#CLMOOC and Connecting this summer

This summer is one of connections as well as changes, but all that hopefully result in great things.

As I begin the summer after a long hiatus of posting, I thought what better way than learning how we can connect the learning our students need to master.  So I will be mastering this through #CLmooc a connected learning MOOC through the National Writing Project.  Now I am certainly not a writer, but who knows, it is never too late to learn.  Already I have created a "Make" with Vizify, profiling my social media usage.   Since I found that I have really segregated my life with my social media usage, I created an additional Introduction page.  This time on About.me.  There are many more I will attempt, but these made my first week of summer focused.

The change is coming as we help my parents transition from a 4 bedroom home of 35 years into the most amazing retirement community in Lancaster, PA.  Of course, I am realizing that my mother has no spatial concept; she is having issues parting with anything.  But this is a process, hard on all involved, but having healthy parents in their 80's is a blessing.  The highlights of my creativity during one of the first stages of the process is pictured below:

So in the theme of my blog; all elements of our lives will be patched together, making a whole usable piece of art or work.  My life will continue to be pieced together, making me a versatile, flexible and passionate creator.

2013 has dawned

Wow, it is hard to believe that I have not posted in so many months. It reminds me about how time really does move quicker the older we get, but really this is just so ridiculous!

I am planning to take this blog on a different direction; using it to feature some of my creative products, my feelings as I muddle through this school year trying to find ways to help develop a love of learning in my middle school students, and overall views of life as I observe life revolving around me.

Since August so much has changed in the state of New Jersey.  The school year began with changes in teacher evaluation, standards for testing, and overall teacher distrust. (That is an editorial remark based upon the perception of a current teacher - so if I offend anyone, my opinion is just my opinion)
I came into the year with so many new ideas for my students, and for the most part they have been enthusiastically embraced. 


The biggest change though came on October 29, 2012 when Superstorm Sandy slammed into the East Coast of the United States, directly onto Long Beach Island where so many of my students and colleagues live.  Wow, how priorities and life has changed.  As my students continue to make sense of all the changes; addresses, needs & wants, and basic life experiences, we continue to teach to the best of our abilities, showing caring through fundraising, gift giving and overall generosity.  If you want to help with the continuing rebuilding, Jetty tee-shirts - hurricane sandy relief are doing great things in Ocean County, New Jersey.


So as I enter 2013 my goal is to continue teaching in a creative manner, build my etsy shop Suzinstitches to give me an outlet for my creative juices.  The Masters of Instructional Technology program continues, so having a creative outlet will certainly help keep the stress levels down. 

TeachMeetNJ

To follow up on the TeachMeetNJ presentation just posted:  Below is the presentation I did on Mindmapping - a great tool for any organizing you need to do...

Thursday I had the opportunity to present and attend the first ever TeachMeetNJ at Richard Stockton College in Pomona, NJ.  This was a great way to meet "connected" New Jersey Educators who passionately shared their favorite Web 2.0 tools and techniques.

Kudo's to Kyle who did an awesome job, even though I did not win the IPad - my door prize came in the form of increased knowledge and a larger tool kit!

I had the pleasure of presenting Mindomo - Mindmapping Made Easy - an awesome tool to help you organize your life, philosophy, projects, presentations or just about anything.  I love it!

 

Gearing Up for the school year

Well, it looks like summer is waning, with the school year beckoning.  Time to get focused on the integration of technology into my curriculum:  Skills for Life. I am trying to  focus on integrating how technology has changed life for all of us; from how we make our purchasing decisions, daily habits we follow, the food we eat (or don't eat), the tools we use to get things done, the fabrics we wear for different activities, all have been dramatically changed in our lifetime.  So planning to implement this into a classroom that has not really changed in the past 100 years will be a challenge. 

Sewing Machines:  Then and Now - technology has affected all aspects of life! 

Can you imagine sewing anything by hand turning the wheel?

To meet this challenge I attended and presented this past Thursday at TeachMeetNJ, an unconference held at Richard Stockton College, Pomona, New Jersey.  There I joined with 200 or so New Jersey educators to learn ways that we can use technology in our classroom to energize and transform the education of our next generation.  I enjoyed presenting "Mindmapping made Easy: Mindomo" a quick overview of a great weeb resource for organizing, planning and collaboration - including a presentation model.  The presentation seemed well received, so hopefully some classrooms will be collaborating in an organized manner.  Check out the presentation of a simple mindmap of Mindomo in the classroom.mindmapping made easy



If you like the concept - try your hand at a map of your own;  it is fun to organize any subject.  For you teachers out there, it is a great way to create your lectures and classes.