Name this car and win!

Ships get names all the time. If I'm to trust Wikipedia, the tradition has existed for thousands of years. It seems that the ancients chose names that would protect the sailors.

It stands to reason that, seeing as most of us will never be sailors, our ancestors, who still reside in our souls, should urge us to name our current mode of transportation - our cars. I have known many people who have named their cars. I think my dad would call each of his cars Bessie - though I don't know why. A former student named her car Bob. I, on the other hand, have never named a car. All of the cars I have owned have been the lowest end model, a mere utilitarian vehicle to get from point A to Point B. I have, however, just purchased a new (to me) car. A 2009 Mini Cooper S. It is my dream car. I have wanted a Mini since it was re-introduced to the North American market. I am in superficial consumer heaven.

Because this car is so special to me, I think it deserves a name. So, I am asking you, my loyal and international readers to help me decide on a name. All you have to do is leave a comment here (not on FB, Twitter, or Google+) with your suggested name. I will then ask my sixth hour English 12 class to choose from all the suggestions. If I have a way to get a hold of you, I will email you, get your address, and send you a small prize.

RULES
1. If you are related to me - don't enter.
2. If you are a current student - don't enter.
3. Only names posted here on the blog are valid.
4. Deadline - Wednesday, September, September 7 11:59 EST.

Here it is - hope you feel inspired.

Things 23 - the end of my journey!

As I started this course, I was a little concerned that it was going to be too simple for me. Also, my district just cannot get its act together. That interactive white board that has been on the wall of my room since March? Still inoperable. The version of Microsoft Office on the computer in my room. Maybe '98? Anything I type on my laptop I must save as an RTF or it won't open at school.

I have, however, learned a number of wonderful things. My favorite is the tip about saving Delicious tags. Just that tidbit alone was well worth taking this class. My other favorite bit was the lesson on podcasts. I hadn't yet waded into that pool of information delivery, but I absolutely will use the vocabulary podcast I found. All I need is my iPod and speakers. Not even my district can screw those things up.

I still see technology through the lens of my economically and vision deprived district. What I do see, as I stand on the cusp on what will be a daunting school year, is that I will have to share my own knowledge and continue to push for change. I will urge others to take this worthwhile class.

I just re-read Steve Hargadon's article and I still find it entirely too full of Kool-Aid consumption. It is impossible to deny the importance Web 2.0 has played in movements like the Arab Spring, it is also impossible to overstate the importance of face-to-face contact, or the mostly despicable comments found at the end of any article on any newspaper site. One glance at those reveals that there are a lot of "pro-sumers' out there who are interested only in their own ignorance and hatred and sharing that with the world.

How will I continue to learn about Web 2.0? I will follow the trends and ask the kids :)

Things 21 and 22

Of the Wikis that I browsed, my favorite was Book Trailers for Readers. That gave me an idea for an end of the year project for my combined English 12/Honors English 12 class. I think they'll be making book trailers.

Anyway, the only obstacle that I have to overcome is the time crunch issue. I've mentioned before that I have five preps this year and, to be honest, I'm already feeling stressed as I try to start lesson plans. I don't think PB works is blocked because another teacher has a wiki.

I had wanted to start a wiki for a while, so I did so earlier in the summer, long before I realized that I would need to do so for this course. My wiki, Books Are Good is obviously still under construction. The big difference between it and a blog is that I can train kids how to upload material to this and they can work collaboratively on projects using a wiki. That's still the part with which I need to become familiar, but I have people who can help me.

A blog for a student is still more appropriate for his/her own thoughts. I would hate for a wiki discussion board to become a spot for competitive students or malcontents to try and mar someone else's reputation or work. I can see that happening. As long as blogspot is blocked, I might keep the Yahoo! group going for my AP class.

Thing 20

I love the idea of using podcasts in class. I think it will connect with the kids because for many of them, information from a podcast is "different" from a boring old lecture. I'll be the cool kid on the block just for using them occasionally.

I went to EPN and searched for Language Arts podcasts. I mentioned in my last post that I wanted to find a podcast about writing. I didn't find one, but I did find one prefect vocabulary in my AP Literature class.

Then I visited Podcast Alley only to learn that the site was doing some maintenance work and thus could not open any podcasts. Sigh.

Okay, on to iTunes. Good news - Just Vocabulary is available through iTunes, so it is my first subscription. Then I checked out Grammar Girl. I was immediately disappointed that there was an ad in the very beginning. Once I got over that, the content was really quite informative. So I subscribed to this one, too.

I found one writing podcast and it was really addressing some advanced issues. I might check out more of its shows, but right now, it's a pass.

I didn't really prefer one search venue over the other. I have to go back and try Podcast Alley. All I know is that I'm looking forward to trying some of these in my classroom.

I Humbly Submit My CV For Your Consideration

Dear George Clooney,

First of all, let me offer you my deepest sympathies on your recent break up with your girlfriend of two years. A quick look at this list is quite impressive. Let's face it, all of your paramours have been HOT. If I were a lesbian, I'd hook up with any of them. But, I'm not gay. What I am is a simple mid-west girl who teaches high school in...well, I'll just say Detroit because it's easier for now. I explain it better over drinks.

I want to suggest something that maybe others have not. I want to suggest that perhaps you keep choosing the wrong girl. As someone who is considered one of the sexiest men alive , you have a reputation to uphold. But have you ever considered that these uber-beautiful women are, perhaps a little high maintenance? I know they look great on the red carpet, but you've been through a bunch of them.

Consider, you're a guy from the mid-west, Cincinnati, right? Despite the house in Italy, perhaps you're still deeply, emotionally rooted in mid-west values. I know those values well: loyal friendships, rooting for the home team (not the new one, but the first home team), backyard BBQs washed down with a beer. I could be wrong, I don't know you at all.

Have you ever thought about a little experiment? You could insure that your next girlfriend doesn't want to be a model, reality t.v. star, or actress. For this experiment, I offer myself as the guinea pig. I do NOT want to be on television. Sure, I want to publish my novel, but I'd be happy if a dozen strangers bought it. You probably want to know about me before you make this major decision. Let me help you here.

My politics are very liberal. I'm a former elected official in my union. Politics are a bad habit for me. From what I've read about you, we both hate Fox News. Plus, I'm a high school teacher who is also the student council adviser at the school. I walk the walk, not just talk the talk (sorry for the cliche) and I think you might appreciate that.

I have to admit, that I probably need to lose 10 pounds. I'm not nearly as svelte as your past lovers. But, there will never be rumors that I have have an eating disorder and I'm an excellent cook. I like experimenting in the kitchen. I am, however, a vegetarian. Thought you should know.

I am not high maintenance. I don't require enormous amounts of jewels or other sparkly things. Sure, sometimes those goodies are nice, but they aren't me. I like a pair of simple, elegant earrings, a complimentary necklace, and maybe a small ring. I don't mind getting clothes from secondhand stores because it's better for the environment. The clearance rank is my best shopping friend. I do have a boot addiction. I have nice shapely legs, so that's an addiction you'll enjoy.

Speaking of enjoy, let's just have a brief discussion about sex. I like it and have been greatly deprived lately. That means I will be very generous and overly grateful. Very generous.

You have said several times that you do not want to get married. I'm cool with that. All I would want is a happy, reasonably monogamous relationship. I say reasonable because there is a certain singer (Glenn Tilbrook), who if he ever gave me the eye, I couldn't say no. Besides, I'm sure women aggressively throw themselves at you all the time. We can negotiate this point.

As for children, I have a seven year old son. He is mildly autistic. His father is actively involved in his life, on a daily basis. My son is the bright star in my sky. If you don't hate kids, you'll really like him.

Look, I'm pretty cute, I'm refuse to worry about grey hair and crows' feet. I like concerts, reading and taking long walks. I wear myself on my sleeve. I think you need a simple gal, so why not me?

Thing 19

Last year, I asked our district tech department about podcasts. I had listened to a couple and thought that it would be cool and relevant if my students could create their own podcasts. I am sorry to say that I received several blank stares. I quietly excused myself, backed out of the room, and returned to my room - where I laid my head on my desk and silently wept for not having thrown caution to the wind and become a rock n'roll photographer, salary and sleep deprivation be damned.

For some reason, I was unable to watch either of the RESA podcasts on my laptop (told myself to watch them at the ex's later in the week), so I went directly to the third link.

The first podcast I watched was the Sesame Street on about language acquisition. I suppose because as the mom on a mildly autistic mom, repetitive language is a daily struggle. He has grown up with two teachers, so his receptive language is pretty impressive, but he struggles with his expressive language, though he has come a long way in the past year.

Additionally, a large number of my students were not born in this country and thus come from an English as Second Language background. Many of them do not speak English at home and, thanks to satellite television, only hear it at school. I've struggled for a few years with an effective way to handle vocabulary. I guess I just have to surround my high school students with vocabulary in the same manner I did my adopted-from-China-didn't-know-he-was autistic son. Don't talk down to them, be diligent about my word wall, and keep reading the research.

The second one I watched was for pure pleasure because I needed a Glenn Tilbrook fix. I can't really talk about it publicly, but I have secret plans to make him mine ;)

The final one I found was a series of four about the History of Photography. This is the great passion of my life and I'm always looking to know more about it. Of course, I was drawn in to it due to the iconic Dorothea Lange "Migrant Mother" photograph.

I still want my students to make a podcast and it would be great to find some podcasts about the craft of writing and maybe I can share those with my students. I'll save that search for thing 20.

Thing 18

Yet another useful site that can be used to eliminate student excuses. slideshare is a site where one can upload a PowerPoint presentation and share it publicly. No more, "I forgot my flash drive" or "it won't open on your computer." If this site isn't blocked and I can open it on my laptop, the presentation is saved. It also gives me the opportunity to go back and look at a presentation for things I might have missed, for example spelling mistakes.

I'm not sure how I would use this outside of the classroom. I'm not in a position where I make presentations - ever. I suppose if I found myself in a situation where I needed to make a presentation, uploading it to this site would be a back-up measure. I certainly could do research on the site. Without the speaker, the presentation loses a little something.

Because the subject of autism is near and dear to my heart, I searched for a presentation about it. I found one called "Working with Autistic Spectrum Disorder children in the classroom." I liked it because it offered me gentle reminders on how to work with my son when the frustration level rises. Plus, let's face it, autistic kids are in our classrooms, and they have a right to be there. There are some estimates that show that 1 out of every 100 children are on the spectrum. That number is even higher for boys. As teachers, we need to be ready for the challenges that will arise when these kids, even mild like my son, are mainstreamed into our classrooms. Here's the presentation.

Dealing With Autism Presentation

View more presentations from guestf46b4

Thing 17

Okay, I loved this assignment! Aside from Open Office, I didn't really realize that there were so many on-line productivity tools - and without downloading them.

For my students, I really like Zoho Show. Like Google Docs and group assignments, this site eliminates just one more excuse for not doing an assignment. As long as this site isn't blocked at school, a student with a computer at home cannot tell me that he/she doesn't have PowerPoint, so a poster board will have to do. I have to play with it more as I didn't make an account. I need to know if presentations can be made public so others can look at them, making grading a little easier.

I think I will more than likely sign up for Remember the Milk. For one thing, the cow logo is too cute. More importantly, I can get reminders in email and on Twitter. This, in addition to my phone, should be tremendously helpful.

I made an account at LibraryThing. This site could become my new obsession. At the moment, I can't think of a relevant school application, but personally, the sky is the limit. I like the idea of connecting with other readers who are avid enough to register at a site like this. I will have to be careful with my time.

Thing 16

I was lucky enough to be involved with the National Writing Project at Eastern Michigan last summer. One of the other teachers involved did a presentation on how she used Google Docs with her students. Our whole cohort went on to use it to compose our response letters for all the presentations. Since then, I've incorporated Google Docs in a few ways.

Aside from my teaching duties, I am also the Student Council adviser. In the past year, the Student Council Executive Board has started saving important documents and forms in Google Docs. This means that more eyes can proofread and fix right away (saving paper in these cash-strapped days) and eliminating the need for a floating flash drive.

On a personal level, I used it mainly for two reason. The first is for a novel that I wrote. I have the complete manuscript saved there until some publisher sees just how brilliant it is. The other reason occurred after my dad passed away in January. He had a gazillion recipes typed up and my mother wanted me to delete all of them. Before I did so, I saved many of them to Google Docs, I guess as a reminder of my dad.

The biggest issue is, as always, overcoming my school district's policies. Currently, students are prohibited from accessing their email at school. While part of me understands the policy, it is hopelessly out of touch with how students actually work. I can, however, urge them to use Google Docs when faced with a group assignment. Inevitably, someone is absent and THAT person has all of the work. If everything is save in Google Docs, no need to worry.

With colleagues, I can see working on common assessments or assignments using Google Docs. Again, it makes proofreading easier and it spreads the typing load around as everyone can alter the document and leave notes about about was done.

Thing 15

I think that this has been (after the photograph assignments) my favorite. All of the other assignments didn't really present me with new information. This one was a whole bunch of new.

As I feared when I subscribed to some of those sites, I had not had time to read most of them. But, give me a break, I just moved out of my old house into my own place. It's been a busy and emotional few weeks. Thus, I was pretty glad to learn of the manage subscriptions link. I immediately pared down my subscriptions.

Even better was the knowledge that I could subscribe to Delicious TAGS! I am not exaggerating when I say that this knowledge will have an immediate positive impact on my life. The first two subscriptions were to a"writing lesson plans" tag and an "American literature." Now, I just have to read through them and save the ones I like myself.

Google reader will now become a habit.

Thing 14

As I mentioned in the previous post, I have had a Delicious account for a couple of years now. What prompted that move was a dying computer. I wanted desperately to save my bookmarks and somewhere, probably NPR, I had heard about Delicious, so I checked it out and it saved me many tears.

My username is TeacherToni (very original - don't you think?). I think I can use Delicious in my teaching by sharing my links with my students on my newly formed Wiki. Of course, I might need to arrange them so that only my school related links are public. Currently, all of my links are public only because I hadn't thought to make any of them private. It's not as if I have salacious sites saved to my Delicious account.

Does it enhance my productivity? I think so, it cuts down on my Google time because I've saved so many useful sites. Again, unlike clutter in my living room, my virtual clutter is out-of-control. I don't see it, so I think about it less. Just another job on the neverending to do list.

Thing 13

I guess that I don't have too many thoughts about tagging, except that I need to do a better job of it. I also guess that how one tags an item depends greatly on how that item will be used. If it's basically for myself, any old way (or ways) will work. On the other hand, if I'm tagging for other people, I have to keep audience (like a good writer) in mind. What will be the most useful way to help direct people to what I hope they find? I think that I mildly lamented that I needed to do a better job tagging my blog entries if I want to generate more traffic.

I have a Delicious account and I know that I need to get in there and better organize my bookmarks. I also need to get into my Flickr account and organize those, too. That way, If I want to connect with other like minded people (let's say Squeeze fans on Flickr) they can more easily find my pictures that relate to our common interests. Perhaps I can do some of that tonight.

Thing 12

My blog already had a couple of widgets (or gadgets as blogspot calls them). Earlier this spring I added the visit counter and when I started the blog I immediately added a Picasso of the Day and a blog roll. I don't like to clutter my blog up with too many bells and whistles. I don't want to distract from the writing.

The second I saw the list of possible widgets, I knew exactly which one I would add - the Clustrmap. I just love knowing who is reading my blog, even if people are not leaving comments. I gives me a sense of a real audience.

I do believe that real relationships can be formed on-line. On Facebook, I have a "friend" from Australia, whom I met through someone I met once at a concert in Cleveland. All three of us love the same band. All three of us are English majors. I have met up with the person in Cleveland and will continue to do so. The woman in Australia? I don't know that I'll ever meet her face to face, but we interact and enjoy each others on-line personalities, which in my case is very much like my real life personality.

Why do students like sites like Facebook? It feeds their social animal on many different levels. First of all, everyone gets to see how popular you is with how many friends you have. Secondly, you might have a random thought that you post as your status. Someone else might do something as simple as "like" it and you get a little gratification that someone out there is paying attention. Even I get that feeling of I'm not alone and someone is "listening."

Thing 11

I actively encountered my first blog after the 2004 presidential election. I was hurt and angry and confused and felt pretty damn alone in the world. I had heard about the Daily Kos, a left-leaning political site,during the election. When I finally visited the site, I found kindred spirits. But the site is so big, I felt as if my voice was continually drowned out by bigger political junkies than me, so I moved on. By spring of 2005, I had found Booman Tribune and it has been my political blog home ever since. I've written diaries there, I have left a number of comments over the years. I have also made a number of real life friends because of that blog

I have a number of friends who maintain blogs. I wish I had time to comment everyday. I don't feel nervous about making comments. Perhaps because I found the tips in the article to be pretty much common sense. But, for people who are new to blogging, the tips are perfect.

I wish that this blog had more traffic. I think perhaps I need to do a better job of tagging my posts. Better labels would provide more Google hits. I love it when a stranger stumbles onto my blog and adds to what had been a soliloquy. It really makes my day.

Things 9 and 10

I created a youtube account perhaps three years ago. It was in response to my inability to email a video to my parents in Florida. My son had done something cute and I had managed to tape the event. I tried several times to attach it to an email, to no avail; the file was simply too large. At the time, I didn't know about gmail, so the only way I could think to the share these videos of their only grandchild was to upload them to youtube. That's worked and since then I've upload concert video and more Andrew video. If anyone is curious, look for tacteacher and you'll find my paltry offerings.

I avoid youtube like the plague. I could get lost in hours of goofy Bugs Bunny clips. I do like to check out new music via youtube. If someone tells me about an artist, I look up a few songs and make up my own mind about the artist. I don use it with Andrew when he wants to look at trains or trucks or airplanes.

Sadly it is blocked in my district. I have asked to have it unblocked on teacher stations, but alas - no. I would love to use it when teaching satire (the Simpsons). I know that there is TeacherTube. I used it this summer to look for rocks and minerals videos for Andrew. It has less content, though I will look at it more extensively as I plan for my classes, especially if that white board is set to go.

As I stated before, I'm in a bit of a sour mood and this song really speaks to that. It is a beautiful live version of one of my all-time favorite songs. Enjoy!

Thing 8

Playing with graphics is new to me. I have never played with Photoshop. I'm not interested in Photoshop enough to devote the time to it. I like my photographs to stand on their own and frankly I think I'm good enough that the images I choose do just that.

I played a bit with the mashups and, aside from the Memory game, I really wasn't all that excited about them. They would be good tools to provide to my students when I assign a multi-media assignment.

The image generators were a bit more fun and I can see wasting many an hour playing on these sites. Again, offering these to my students as tools for assignments is a possibility. The other is for my lecture notes, especially if the interactive white board idly hanging on my wall ever becomes operational (and I get at least a little training). These sites would also be fun if I ever have to make a presentation at a staff meeting - just to loosen up the audience.

With everything going on in Lansing, I've been feeling a bit cynical. Then I found out that I will have five preps for this coming school year. So, when I thought about this assignment, my brain was in a darker place than I normally like. But, I wanted to pay tribute to my new favorite actor, Matt Damon.

Thing 7

As I stated in my post for Thing 6, I have had a Flickr account for several years. Photography is a passion and I have the cutest son in the world, thus I take more pictures than any human should.

I tagged a picture I took in London. It is of the wrong end of a telescope mounted on the hill of the Royal Observatory. All of my pictures are public, so feel free to browse through. They are in no way organized, but I plan on working on that, slowly but surely.

Would I use Flickr in my classroom? Maybe. Or perhaps I would create a Picasa account just for classroom use. I can see myself using it to prompt descriptive writing. Or, if I really had time, I would try to take pictures of outdoor advertising that uses literary techniques. That probably won't happen, but a girl can dream.

Paris Sunset from the Louvre window

Paris Sunset from the Louvre window, a photo by Dimitry B on Flickr.

Thing 6

Okay - now we're talkin'! Photography has been my passion since I was a kid. I remember being eight years old and my parents gave me a a Kodak 110 camera. It was as simple as possible and looked like this



I cried. No, seriously, I cried. Just imagine how emotional I got when I got a Polaroid. Eventually, I learned to develop film and photos. I took pictures for my high school newspaper and even won an honorable mention award mention from Columbia University for a baseball picture I took.

I take a ton of pictures. I've had a Flickr account for a few years. As a matter of fact, I take so many pictures that I pay for the ability to upload an unlimited number of pictures and videos.

I've already uploaded one picture, but that wasn't from Flickr, it was from Google images. My next big European trip will be to Paris, so I searched Paris and found a gorgeous shot of the Louvre. What I didn't know was that Flickr would post it separate from my post. C'est la vie! Enjoy!

Thing 5

I almost missed this one. Good thing I was multi-tasking last night and actually slowed down to re-read the assignments.

Last night, whilst making delicious blueberry jam, I played with RSS subscriptions and Google Reader. Because I was in a canning mood, I searched for food blogs, more specifically, preserving. I'm glad I did that because I found a couple of good spots, one with a divine looking recipe for balsamic blackberry jam (I believe that I have found something to make this weekend).If you like making jams check out this site.

The amount of information can be overwhelming and I wonder if this is a tool I'll start to use and then just drop it when life takes over. I'm not really sure that using RSS can fully mitigate that information overload feeling. I fear that I'll check it once a week and start to feel guilty that I hadn't checked in for a while. Blogs are so personal, that I begin to feel that, as a regular reader, I have a responsibility to regularly support the writer. Heck, I feel guilty if I don't write here more often.

As with everything, I will simply do what I can.