So its time for the Digital Advent Calendars collection. Something for every one I hope. I’m going to busy tomorrow checking those don’t start until then.
Podcasting
Wednesday, Nov 16th, 2011 by Tricia | 0 Comments
So what’s the definition podcasting. I usually fall back on the wonderful Commoncraft videos explanations in plain English and in this case Podcasting in Plain English. Here they talk about the subscription element of the sound file, the way in which once linked or subscribed too, any new podcasts from a source is automatically sent to their iTunes.
Adding a sound file to a webpage, wiki, blog or similar means it’s online and available for people to go to to listen too it is not a podcast unless the listener has set up a RSS feed.
Any comments?
Here I’m adding a sound file produced with Podomatic, embedded into the blog.
However if you want to add http://tricias.podomatic.com/rss2.xml to your Reader then you’ll get notification of the next podcast.
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“Here’s to the Crazy Ones”
Thursday, Oct 6th, 2011 by Tricia | 0 Comments
Filed under: Uncategorized
Normal
Sunday, Feb 13th, 2011 by Tricia | 0 Comments
Working with some Early Years (birth to five) practitioners recently I introduced them to this Douglas Adams quotation, one I’ve been sharing with Early Years people for some years now:
I’ve come up with a set of rules that describe our reactions to technologies:
1. Anything that is in the world when you’re born is normal and ordinary and is just a natural part of the way the world works.
2. Anything that’s invented between when you’re fifteen and thirty-five is new and exciting and revolutionary and you can probably get a career in it.
3. Anything invented after you’re thirty-five is against the natural order of things.”
— Douglas Adams (The Salmon of Doubt: Hitchhiking the Galaxy One Last Time)
I then showed the beginning of this clip iPhone Baby
We then had a really good discussion around the child’s entitlement to an Early Years setting that reflected their lives in the 21st century i.e one that included technology. (Note I didn’t say just computers!) and what the technology in that setting might sensibly be.
Springpad
Friday, Jan 7th, 2011 by Tricia | 0 Comments
Attribution: Metal Coil from the flickr collection of tanakawho
I’m trying out Springpad in my preparation for BETT next week. It’s an application that is available for computer, iPhone and iPad and so my notes reminders links etc can be synced between all my machines.
~I use Evernote already to do this but Springpad suggests it offers me better organisational tools.. it says..
It doesn’t offer voice input but does offer a linked search facility and a promise of keeping you up todate through the site you have searched..
This is the first flaw I find before getting the test going. When choosing the “Look it up” Add on I type in BETT and get nothing remotely related to BETT 2011, same for Brain Pop Learning and NAACE.
Wonder what I’m doing wrong???
More about this after the test period.
Of to school…
Friday, Jan 7th, 2011 by Tricia | 0 Comments
Attribution: Christmas day - Tricia Neal
My grandson ’started school’ today. It was a phased entry for the new Foundation 2 children and he was one of the first to start in a brand new classroom. The every day technology of his life (iPhone) enabled me to receive a photo of him, bright eyed and bouncy in new ( very smart) school uniform and school bag before he set off. And I’m sure all other members of the extended family also received it.
Then, when his Dad returned from taking him, he uploaded to flikr a short video interview about the day that they had made before leaving. It showed grandson was very relaxed about the day and the video interview, he’s done that sort of thing before it before and expects to see it later. I then was able to see it within less than an hour.
His life so far has had ordinary every day technology in it, computers ( in all formats), phones, iPad, controllable toys of all kinds, DVD video and Sky TV, microwaves, washing machines , cash machines, pelican crossing , automatic doors, cash machines with cards etc etc. He’s been able to experiment and try things out, ask questions and fail.
How will his experiences for up to 8 hours of his day from now on reflect that?
Imagination
Friday, Jan 7th, 2011 by Tricia | 0 Comments
Sunset over the Atlantic from Barra- Tricia Neal
“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”
Albert Einstein
…and is imagination linked to creativity
Sir Ken Robinson talks of schools killing creativity and quotes George Land’s research starting in 1968 when he first gave 1,600 5 year olds a creativity test used by NASA, then repeated it with the same group when they were 10 years old and 15 years old. Most of the group were deemed highly creative at 5 but the scores diminished as the children grew older and most of the group was not highly creative. Giving the test a to large group of dults resulted in very low creativity scores.
…and where does technology fit ?
… Is it just one of the tools that a creative person uses or is it essential for creativity?
Gunpowder, Twitter and Plot…….
Tuesday, Nov 2nd, 2010 by Tricia | 0 Comments
Attribution: Photo from the collection of Dick Penn
………using social networking as a tool for learning
So begins the retelling of the Gunpowder Plot on Twitter. The tweets with the hashtag #gtp2010 can be followed at http://twitter.com/chrisleach78/gunpowdertweetingplot
The event is set up by Chris Leach of Winchester House School. He talks about the history of this event and the preceding 1066 election on twitter on his own blog.
This event involves five schools with children in each taking on the role of each character. They research the story to be able to make the comments and I’m sure they are spurred on by the knowledge that they have a wide international audience reading their every message.
This event is an example of how Web 2.0 technology can be harnessed creatively to engage children and support their learning.
Sir Ken making us think
Friday, Oct 15th, 2010 by Tricia | 0 Comments
(image: The edge of the known world - looking out into the Atlantic from Isle of Barra -Tricia Neal)
Yesterday brought the RSA animation of a selected part of Ken Robinsons RSA speech, Changing Education Paradigms. As ever he makes some really pertinent comments about education and young people today. Some of them quite challenging.
There is a link to the full version on the page.
RAS is offering some very good opportunities to hear key speakers, with a slightly different perspective to the TED talks
10th October 2010
Sunday, Oct 10th, 2010 by Tricia | 0 Comments
Today is regarded as significant, the date being 10-10-10, which is Binary 42. This was the answer to the world and everything in Douglas Adams Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.
There have been celebrations all over the world reported the BBC a local boy had a slightly less earth shattering celebration