Week 3 Reflection

This has been a very trying week with end of the quarter project corrections over the weekend and now I have some kind of virus I cannot shake so digging into technology has not been easy. I did manage to play some more with my Yahoo Reader page. My links were not updating and I found information indicating this was most likely because Yahoo is not very popular now and the information was not being accessed very often. The recommendation was to set up a blog such as the one I have and link it to the reader. Blogs cause lots of activity and the rest would most likely start updating. I am just now blogging so I do not know yet if this will work. I have the Pioneer Press linked up and it is updating, but La Prensa Spanish newspaper out of the Cities is not. Some sites I cannot figure out how to link up. I deleted the RSS link to my blog on Classroom 2.0 and added my link in the personal information section. I started using Delicious as a bookmark site and got some links in there. What I really need is to be able to divide them into categories for either Education/Student use or Spanish I/Spanish II/ Spanish III or all of the above. If I do this I might possibly start using this in class. I haven't had time to investigate this yet. I have taken a lot of time on the articles. Reading and doing a review online is new for me and a little uncomfortable, but I do not want to print it. I now see how many responses are in and thinking about coming up with new information and reading all of them gives me a headache. I will continue to try tonight and in the next few days. I am trying not to give up on blogging with my students, but still need more time to investigate. I did notice Pandora.com on the list and realized that I use this also in class. We use it during work time or during a review game like hot potato where a student left with the "stuffed frog" must answer the question when the music stops. I also use it to find new Spanish songs and artists. So perhaps I am not so out of touch as I had thought. I am also following Chad, Kristin and Jeannie on Twitter, which I found will update Facebook, but Facebook will not update Twitter.

RSS Part II

I checked my RSS links on my Yahoo reader page which is now my home page when I log onto the internet. Both the Spanish word of the day and La Prensa newspaper were there, but they did not update. I can click on them and link to the websites, but isn't it the same as just doing a bookmark? I don't get it. I can also subscribe to receive an email of the Spanish Word of the Day. I would also like to know more about folders and tags. I have no idea how much time I have spent as I also forgot to keep track. I do know that it is increasing by the day and my husband thinks I am working online way too much. This from the guy who plays World of Warcraft! I am on Spring Break now so am able to work on things a couple times a day between other activities.

RSS

I have been trying to use the RSS links and have had some success. I managed to link up La Prensa newspaper out of the cities to my Reader. I did not even know that I had a reader with my Yahoo email. I also added a Spanish Word of the Day to this as well. I don't know how to add these to my Blog or to my Classroom 2.0 page. I read how to link my blog to Classroom 2.0 with the help of Diane and Lisa, but I didn't trust that I would do it quite right and haven't done that yet. I have also browsed the readings for this week on the history of the internet/computer. My dad was a math major turned computer programmer and I remember him doing work at home using the phone and we did all our artwork on the old style computer paper. My uncle has told me how they used to do email when he was in the Airforce before it was used commercially. I feel like I should have more done, but it all takes time.

Second Semester of Spanish - Love Song

Embedded Video

I have been trying to add a video for a while and finally did it. I had to go to the Blog help first which said to find the embedded video code to the right of the video. There was none (I thought). After checking with some people I know who couldn't help, I finally found a YouTube how to video under Help that also showed where it was. The whole time I thought the code was for something else and not connected to the video. So enjoy the One Semester of Spanish - Love Song and I'm going to add the Second Semester of Spanish - Love Song as well. My students really enjoyed the first one that I had heard about from someone else, but I didn't even know the second one existed. I definitely need to play more with YouTube!

One Semester of Spanish - Love Song

I finally logged into the World Language forum that I subscribed to last fall through the MN. foreign language association.  I just haven't had time this year to look at it although I would find some good ideas to improve my classroom.  Ironic that it is easier to just do the same old thing than take the time to use a forum and update my lessons.  It took me about 1 minute to find a streaming video of various Spanish lessons in different situations.  I just looked at the first one, but will use it with Spanish I on Friday I believe.  What is nice is it is somewhat interactive with ways to click to repeat or practice vocab and grammar.  There are also pauses for the students to say a line such as tell the cab driver what address you want to go to.  As soon as I figure out how to, I'll link it to my page in case anyone is interested.  I also want to finally use my school site to put links for students to use.  

More Time

I am so interested in learning more about technology and how to use different sources more effectively especially in my classroom.  I seem to just skim the surface of things and then move on to something else.  My biggest hurdle right now is time.  I am finding it hard to fit in family time and responsibility with a baby, lesson plan and correct for my classes, and do everything I want to do with technology in this class.  At least now I can say I have to "play" on the computer.  My husband is all for it as he does his own playing.

First Blog

I'm trying out my very first blog tonight.