Wikis

I love wikis. They're so easy to use and easy to share. You can have them as open or as closed as you wish. Wikis are useful both personally and professionally. I use wikis with my students as a teaching tool - sort of a second textbook. I have students post on the discussion panel of the wiki and lock the actual pages. I have allowed students to actually amend pages of the wiki in the past and that has worked out as well. Some teachers worry about students having access to the actual page, but it hasn't been an issue for me. They know that anything they do will be seen by me with their name on it. It's not like they can get away with anything and if they accidentally mess something up it can always be fixed.

I went to Wikipedia and searched for "urban chicken." There is information there about keeping chickens in the city limits as a source of food. I noticed there was some bias in parts of the article. The article seems to push toward the keeping of chickens rather than giving both sides of the argument. I looked at the "talk" section for this article, and found that others felt the same way about the articles neutrality/bias. Some felt this was an American way of speaking and others disagreed.

RSS

As I stated in my previous post, I probably will never use Google Reader. Maybe it's because I am not used to it. Maybe over time, I'll pick it up. Who knows? I added the following sites that I thought might be useful to my RSS feed on Google Reader:

http://gamification.co/
http://librarianbyday.net/
http://musingsaboutlibrarianship.blogspot.com/

Readers & Aggregators

This is a good experience for me because now I know what these things are, however, I don't see myself actually using them very often. I prefer RSS feeds that go to my email or Facebook, but these collect on Google Reader. If they went to email or Facebook, then I'd see more use for them. I guess I don't follow enough blogs to have a need to keep up with them. I, personally, will just go to a website and check for updates rather than go to Google Reader.

Having said that, I can see the importance of knowing how to use this tool in order to teach students and teachers how to keep up with the latest coming from websites they're interested in.

More photos & images (BeFunky)

I decided to go with BeFunky because I enjoyed the effects particularly those that created a vintage look. The photos I funkified:

These are very cool tools for students to use in projects. I could see students really enjoying this.

Photos & Imaging (Flickr)

Flickr is highly useful. The Creative Commons section offers many photos teachers and students can use and manipulate for projects and presentations. This is where I found the candy and sweets photos to use in my class wiki: http://jonesbookwormspap.wikispaces.com

I hadn't started my own photostream until today. I uploaded pics of my chickens both when they were younger and now. They're almost a year old now. They'll be one on March 21st. Beautiful Easter Eggers that lay blue, green, and yellow eggs. The link to my photostream: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jensjunkdrawer/

My experience with Flickr was ok. I enjoyed the final product, but I have seen other programs that were easier to use. I found Flickr to be fun, but slightly frustrating. I think it could be more user-friendly than it is. I had a hard time adding to my photostream once it was created. What I mean is I couldn't find the options for adding photos. I eventually figured it out, but it took longer than I thought it should.

Thing 2 - Blogging

As I've already discussed Web 2.0 (see below), I'll devote this to blogging. Blogging is a wonderful way to express your interests creatively and to illicit responses to from fellow Internet aficionados who may share your interests.

Teachers can use blogging in the classroom as a form of distance education or for class notes. I've actually done this in the past. Here's the link! http://jonesenglishrss.blogspot.com/

Thing 1 - Introduction

Hello, I am a library science major at University of Houston - Clear Lake. The purpose of this blog is not only for Media and Tech Selections, but also to develop my skills as a blogger. I have started several blogs, but I tend to drop them and return to them at various times of my life as time allows.

Personally, I am a mother of three (soon to be four). My children are 11, 9, and 22 months. Number four will be born in June. I'm very excited to be completing my family.

Professionally, I teach high school English to sophomores and Film as Literature to juniors and seniors while working toward my Library degree. I will graduate in May and we'll see what happens after that!

Web 2.0

Web 2.0 is very easy to use, but the only complaint I have (if you can call it a complaint) is that there is SO MUCH out there. We, as browsers of the Internet, have power over our domain. We can get our voices heard with the click of a mouse. As a kid, I was very shy and closed off from others, but with the development of the Internet and Web 2.0, my social skills have blossomed! I'm no longer afraid someone will not like what I think. I don't have to worry about whether anyone likes my creations or my thoughts. This is because everyone has the freedom to express themselves in the safety of their own homes via the Web.

There are so many opportunities for students and teachers when it comes to Web 2.0. One example I can think of is by using the Web to teach from a distance. I personally use a wiki with my Pre-AP students. I see them everyday, but I still require them to view and make changes to the wiki via discussion.

http://jonesbookwormspap.wikispaces.com <-- this link to the class wiki!