Monday, November 22, 2010

Week 4 - Publishing/Leadership project

I learned a lot about the publishing leadership project this week as I was afraid about this project and didn't know if I had what it took to do one of these projects. After watching the first session of wimba, I felt like I could attempt to create a project. I still have a few questions about this project that maybe any of you that are reading this could help me out with.
1- I chose to do a presentation with microsoft publishing but I forgot how to do it where you could access my project on the internet.
My presentation is a step by step process in how to use digital storytelling in the classroom. will this be an o.k. project?
I also did learn that we really do just have to use the information we have already obtained in our action research project for this publishing project. It became manageable for me, and I hope it is a success! Now I just have to figure out how to do slides in a website, or turn this into an interactive website. Always something pretty tricky!

HERE IS MY LINK TO MY POWERPOINT FOR MY LEADERSHIP PROJECT: (lets hope this works and I did it correctly!)
http://files.me.com/katienemelka/vv4zfg

WIMBA SESSION - week 4

This week I actually really tried to attend wimba session cause I needed that session being that it was for our action research presentation and I needed to get help on that, but with parent teacher conferences this week I didn't get to do it.
So, I did watch one episode of the Wimba so that I could get an idea of what my project should look like since I was behind, then I just completed it and had Matt, my critical friend through the whole thing critique it. He said that my idea was great and was just confused on what kind of presentation I would be giving. He said it was a good step by step presentation for a "how to" lesson, but both him and I were confused if this is what is really needed. We also discussed where I should try to do the project presentation and felt a good place to start would be for Granite school district. This would be a place I would actually have a chance of presenting and it is my own school district so a lot of the people would know me. I think it would also be very beneficial for the lower grade teachers to get an idea on how they can use digital storytelling in their classroom.

Week 4 Blog 3 - Response to Terrie

Yes, it is a total different mode of thinking being able to put yourself as the playing board in the ‘game of life’. It was really hard for me to grasp at first too. Especially how they talked about how we should take responsibility for everything that happens to us in life. When they explained the accident of a drunk driver hitting another driver and also had both parties take responsibility was really hard for me to understand at first. This will be a hard thing to grasp at first, but in the long run I can see how it could make people much happier in the long run. The trickiest part is to visualize and train our minds to really think we are the board! Good luck with that!

Katie

Terries blog:
The idea of being the board was an interesting one to me. I had never thought in that way before, but after reading the chapter, I thought about it for a day or so. At my school right now, there is a lot of what I call “educational politics” going on. We have a new Athletic Director who has walked in and, basically, decided he owns our school, as well as the students in it. From the beginning I tried to work with him until I started to see what I considered to be injustices to the senior class. (These boys and girls, for the most part, have been together since kindergarten and when I see them hurting, it makes me angry and feel like I need to do something about it.) So, I started wondering how things could be different if I saw myself as the board. I have decided to sit back and wait. Maybe things will work themselves out...maybe they won’t, but it is not up to me to try to fix everything. Right?

I also liked the framework. For a little school, we have ALOT of...

Week 4 Blog 2 - Sarah's blog spot

Sarah,
Wow, I love the picture of your son. What a very cute kid! I agree with you that this book was a great book. It taught us lessons we can take with us for years to come. Lessons that can change us and others. I have always been a fan of Martin Luther King’s famous speech of “I have a dream’. I think we all have to be reminded of this dream as we go through our daily lives. Yes, the reality of our futures are HUGE dreams. How exciting for us as we come to an end of achieving one of our dreams of getting a masters degree. Let’s just make sure our dreams never die!

Katie
In response to Sarah’s blog:

The Value of Dreams
Dreams allow us to escape the bonds of reality and create a world of our own. Dreams awaken the possibility of changing the world and creating something beyond the constraints of the past. Without the dream that we could fly we would not have planes, with out the fantasy of magic and all its problem solvers we won't have science. Today's dreams are the reality of our future.
As the book the Art of Possibility states the famous " I have a Dream" speech by Martin Luther King does appeal to everyone of us. As dreams represent our inner wishes; they are a manifestation of our true self. The self that dreams of climbing mount everest in spite of the odds against that ever happening. They push us to want and achieve more.
I totally agree with the implication that to be a true leader one must have a dream, a vision/mission statement and objectives. How else can a leader influence and be an agent of change if they don't know where they wish to take us. It is the dreams of a leader and our desperate desire for something better that changes the world that we live in.
I want to an agent of change, source of inspiration for others particularly my son. This book the art of possibility has allowed me to reconnect with my inner five year old that believes that anything is possible.
I truly enjoyed this book and I am very glad that it is part of this Masters program! So I leave you the picture that began my journey to understanding the art of possibility; a picture of my son.....

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

MAC – Week 4 – Entry 1 – Chapter Reading (10 – 12)

At first I wasn’t so sure about this, “I am the framework for everything that happens in my life.” I think that sometimes we can’t control what happens to us. Yes, we can’t control what others decide, but it would be hard for me to accept any responsibility for another drunk person hitting my car. I like the idea however of looking at our life as if we are the board itself in a board game. We do need to think of strategies on how to make good choices that will help us ‘win’ in life. It is also a good thing to remember so that we can make differences in life. Wow. The example of the affair with the woman was pretty strong stuff. I know it takes two to tango, and usually there is a reason for an affair, but man, that is hard core for him to take full responsibility for having an affair. But it is a good way to look at it as how both are wrong, and how are they going to fix it now?

Wow! What a powerful story about the teacher that cut all her hair off when she saw her student who was recovering from leukemia. What an amazing thing to think about that there really isn’t no division between ideas and action, mind and body, dream and reality. How important it is to become a leader in all situations so that we do come out on top and everyone feels better. My motto has always been, “The sky is the limit.” But I now like how in this book it even says the sky is NOT the limit. There is so much more possibilities available if we just open our minds and think!

Sunday, November 14, 2010

MDA – Week 2 – Entry 3 – Response to Natalie Hill

I had to laugh as I was reading your post. I can totally relate to being uptight since I started this program. I have finally had to accept that sometimes, because life does take over, that I can only do my best and accept the fact that I sometimes can’t get everything done and can’t be perfect. It has been a tough lesson.
I realized that the ‘stress’ was taken out in my classroom this year and I haven’t been as patient as I usually have been in the past. You are so right when you say the first step to changing is admitting your problem. That is when you understand what is wrong and you can change. Your post is easy to read and I can really relate to it.

Natalie’s Post:
I should have been informed about this phrase when I began this program. The phrase is “ Rule #6, don’t take yourself so seriously”, I have been guilty of this since I started this program. I have been so uptight about each subject because I didn’t know what to expect. My blood pressure have gone up tremendously.

Normally, I am the person who is telling people around me to smile everything is going to be ok but, lately that my caculating self has taken over. My mom asked me the other day why I get upset about things so quickly and I said stress. She replied, that’s not you and I said “I know”. Once again I let myself get wrapped up in the measurement world, scared of failure.


I’ve always been told admitting the problem is the first step to solving the problem. Now that I have admitted to being stressed I am going to follow “Rule #6” to the fulliest and finish this program to the end. Enjoy life and don’t let life take control of me.

Media Asset Creation – Week 2 – Entry 2 – Response to Jenn Scioscio Blog

I like your video presentation of this weeks blog that you did. It is a nice change to listen to your comments instead of reading them. I also like how you did provide a written section at the bottom of your video for those visual learners. Is this by your home? I would love to be by a beach!
I couldn’t agree with you more about how no matter what there will always be struggling students. How neat if there really could be a lot of teachers out there that did struggle in school to help motivate those that are struggling. They could easily relate to them. What a great analogy the starfish story is. Thank goodness there are some of those great teachers that do take on the challenge of undergoing those struggling students and make them succeed.

Jennifer’s post:
Starfish Story

The starfish story reminds me of my district’s approach to the student who is struggling to learn in school. The starfish would be the struggling students, and the young girl would be the great teacher. There are always going to be large numbers of struggling students, and the defeated and tired out teacher might wonder if all their efforts are worth it since some of these students will always fall behind. The great teacher accepts the challenge to try to advance these students and without a doubt tries their hardest to reach their goal. If everyone remembers the starfish story when they are having doubts and concerns about their efforts to lesson the gap, then the amount of great teachers will be on the rise. Remember it is the innocent child who needs the support and motivation to make it back to sea.