Thing #4 Why commenting is important.

To me commenting on a blog is like responding in a conversation. Have you ever tried to have conversation with someone who just stood there and looked at you with a blank stare? How irritating! Commenting on a blog conveys the message to the person who initiated the blog as well as other readers that the topic is important to someone other than the person blogging and it validates their efforts to share their beliefs and values.

The readings suggested courtesies to implement when commenting to someone's blog post. I can remember reading similar information when I first began using email. It was through this type of medium that I learned that typing in all caps was like screaming or yelling at the reader. I quickly had to implement this practice! I had been screaming at professors and colleagues.

The blog post I chose to respond to are:
LiveLearnMoore - Satricia Moore
FrankE - Frank Moure
Linda Courtney's 23 Things - Linda Courtney
Mr Hirtle Tech Blog - William Hirtle
Samples of Learning - Elizabeth Sample

I chose their blogs to post to because I learned something from each of them.  Linda's "thing 3" post led me to think about using technologies such as blogging to accomodate a student with an anxiety disorder. William's "thing 4" post made me laugh.  He captured my thoughts completely. Elizabeth's "thing 3" post showed me other ways a teacher could possibly use blogging to communicate with students.  I actually responded to someone else who responded to her post.  I responded because I have different ideas on why some parents do not communicate with teachers.

Some of my comments were to affirm my agreement with the blogger, some were to share a different perspective.  Either way leads me into my next topic and the other sites I chose to read and post. 

Thing # 10 Set Up an RSS Reader and Add Feeds

This is the activity I'd been hoping for! Something to minimize the amount of time I have been spending on the internet going to all the different sites checking for updates.  I saw the tab on my computer a long time ago (when you open the favorites bar) I just never ventured to find out what it was for.  This is a life saver for me.  I am also enrolled in an online class this semester and we have to keep up with a discussion board.  This tool just made my life a little bit easier. Now all I have to do is figure out exactly how to get it to work for my online class!

I am not quite ready to share my blogs with the rest of the world though.

Thing #9 Online Image Generators

http://www.imagechef.com/

I used Image Chef to create the images in this post.  I chose this site because creating the images was very easy and fun.  I did have one challenge, I had to create an account before I could copy the images and post them here.  I think these would be fun ways to post messages to my students either on a class web page or blog.  I am also thinking of ways to create an online scrapbook for family and friends.

 

Thing #8 Flickr Mashups

 

http://bighugelabs.com/jigsaw.php

I created this puzzle using the above website.  This "thing" was a bit difficult for me.  I had a hard time trying to figure out how to get the the images to upload to my blog. I tried to create an image using Spell with Flickr but I was unable to post the image.  So, just a heads up, I will be asking my classmates during our next class for help on that.   I am pretty cautious when using the mashups and  other photo sharing sites not to include images of people that include personal geographic information (addresses, landmarks that would help stalkers locate them, etc.)

Thing #7 Explore Flickr

 

For this discovery exercise I chose option 2.  I took these photos at Centennial Park in Nashville earlier this month.  I made certain I didn't take photos of the people's faces not even knowing I would use them for this class.  I did ask permission to take the pictures and explained that I would not show their faces.  As for the trees...I just found them to be interesting. The spoke to me while I was walking through the park.  First, I was taking pictures of the "homeless" then, the trees grabbed my attention.  They (the trees) said to me, "this park is as much their ("homeless") home as it is ours, and we are not homeless, just different."

 

I also spent some time exploring Flickr for other interesting photos.  This is when I realized one of the ways I want to use Flickr in my classroom.  I decided to search for pictures from settings in the stories we will read and share those photos with the class when the story is introduced. 

 

Once I have more free time, I am likely to use Flickr for personal use as well.  I really like the map! I have some personal photos I'd like to upload and share with family and friends places I visited and found interesting.

 

I inadvertently used Photobucket in the past (it was downloaded on my phone and everytime I took a picture with my phone, it automatically uploaded to Photobucket!) This was not at all my preference.  It took hours to figure out how to delete my pictures from the internet and that app from my phone! I prefer Flickr over Photobucket mainly because of the experience I had. I never really explored Photobucket to see what else it had to offer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.flickr.com//photos/mshor10/show/