Reading/Writing on the Web to a flat world of listeners and responders.

Media Literacy in the Classroom

In this media-saturated world, it seems critical that the education system redefine literacy and make changes to the traditional English Language Arts curriculum. Students obviously need some sort of change because they are bored and not motivated to read the classic literature we force down their throats. We think kids aren't reading and writing anymore, but that is simply not true. They aren't doing it in the form the older generation is used to--opening a text and reading from left to right or taking pen to paper--they are reading widely in ways we are only beginning to grasp because these kids were born with the Web at their fingertips. They are used to getting whatever information/knowledge they need at the touch of a button.

We need to channel this exciting new energy for media and the Web so students can learn to critically analyze the images being thrown in their faces every day. Renee Hobbs' book Reading the Media is just the sort of thing our education system needs for its' youth. Her program teaches kids to look at all the media images with a critical eye--students are still learning the essential elements of the N.Y.S. Standards--learning to comprehend information, summarize it, organize it, analyze it, synthesize information into new ideas and finally to evaluate everything that the media throws at them. Students can now learn these skills with a curriculum that they can sink their teeth into with relish. The media is of high interest to adolescents, thus leading to intrinsic motivation. Without motivation, learning will never occur.

Unlearn the past and take hold of the future in front of us

Reading Will's "unlearning curve" seemed to put down in black and white what I have been thinking in my head about what I want to do in my classroom. We, as teachers, are not the sole content expert in the classroom. I want to make that clear to my students so they take charge of their own learning and seek out experts whereever and whenever they seek knowledge. The important thing is that they take the reins of their learning and direct themselves to where they want to learn. This is the only way we will see passion in our students. It needs to be relevant and personal FOR them.

I also firmly believe that education is a community undertaking on different levels. We need to use every resource out there that we can and get everyone involved. And Will is saying that the Read/Write web is an excellent source to make that happen. The web is a community of learners all coming together on the same page, the same playing field, the "flat world" according to Friedman.

One of the comments to Will's post caught my attention. Rosie Sherry said we need to unlearn that school/college/university is only option for learning. This brought to mind for me John Gatto's book again, Dumbing Us Down because he writes that the essential learning takes place in the home, surrounded by immediate and extended family and the community around which they live. We learn from the jobs we take on to help other people. I like the idea of apprenticeships (think Tobey MacGuire's character in Cider House Rules--he was Dr. Larson's apprentice--he learned everything about becoming a doctor by doing, not by sitting in a classroom all day) Granted that is a fictional account, but that is the way people learned and I think it is the way people learn best today--through hands-on, active engagement of the thing itself.

Doctors do it in med school with their practicum as an intern, teachers must be interns first too (as pre-service observers/participators and then as "student teachers") Why can't we start this with children at younger ages like middle and high school? Kids want to know that they are driving towards something and they deserve to know what their school is useful for. High test scores and an A grade is not enough motivation. Those external rewards will not build self-esteem and passion for learning in our students.

Passion in Learning

Okay, before I respond to Will's post on the "Unlearning Curve", I want to draw your attention towards a post that Will asked me to read. It is an incredibly powerful piece on inspiring passion in his students and I can't wait to hear the feedback on how his unit goes on The Diary of Anne Frank after everything he will be doing in class. One of his quotes struck me and, hopefully, you will be as inspired as I was and be compelled to read the rest of his post:

we need to give our students the freedom to learn and engage with ideas that they find relevant and important.

I think I am going to subscribe to this guy's blog post if I can. He has some very insightful, useful suggestions for the classroom and interacting with kids.

Langston Hughes reading....

A Negro Speaks of Rivers read by the author and where he was when he wrote it

Too radical or just what our education system needs?

I think everyone that wants to be a teacher right now needs to read this book. It has some really heated arguments and radical ideas in here about reforming our educational system. Not just tweaking it here and there and improving it, John Taylor Gatto is talking about overhauling the whole system and starting from scratch. He knows what he is talking about and has some solid ideas about what our children really need and what they are actually receiving in schools today. He writes about how they have been conditioned to act in certain ways every since the beginning of compulsory schooling began.

Gatto says that our nation ranks at the BOTTOM of nineteen industrial nations in reading, writing, and arithmatic. The BOTTOM!! He also said to "pick up a fifth grade math or rhetoric textbook from 1850 and you will see that the texts were pitched then on what would today be considered college level."

So anyway, I hope I gave you enough of an interest and emotion to go pick up this book and read it. It is fascinating and sad and unfortunately true. At first, I thought he was being way too radical and reformist, but he's been a teacher for over 30 years and won several Teacher of the Year awards. Check it out and tell me what you think. Especially those of you who are in my EDU 471 class and are already reading it--what do YOU think of his ideas?

"Multimodal Literacies" from the NCTE site

This is a powerful statement on what teachers need to be doing now in the classroom with regard to teaching our students. It's not just about teaching them how to read a book from front to back or writing in a particular form. It is about composing with nonprint media as a broader scope of literacy. As teachers, we need to promote multimedia composition in classrooms. Allow students to compose position papers and research papers digitally, post onto a blog, and turn in assignments on a class website. We need to allow them the freedom to create compositions in presentation software using video clips, podcasts, and whatever other creative elements are at their disposal. The opportunities for learning and researching information are endless these days.

The one critical thing we need to be helping students with is helping them decipher what information is true and accurate. Evaluation and investigative skills are crucial to navigating the web in this age where everyone is a publisher, a composer, a designer no matter what the degree or educational background. It is a great universal tool, a way to bring about tighter globalization and equality. It has "leveled the playing field" according to Friedman, but we need to teach students to become private investigators and to question everything that is out there. Question everything and back up your arguments with evidence and proof!

This was another short position statement I read that was connected to the NCTE one. http://www.ncte.org/cccc/resources/positions/123773.htm

Help!

And no, I'm not talking about the Beatles song. I need a little help with bloglines. I'm not sure how to contact Ray directly on this and it's not urgent enough to send Dr. Stearns an email, but if I don't get any responses to this post, I will do that some time in the next day or so. Anyway, tonight I have been finishing up my blog roll, putting all my classmates blogs into my feed list. This is done. But now I am not sure how to get it to look like Ray had it today in class with everybody's new posts showing up on one screen. That would be so much easier for me to read everyone's posts quickly and more efficiently and respond to them in kind instead of opening a new window every time I read a new blog. Please help me.
signed,
lost in translation =(

A little poetry from one of the greats...... =)

read by herself, Lucille Clifton

moving away from technology to the real nitty gritty....

this is sooo cool!

my cousin's Nikki's sonogram pic =)

Technology is soo amazing now. I thought this was an excellent example of what are world is really becoming... my entire extended family was able to see my cousin's sonogram picture within seconds of her doctor's visit with this being digitized now. =) i just thought it was really cool.

but anyway, to the question of WHAT should we be teaching the future generation these days?? we have entered the INFORMATION age--children can access information so much faster and easier than we ever could only ten years ago. As Warlick says, "they (children) need to learn to control their information in positive, productive, and personally meaningful ways." (22). I also really like the idea of Personal Information Digital Libraries--fancy long term for your favorites list and bookmarks to navigate the web even faster. as if accessing anything you want to know through google isn't fast enough.
Speaking of Google, is google the new verb for the 21st century? "Oh, don't know it? google it!" Have you ever googled yourself? try it and see if you are on the net. You might be surprised. :)

a little clip interviewing teachers

Evanescence.....My Immortal

unorganized and insane in the membrane......

Well, I got my refund check today and I found out I only have 11 dollars in my checking account. Then I went down to Mando Books and they said they just sold the last few copies they had of the Warwick book....The college bookstore had copies but they cost $45 dollars and my refund check money won't be available until tomorrow. So it looks like I am going to be a day late on answering those questions from the Warwick book. I am sooo sorry! =( will see everyone in class tomorrow night...hope you all had a good week and I was really happy to see people commenting on my blog. I am glad people liked the look of it and the pictures I laid out. THanks for the feedback.

Responding to Will's why weblogs?

"There’s an increase in shared meaning and understandings. Knowledge is acquired and shaped as a social process, which results in spiraling effect. I say something, you comment on it. I evaluate your comments, respond, and present a new perspective. Then, the process repeats until a concept has been thoroughly explored.
# Ideas are presented as the starting point for dialogue, rather than an ending point."--Jay Cross

Bingo! that is exactly what blogs are like. He summed it up so nicely in those few sentences. There is a huge social network out there on the web that is so multilayered and complex. Look at all the relationships forming from the web. Look at how popular match.com and eharmony are. and Myspace! I cannot even fathom how large myspace is and all the connections people are making through there. Myspace is popular with every age group, but mostly adolescents I think.

Blogging is definitely the only way to go where we can reach kids these days in school. It is where they are all doing their reading and writing now in the 21st century. We have reached the paperless age of computer chips and digital imagery. everything is going over the wire now. Electronic bills, pay per view movies, cell phones with internet access.... I think we are becoming more greedy with information and eager for communication. No one is ever truly alone now because they have their "network"....via cell phones or the weblogs. but nothing can replace the face to face connection of that first look into a stranger's eyes, that first touch, scintillating, electrifying attraction, the first kiss which sends goosebumps up the spine, and you walk around in a daze only wanting to spend eternity in that person's arms....

But anyway, i'm flying off on a tangent. The web is the best and maybe the only way to reach kids these days in school because they grew up in a world of computers. They don't know anything different. Their fingers fall naturally into place on the keyboard and wield a mouse like Luke Skywalker wields his lightsaber. So lets put away our pens, pencils, and papers, save a few trees in the process, and rip into the wires of online traffic.

blogging is fun, blogging is kewl!!!

I am really getting the hang of this blogging thing and it's kind of addicting. I am procrastinating reading these articles i need to do for class monday night by playing with my blog! LOL tell me what you think of the new pics I put up and the way i customized it. I appreciate any input or suggestions to make it better and more user friendly.
RIght now, I am just waiting for another pot of coffee to brew so I can really get down to work reading these 3 articles I need to read for EDU 471 about schools and history and stuff.... I want to put a link up for my journal space blog because that is what I use for my creative writing stuff, I post poems when i feel like and just use it as a diary to let out all my thoughts. This blog will be oriented more to responding to Stearns articles and discussion of my progression in the blog world.

Miss S

Yea I did it!

Okay now i have to explain myself... I know that isn't "professional" for an English teacher, but hey I am appealing to high school students ok? I am trying to get into their mindset and kids love music. Megan showed me how to put this on my blog and I was just trying to see if i could do it. SUCCESS!!

later all,
Charity

Wiki what?

Reading these NCATE/NCTE standards on learning standards that teachers need to know in order to guide students is rather overwhelming for me. I think at this point my students could teach me alot more about this stuff than I know. I have the disadvantage of being 33 years old and not having the experience of ipods and technologies in school that all these kids have. High school students grew up with computers, literally with the world at their fingertips.

I have a lot to learn, and I look forward to learning how to bring this into my classroom because students relate to technologies and computers with excitement and eagerness. This class, ENL 307 computers in the classroom, is the first class I have come across in my experience as a student in the Adolescent Education program that is allowing me to touch on these hot new issues. It is only with computers and the world wibe web that we can really get to our students because it is a world they can wrap their young minds around. I look forward to learning from these learners as well about all that the internet as to offer me too.

Welcome to MY world =)

Hi... have patience with me right now. I am just starting out in creating a nice, professional blog for my upcoming english classroom. I start my student teaching in the Fall of 2007, hopefully in NYC (fingers crossed) I just finished my essay for the application process. well I am going to go now and work on my profile and scope out what else I can do to make my blog look better. If anyone has any suggestions for me, don't hesitate to comment. Thanks!
Miss S