1:1 Computing

Investing in 1:1 Computing for Students isn't a new idea for schools. The Pro's? Everyone has one to use as their own. The Cons: Everyone has one to use as their own (even those teachers who can't yet access their e-mail). For core-subject teachers students often use their machines as expensive flashcards, notebooks, drill & practice tools. While this isn't always a problem, it doesn't mean these students are becoming literate with technology.

For me, it's all about communication. If we could transition smoothly into a world of communication, I think our lives would move forward in a positive manner. Most people are critical of one another because they aren't aware of the entire scope of an issue. If we were using technology properly in a 1:1 manner, our students could work worldwide on classroom projects. It's really exciting to present a student's work using a projector within one classroom. Imagine, using a videoconference piece of software to present the same completed assignment from a classroom in another town, state, or country!

Students could become teachers and more active learners as they tried to persuade and educator their visitors. One New England state's Department of Education has a vision to become...

Maine students will be the most technologically literate in the world

Here is their example of how they are working towards this goal. It's called Distance Learning...

NH Scavenger Hunt

Assessment of skills is a priority with my classes. It allows the students time to reflect on their work, and if use their decision making skills (simple, did I or didn't I). This time around, I'm going to test you on your NH skills. Just in time for Memorial Day (in case it rains!)

Scavenger Exercise – Let’s Go Portsmouth!

Directions: Grab a classmate for this team exercise. Answer each question completely in order to receive any credit at all. Keep track of any web resources that help you find your answers. Record those web sites under each of your answers. Print your answer sheets. Collaborate with another team to check your answers. Good luck & remember to have fun!


1) How many miles is it from your town's Main Street to Main Street in Portsmouth, NH? Hint:

2) What is the route # of the road you will spend the most of your time on?

3) What year did Portsmouth, NH become a city? Hint:

4) What is the name of the Portsmouth, NH newspaper? Hint:


5) Approximately how many people live in Portsmouth, NH? Hint:


6) If you played for a team at Portsmouth High School, you would be a __________________.


7) Approximately how many students attend Portsmouth High School? Hint:


8) How many “Twin Towns or Sister Cities” does Portsmouth, NH currently have? These towns often (though by no means always) have similar demographic and other characteristics. Hint:

9) How many people live in Portsmouth, NH’s Friendship city? Hint:


10) If you crossed the ________________ River, what state would you be in? Hint: Record the name of the river AND the state!


11) If you wanted to see an outdoor play during the summer in Portsmouth, NH. What is the name of the park you would visit? Hint:


12) Name the island introduced to the Western world in 1614 by Capt. John Smith, of Pocahontas fame. Hint:


13) What is the name of the poet who wrote some of her works on this island? Hint #1: C_ _ _ _ T _ _ _ _ _ _.
Hint #2: This woman’s father was hired as a lighthouse keeper on White Island and she married a man 11 years older than she when she was just 16 years old.


14) Imagine you are the poet that lived on this remote island off the coast of Portsmouth, NH. Write a poem describing the ISLE of _ _ _ _ _ _. Use this web site: to help you write your poem.

15) How many stops are listed on the Portsmouth Black Heritage Trail?Hint:

Extra Credit: Are you smarter than a 5th grader? If so, then record your poem in Garage Band (with music\and or sounds) and share\export it so we can all listen. Good Luck!

Students & Assessment

This week I revisited the idea of self-assessment with my 4th grade classroom. They had created music via GarageBand and then a pod cast, merged the two and added a photo. We had a few glitches along the way, which we solved with critical-thinking activities. I reintroduced the Siemen’s idea of “the knowledge of one is always outweighed by the knowledge of many”and "Learning and Knowledge rests in a diversity of Opinions." That one could most likely cause issues in the public schools of America, I think.

Students were able to take turns at the instructor’s station (wireless machine with InFocus projector attached). Each student heard what the next task was, and could volunteer (boy\girl\boy\girl).

What amazes me, is we followed the same procedures we had done when we created autobiographies utilizing PowerPoint. I think Jeff’s idea of creating a pod-cast from the students would be exciting. First, the forms I used probably weren’t clear enough (or, the students were too inexperienced with following directions?) and, if they could repeat the exercise of pod-casting, it would cement their skills.

I’m going to give it a shot.

Teaching in a Networked Environment

I’ve been thinking of how to integrate wikis and building web pages easily into my grade 6 classes. Primarily because they’re the oldest grade I teach. I also wanted to use a wiki as a project share with my Technology Triad team.

Here’s what happened. In grade 6 we’re working on formatting and working in a networked environment. Here’s the rubric for my plan.


Headline
Add your last name in a single centered headline in your header, size 36 if possible. Use a graphic style font as a top and bottom border in your headline. Add your full name on the Editor line and the date (including the day of the week). Click Insert, Date and Time. Click the box that reads, “update automatically” in order for your date to update each.

Double-space your newsletter drafts. Click Format, Paragraph, and Line Spacing-double before you begin any work. You can change your work into columns towards the end of this project.


Subheadings
Include the following topics as subheadings; Mathematics, Language Arts, Science, Social Studies, Favorite Project, Extra Curricular Activity/Event, and Most Wanted Teacher. Type Subheadings in size 18, bold and underlined. Make Subheadings the identical color to your Headline. Do not separate your subheadings from your articles if at all possible!

Bylines
Are used to credit the work of someone other than you. Bylines appear in the same font style as your subheadings, and are one size smaller.


Mathematics
By Linda Perryclear
Write 3-4 sentences about your math class here. Your article should contain information about what math covers during grade 6. Give two examples of specific math topics and one math project you already completed this year.



Language Arts
By Lu Dujour
Create 3-4 sentences about your Language Arts class here. Your article should contain the specifics about what is covered in Language Arts during grade 6. Give two examples of specific Language Arts topics and one L.A. project you completed this year.

Science
By Whitey Rabbit
Write 3-4 sentences about your Science class here. Your article should contain information about what Science covers during grade 6. Give two examples of specific Science topics and one Science project you already completed this year.


Social Studies
By Pam Thomas
Compose 3-4 sentences about your Social Studies class here. Your article should contain information about what Social Studies covers during grade 6. Give two examples of specific Social Studies topics and one Social Studies project you already completed this year.


Favorite Project
By Cathy Morris
Enter information about your favorite project under this subheading. Tell the reader the goal\objective o f the assignment, how you did or did to reach your expected outcome and why this project was your favorite.


Extra Curricular Activity or School Event
By Dan Sullivan
Tell your rears about a special school activity, team or school wide event you enjoyed during this year. Use at least 4 lines of text.


Most Wanted Teacher
By Eddie Arnold
Do you have a teacher you would like to spend more class time with? Use this section to tell your readers about this person. Add a fun fact or two about this person without revealing their name. Add a picture of this teacher if you can!


Contributors
Enter in all your contributors & web resources here in size 16. Use bullets if you want.
o Highlight your contributor’s names
o Click Format
o Click Bullets & Numbering
o Click your favorite bullet style


Final Formatting Instructions
Once your newsletter is typed, apply\check these steps to your document. Take your time because accuracy counts.
1. Insert a picture of yourself under the Editor text.
2. Click Insert, Picture from File. Click on the list of pictures. Use your arrow keys to scroll. Once you find one of yourself (remember, you’re the Editor), Click Insert.

Next, Check your spelling and grammar.
1. Click Tools, Spelling and Grammar.
2. Enter your word count in your footer (see this sheet for an example).


The last part includes changing the text to column format.
1. Click Format, Columns. Select three columns.

Compare your document to this one. Double-check your steps. Hint, this font is Times New Roman, size 12. Add similar lines around each graphic too.

Extra Credit (5 points): Add a labeled picture of your school in the bottom right corner of this document.

You can copy and paste it into a word document and then use 3 columns. It will look great. I’ve also included it for your use. I began class with letting the student’s keyboard on Typing Master online. It’s our standard start-up procedure and helps those that want to get started do so, and those who need a bit of time to get started.

I brought up Plymouth State University’s Technology and Learning in a Networked Environment class wiki.

The student’s understanding of sharing a networked site is good, as our upper elementary school uses Edline for a class web site. They can jump to web sites (like typing master, or my portaportal.com) from there easily, view their grades, and download documents to work on.

What they absolutely loved was the fact they could contribute to a site. We can’t do this in class because they don’t have e-mail accounts, however they could get the look and feel of it. We visited my professor’s school in Shanghai, China right off the link too. They noticed the American flag, and that everything was in English. We jumped to the K12onlineconference at and heard my professor’s podcast. They were amazed.

Here’s the tie-in. This ordinary formatting assignment that would create a newspaper for the incoming grade became global. They wanted to write as if 5th graders from around the world were going to be 6th graders at the Armand R. Dupont School (psst... I don't manage the site).

Truly Amazing!

Literacy & Technology

As a Technology teacher, many times I come up against students with reading difficulties and because I fall into the “Specialist” category, there may or not be an aide to help. If a student has an Individualized Education Plan (IEP), or 504 Accommodation, I have a bit of a heads-up on the students learning style and possible disability.


Technology is fun. I think what I’ve learned from this assignment is I can incorporate reading and make it fun. It is a bit difficult at times because of short rotations (22 days), but I think if I step back and incorporate reading strategies each student will benefit in their own way.


For instance, I always give students preview of a lesson utilizing an Infocus Projector. Why not add in the different strategies of reading as I can. In this particular newsletter unit I can use a number of the Eight Principles of Vocabulary Instruction quite easily. Previewing and enthusiasm about content area language. The students know I’m proud to be a geek and I want to turn them into geeks someday.


Using Strategic Processing students activate their prior knowledge and Making Connections – Each lesson is based on a previous lesson, a previous year (I have students in grades 3-6). Teaching concepts in semantically related clusters so students can see the associations between concepts. For example, a student’s knowledge of color, balance and coherence from a previous lesson will assist them in their newsletter creation.


And finally, students can revise their models easily. As students read, I have them underline anything they don’t understand and circle any unknown vocabulary. They can do this on their word processors if they can. This assists when they are using study guides. When they don’t answer a question correctly, they go back to their original content. In this lesson plan, it could be the PowerPoint handouts where they mark their reading.

PLN

What should your Personal Learning Network do for you?  It all revolves around communication, I think.  "It can be your most powerful tool" says Dr. David Tobin.  While he begins simply by reciting the four stages of learning; data, information, knowledge and wisdom.  He goes on to say a Learning Network can help you by: 

• helping you sift through all the data to identify which information will be most useful to you.
  
• helping you to identify learning resources and opportunities.
  
• coaching you and answering your questions as you try to apply your learning to your work.
  
• sharing their wisdom with you through dialogue.
  

I think a personal learning network lets you learn, and let's you teach others in your network.  Remember the collective power of knowledge is always greater than the knowledge of one.

Web 2.0

In order for schools today to be successful they must be data driven.  So, how do we incorporate that initiative into our lives... Often I find myself looking beyond the boundaries of the United States for ideas.  I guess after reading "The World is Flat" by Thomas Friedman, I began to realize that everyone has the ability to do anything.  And, while that may be a bummer for us, it's an increased sense of participation for most of the world.    Here's where we can take note on what the rest of the world is up to.

A summary of what Europe is collecting for their Learning 2.0 Study...

1. Identify and Analyse the existing practices and related success factors of major 2.0 initiatives in the field of learning in Europe:
   
2. Look at the innovative dimension of using web 2.0 for learning:
   
3. Analyse the position of Europe vs. the rest of the world in terms of quantitative and qualitative use of innovative Learning 2.0 approaches:
   
4. Discuss the potential of social computing applications to (re)-connect groups at risk-of-exclusion:
   
5. Propose avenues for further research and policy-making.
   

I think these could all be part of a solid case to move to Web 2.0!

Inventing the Boundaries...

David Warlick, a pre-conference speaker form Raleigh, NC in a 30 year educator with quite a bit to share.  His energy has taken me from a "woe is me" to a "get up and get going" about Info - Savvy students utilizing their new Informational Landscape and tying it into their unpredictable Information futures.  David meets up with Bill McGrath and begins with a podcast about his association with thinkquests.  Please take a look for a piece by a Harry from Ghana... who walks 9 miles just to get to an Internet cafe to post his work... the founding agency for these thinkquests goes to the Oracle Education Foundation.

Contests are held each year and you can become a judge of the web-sites, created by students. A rubric exists that we could all use in our classrooms.  Please go and explore!

F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S

Not quite a Mish-Mash

Here I am visiting the K12 conference listening to Brian Crosby's keynote address, Brian's presentation begins with a description that sounds like anything new in education has for the past umpteen years...  "Using what is happening in my classroom as a backdrop, we'll endeavor to provide reasons, methods and rationale during our time here that support integration of 21st century tools in education.  We will share a few tools and methods that you may not have access to, but much of what you will see is probably available at your school site.... you just don't know it yet."  

Beyond that 21st century part, I think his news is dated at times.   I don't agree that we shouldn't use our time utilizing new tools to learn old things (multiplication tables, keyboarding).  Isn't that like saying, go ahead and learn to type on a manual typewriter?  Or, get those flash cards out kids, they're the best thing we have to offer.  

Ultimately I agree with is the addition of new tools to support our students new lifestyles.  They live and learn in a mad-flashing world.  Using blogs, wiki's, flickr pages, and videos add new 21st century tools to our students repertoires.   His are just fantastic!

Breakdown & Repackaging - A Lesson Plan

Increased Connectedness.

I'm going in a new direction, sharing, increasing my connectedness. I've taken a snapshot of a lesson plan that I have used in 8th grade and am now using in 5th grade. In 4 years, maybe I can do it with the 1st graders? I want to share it, so you can share it. Pay it forward as they say. I guess you can call that a breakdown and repackage?

This was done for a Windows Environment. In 2003, Governor Benson gave us machines, which are Macs so the directions are a bit different.

Lately I've been asking my students to write\edit direction sheets down when they are learning a new tool\application. It helps them put it in simplest form and when they share it with their teachers and peers, the reward is tremendous. I'm going to let them try Jing a product that works with both platforms.

Pod-Casting and MTV

Did you know it was an MTV DJ that created the term podcast? (Do kids still watch MTV?) I'm didn't know the first part but Encarta and Merriam-Webster Online both list "pod cast" as The word you've entered isn't in the dictionary. Click on a spelling suggestion below or try again using the search bar above! Makes you realize how far apart a traditional tool (even an online one) can be from a current technology tool.

Phew, I finally followed the directions on links, I'm sooo proud of myself (and mystified why I didn't do it sooner!). A couple of hours at the kitchen counter shuffling through is all it took!

I have some favorite podcasts I listen to in iTunes... sometimes I share with my class while they're working. Students today multi-task so easily. I don't like the idea of simply podcasting to do podcasting. Sometimes that happens, however I like to use podcasting for things that happen just once. Could be reading the school announcements as podcasts... Use copyright free music and you're good to go with this one. Students love to use podcasts to "announce" things.. their voices are amazing -- the less rehearsed the better... More than the How-to Podcast, I like the Why to podcast? information in this pod cast.

My favorite to date! Okay, we could all use a laugh on a Friday!

Stuck in a Rut?

Today it's another rainy, rainy day in NH. The sun hasn't been shining lately at school or at home. Can I get out of the rut of running between schools and not feeling part of either. Can I make my position one that everyone seeks out, and shouts for glory about? Probably not, I'm a teacher for goodness sake.

I'm pretty good at lists, although sometimes I forget where they are, could be a third born trait? Looking for a "rut rescue" I discovered this newsletter http://k6educators.about.com/od/professionaldevelopment/a/self_reflection.htm. It's full of handy, ordered lists on reflecting on one's position, my kind of place. It's feed: http://k6educators.about.com/gi/pages/stay.htm will provide me with updates to read, reflect and ponder for months to come.

I also wonder about what level of connection I’m after. After spending time in the private sector I often hear “Education is different” all the time. Although I’ve been back teaching for 7 years, it’s vital to figure out how to move beyond being an outsider and rediscover why education was my major of choice. Mary M. Brabeck professor and dean of the Carolyn A. and Peter S. Lynch School of Education at Boston College says it well, at http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/rvp/pubaf/chronicle/v11/n14/brabeck.html

Bumper Sticker of the Day... Everyone together is smarter than anyone alone...

Sounds like a student thought of that one. Specifically, education is clearly not black and white anymore. For a very long time my philosophy has been to teach the students to find the information they need. It's a key I say, to anything you want to learn. While we focus on technology tools, the principle of being able to use the tools to inform, manage information, learn collaboration and negotiation techniques is certainly the path I want my students to take each day.

Is it more important to know the answer versus knowing how to find the information? Perhaps. I certainly want a surgeon who knows how the procedure and has practiced it, however, in terms of "fleeting or fleeing data" who cares? Will it be important for our students to name the state capitals? Maybe if it's game show time, however, I believe the best way to have students use the web is to contribute and feel the responsibility of having done so.

I'm not sure Richardson used a splendid example utilizing Steve Jobs, when he called Wikipedia one of the most accurate encyclopedias in the world. He's a risk taker, most teachers aren't, although his parents were educators.. hard call to make.

I love the idea of wikis because of these reasons and have decided to try and see which ones work within my buildings. Imagine telling the students they can do something anytime they want! For me, and maybe the reason PBWiki got it's name.. wikis are better than sliced bread.

Record and Rejoice - Media Sharing!

OH-OH.  I think I owe Jeff an apology.  I didn't read ahead about the Flat Classroom... in fact, I often read the last chapters in a instructional text first, yet haven't lately.  

My thoughts on the teachertube thing are; they are extremely motivating to utilize in my classroom.  I can see the kids viewing them and exploring the "how-to's" as well as the "I can do make that one even better."  Either way, they're learning in a 21st century environment.  

I like the podcasts that save me time.  As Richardson says, keep your player attached to your machine" and you're good to go.  One of my favorite podcasts of all times is by Angus King, former governor of Maine... his goal was to make Maine into a state of the future, and to pave the way for those in the Vacationland to make a living without depending on the mills, and fishing.   Gov. King's feed is listed under my favorites this week.  It's based on the 600+ page book "The World is Flat," yet is under 45 minutes.  I've played it in several of my middle school classes too.

In preparation for some pod-casting, I've been using GarageBand with my 4th graders for the past two sessions.  In session 1, the students explored and used a step-by-step direction sheet created by a 5th grader (they're smarter, right?).  I suggested the students do some peer-to-peer editing the direction sheets.   In session 2, the students were asked to continue exploring, and creating tracks.  There were "Yahoo's" from most when told the assignment.  Some were really whining about it.  Is it because they aren't used to collaborating?  Do not want to share?  Towards the middle of session 3, I played a sample song created a bit ago.  It had multiple tracks and repeats (refrains, chorus).  Wow!  The lights were on big-time.  Students were rushing around the room to see and hear others.  They wanted to know which instrument and which type someone else was using.  

Most of all, I want to introduce and reinforce different styles of learning.  It's something the classroom teachers who hang around can grab hold certainly.  For me, if I had just done what I always do, read from the last chapter of the book, I would have eliminated a bit of frustration.

Social Bookmarking

I didn't know about Ning, thanks to Jeff's blog, I discovered it and have spent several hours "getting it" The entire site reinforces the power of Social Bookmarking. In fact, it reinforces to me, what comes around, goes around.

A bit ago, okay, in 1985, I was a Training Manager at a computer company. We made sw and hw for the trucking industry. The guys out back (programmers) were at best, cigar smoking, geniuses. In fact, one never came in. I think he lived at the Cape, something about a sailboat comes to mind. In my mind I imagined this coder as a bow-tie, spectacle wearing nerd. I had called him in the past and asked about him fixing something that apparently was something related to the look and feel of the software. He told me to check out the cosmetic counter at Macy's! Just a bit longer with this one... One day, I smelled cigar smoke when I came in from lunch. Mystery solved I thought, I went looking for this guru and who did I see? a pony tailed wizard wearing moccasins.

Not everything is what it appears to be. I thought Social Bookmarking only related to those Facebook, and Myspace accounts. Looking deeper into NING, they move beyond that. The site reinforces what I did and didn't understand from Richardson. We have the power now to contribute (without being a coder), and collaborate with everyone.

I'm moving beyond the "I've got to fix it" stage in education. I no longer feel that there are just a few of us Specialists out there, and I should try to fix them. I truly would recommend Richardson's book (although if you check out
1 others are not so enamored.

For now, I'm headed to the "Flat Classroom" to try this out... I hope you can do the same.

I'm listing the sites I've visted, because I haven't quite figured out even if I add them into the text, how to make them show up.

RSS for me!

Okay, As Jeff describes in his Daily Links, NASA and I are running our PLN (Personal Learning Network) similarly. With RSS Feeds, I can slow it down just a bit. It's as if someone read my mind, went through all my mail and handed me what I needed to know - how Divine!

I think I could get this to work in my classes quickly. If students had Blogline accounts, we could feed all the updates on a particular topic to that account. And like Will Richardson says, the research work is cut down considerably. Imagine having someone else research for you 24/7. More importantly, they can collaborate when a great feed is uncovered.

Today, there is a world of opportunity that can crash down on us at any moment. For the person who just wants some help weeding through everything, RSS, Real Simple Syndication (Remember the KISS, "Keep it Simple, Sweetie" adage we all learned? I think it would be the one technique I would always introduce to an older learner. They grew up with secretaries, routine, etc. and it may be a great way to move them to the 21st Century. Now... if I could just find one to experiment with...

Connectivism

Is Siemens too forward thinking? Can something he wrote not be explored by traditional educators? When I Google "connectivism" there are about 157,000 hits. When I look it up in my dashboard dictionary, it's not there! What does that say about this principle?

Joseph Joupert "The aim of an argument, or of discussion, should not be victory, but progress." is Capacity to know more, Knowledge resting in networks, Diverse Opinions? I don't feel many of today's teachers are ready to oblige. Trained in a traditional format, the need to know more (than their students), versus understanding there is knowledge in the masses is not even a known concept in some cases.

Knowledge networks promote diversity, autonomy, interactivity and openness. In many cases, there isn't any shared power. How can a knowledge network exist?

Will Richardson calls today's students "Digital Natives" The rest of us are not. To take us to the next level, take a look at http://itdl.org/Journal/Jan_05/article01.html. George Siemen's Introduction to the Digital Age. Perhaps this or http://www.connectivism.ca/blog/ will give educators a learned approach on how to move forward. I'll keep my fingers crossed!




http://www.connectivism.ca/blog/

So, what about blogs?

Wow! I think they're a fantastic mechanism to express yourself. I'm one of those people that often suggests, offers advice, sticks my foot in my mouth so instead of those things, I'm going to blog it. It's a free space, and you don't have to worry about that foot thing.

Here's the thing with blogs though... just as with any journal or diary I'm not sure how much I want to share with people... Growing up I was always afraid to write in a diary. What if someone found it? What would they think? Would they do something too?

There are so many fascinating ideas, theories, questions to ponder when you post to a blog. I can say I've been easily pulled into a blog and taken a long time to get out. That's not a terrible thing, just very time consuming.

I'm wondering who is going to read them. Are we all hiding behind these words with pseudonyms? Do you really know who torchgirl is? It's wise to be safe and not disclose too much, right?

School 2.0

Take a look at a list of synonyms for the subheadings of this site. I think translating them to the traditional school will help me to understand the future. Here is a list I created; knowledge, education, wisdom, network, system, management, control, direction, assets, property, means, likeness, instrument, device, means, schemer, plotter, conspirator, alteration, change, renovation.

Each one of these terms exists in today's school and communities. Some terms are positive, some describe elements in each of our buildings, and with most of them, comes a means to reach School 2.0.

Utopia comes to my mind when I read how things should work in today's classrooms. An 85 year old American sat in rows, in desks, with recess, snack and so on when they were in middle schools and things haven't changed very much. I wonder why it's taken so long to move towards a change?

Sure, we have new tools, however I believe many educators are fearful of using them. For some reason it's okay to say, "I'm not a technie, I'm not good with computers..." Overall I think it's because traditional educators feel they must know it all. Traditional educators want to to be in control, and on top of things. The role of facilitator in a learning environment is too outside their comfort zones. It isn't a new reading methodology that some might say "it's just like _____ with a new name". This is different and they're not sure how to change their traditional roles.

In order to figure out how this could work, we can look at items that in fact aren't new at all. Communication, Collaboration, Content, Assessment and Evaluation and Creation. Today's teachers know how to do all of these things. The leap to doing it using today's technologies is difficult.

Perhaps we should just use synonyms?

How do I Feel?

Since I really didn't use these tools the easiest way, I feel quite refreshed now that I've taken the time to learn two.

Well, by the looks of me, it's been a tough week all around. It's interesting to me to actually experience wanting to just throw my machine. I'm not used to names of things I guess. Perhaps because I usually am a visual person and so many items we've explored are visual "twitter, wetpaint, 2.0, on and on" I'm feeling more than a bit overwhelmed. I'm hoping to begin thinking of all these things as just tools to get my job done, however right now, I'm not clear as to which tool does what (see table below).

To add to my delight, I just spoke at a district meeting. A fellow speaker was up next. I had connected my laptop (a MacBook) to the Infocus and did my gig. He looked at me with an overwhelming, "Help, this is a Mac!" look. We were only on the web and looking at a secured site. Someone from the audience was brave enough to say "Yup, that's how we feel when you get talking!" Thankfully, the keynote speaker's topic was "Working with a Sense of humor" I"m going with that thought this week...

I think as a geek (much less of one at this very moment), I jump in with both feet and go for it. However, this week with a "grade" riding on my success\failure I really understand how myaudience\class\peers may feel after working with me. I pledge, to be clearer with my words, and to check in now and then to see if they are accomplishing their tasks.

Jeff may have to do with me!

I welcome anyone to edit the chart (okay, maybe it's a table) below... This can be our experiment in how to translate to others don't you think?

This weeks Mystery	What it does (or what I can compare it to)	Why should I use it?
Blog
Twitter
RSS Feed
Google Docs
Wiki
Twirl
Wetpaint

What is that ringing I hear?