About two weeks until school starts and I’m back at school getting ready. I’ve spent the last two days setting up desks, organizing tables and cleaning computers among a hundred other little jobs that need doing, including dealing with this blog from last year. Old stuff needs to be deleted and cleaned out and new stuff needs to be ready for when the year begins.
Extreme blog makeover time.
Add comment August 21, 2008
Comments are important. In fact, a good comment is as important as a good post. Comments let people know they have an audience, they let people know someone is actually reading their stuff. Second, comments should make people think about what they have written.
The student comment challenge begins today, May 1st and run until the 31st of May. Started by Kim Cofino in Bangkok Thailand, the challenge is to make connections with new people in different parts of the globe.
Besides us, the classes that are taking part in the challenge are:
Mr. Fletcher’s class in New Brunswick
Ms. Hayes’ class in New Zealand
Ms. Brown’s class in Regina Saskatchewan
Ms. Rice’s class in Prince George B.C.
and
Ms. Wyatt’s class in Tasmania Australia
UPDATE:
We’ve had one more class join us from Florida. That puts us as at over 200 students who are participating in the challenge!
Ms. Berry, Merritt Island, Florida
The challenge to you is to make new connections over the month. To find new people to work with and talk with. Over the month, I want you to keep a spreadsheet with your comments on them. Doing this on a google sheet will in the end allow us to share them. In the first column put the date, put the URL in the second and finally paste the comment into the third column.
By the end of May, lets see what this all looks like.
7 comments May 1, 2008
It was interesting to read last week’s responses, thinking of both similarities and differences between the two classes.
This week’s two questions revolve around you as teenagers.
Question 1 = What is the most important thing that a parent can do for a teenager?
What do you think makes a great parent? What do you think parents need to do for their children to help them become successful adults?
Question 2 = What do the students want to know?
What are the big questions that you have? What kinds of things do you want to know about? What kinds of things do you feel that you are not learning? These things can be in school or out of school. But we leave the question for you: what do YOU want to know?
2 comments April 13, 2008
We’ve got a few big questions for you to consider:
- What does success mean to you?
How do you define success? What does having a successful life mean to you? Who are people you consider to be successful? Why do you think they are successful?
- If you could put 3 aspects of your culture into a box what would they be?
What is a “culture?” What does this word mean to you? What are the elements that combine together to “make” a culture? Can it be boxed? What do you value as part of your culture? What would you want to save and preserve?
1 comment April 6, 2008
We’ve talked a lot over the year about how we need to stay safe when blogging. You cannot reveal too much personal information about yourself or your family when you are online. But even though teachers talk about these things with the kids in their classes, some schools are shutting down their classroom blogs. Mr. Raisdana, (the teacher in Qatar whose class we were just beginning to connect with) lost his job when people objected to some of the links he posted (nothing nasty or improper). Mr. Upton, a teacher in Australia has had his class blogs shut down by his nation’s department of education while they are investigated. I’m curious: what would you think if your blog was suddenly shut down? Would it effect you? Would you surprised or angry? Do you think there has been any benefit for you personally to having a blog this year? Leave me a comment and let me know your thoughts.
50 comments March 19, 2008
Those of us who managed to read two books during February’s I Love to Read Month enjoyed a great afternoon outside on Friday, March 14th. It was a nice day, warm even when the sun was out. Twenty - one new pictures on Flickr, check out the whole set.
Add comment March 16, 2008
DNA Origami makes viruses look happy
Paul W.K. Rothemund makes origami out of DNA. Smallest. Origami. Ever. Rothemund uses DNA from a harmless virus and “pinches” it into shape with “staples” made from of much shorter DNA strands. Above is a smiley face made from DNA, but Rothemund has also made letters and words, maps, and even a larger image of a double helix. Each “sculpture” is so small that fifty billion could float in a drop of water. If you want much more information about how this works or how to do this at home, you can read the original Nature paper here.
2 comments March 13, 2008
Need something new to listen to on your iPod?
Creeped out by ants and other crawlies?
Here is an audio copy of Leiningen Versus the Ants that you can download for your iPod.
It comes as two files so here is part one, and here is part two.
Add comment March 11, 2008
Finally.
Our 10 new Asus eee PC laptops have arrived! We still have to figure out the best way to use them, how we are going to keep them charged up and a million other things, but we are truly excited that they are here.
If you’ve got any thought about how you best want to use these machines, about projects that are possible now because we have them, or other ideas for them, lets hear about it. Leave a comment.
Add comment February 22, 2008
Looking for someone new to connect with?
Looking for kids in another country to talk with?
Mr. Raisdana’s class in Qatar has begun blogging and they are looking for classes to talk with, exchange comments with, and get to know. Their blogs can be found here. They also have a separate small group of students writing about global issues. If you are interested in what they have to say and maybe leave some thoughts of your own, you can find their blog here.
3 comments February 21, 2008
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