Friday, April 3, 2020 Class Update

Good morning, here is today’s class update, there is not an assignment for today.

Here is the text of the update, please note that I ad lib a good bit, so the written version may not be precise:

Good morning, I have a few things to go over today first and foremost, there is not an assignment for today, please complete any work from this week that you have not finished. More people have been completing work, I am glad to have you guys back even if it is only online.  If you are working on one of the optional extra credit assignments please give me an update on how your work is coming along. Based upon your responses to the second assignment, I have some more information for you.

People are having concerns about asking questions while they work on new content, again, please do not be afraid to ask questions.  You can send me an email. I will have a Google Chat Room Open throughout each day, I can invite students over to that and discuss your issues.  I will post the office hours daily once we start up. Those hours can also be adjusted as necessary, please remember this online learning will be a work in progress throughout the entirety of the experience.  We will and I’m sure your other teachers will be adjusting what we do as the year goes on. I am sure there will always be room for improvement, we will do our best to make this successful.

I will post Monday’s work early, by 8 AM in Edmodo.  There will be support videos, tutorials posted as needed, I will email you as they go out with the links to them included.

On a more positive note…Thank you for the playlists, I listened to parts of each song, I plan on listening to the music in its entirety over the weekend, then I will push out the playlists to you early next week,  

One last item, this weekend, rest up, take your mind off things, go out in the sun if you can do so safely.  Have a great weekend.

 

Day Four Class Update: No Assignment

I recorded and uploaded this video before the District-wide announcement went out via email and phone…the written update is posted below the video, it is missing the weather forecast for today…

Good morning, I have a couple of updates for you today.  First off, if you responded to the first assignment, thank you.  I was receiving replies through yesterday. If you haven’t responded to the first assignment, you still can respond, there are only a couple of people I have not heard from yet.

Yesterday I pushed out the second assignment…almost immediately people started responding.  I have mixed responses from the group and that is okay. Some of you are ready to move on, some are a bit hesitant.  Again, that is okay. If you haven’t responded, you have plenty of time, no need to worry.

I want to address some of your concerns, especially the big one…a number of people are uncertain about starting back up, because they are unsure of where we left off.  Consider the new assignments as Day 1 of the course. I will not throw old material at you on a quiz or test, unless we cover from this day forward. So not being fully confident about the old material should not be an issue, please do not worry about it.  We are pretty much starting over…the only material you need to worry about is what will be coming out.

Also, I will not be quizzing you right away, we will be doing other various activities…not everyone has the same access to technology, which will make quizzes non-standard.  When we get to that stage, they will probably be open note writings, or something along those lines, but we are far from going down that path yet.

Back to technology, those of you that followed up with me, I passed that information on to Mr. Yates and Mr. Budacki.  If anyone’s situation changes or you start having technology issues, please let me or any of your other teachers know ASAP.  If you lose access, let a friend know and have them contact a staff member so we can address the situation.

Another concern was difficulty with topics or technology…once again, please do not worry.  We are going slowly for a reason, and we will continue to move at a comfortable pace until we are sure everyone can move forward without difficulty.  I will be posting video tutorials to help you remember how to use the various tools we use in class. I will also be posting tutorials and audio/video notes on the class content to help explain the topics.  It is important for you to give me feedback if you need more or different assistance. We have been doing that all year with the self-reflections, so you should be good and letting me know if we have to adjust things…zip me an email or message me in Edmodo, I am monitoring both.  Communication is important especially since we are no longer in the same room, but together we can successfully make this adjustment.

Staff is working on other forms of feedback to use with students, I will let you know about those once we have approval.

Thank you for the YouTube links, I am going through those and making playlists to share out.  Keep responding to the assignments, I am keeping track so we can use the information later. If we have any important updates in today’s virtual staff meeting, I will pass in forward to you.  If you have any questions, please email them to me or another one of your teachers.

Have a great day!

Wednesday April 1 Assignment and Class Update

Day Three Assignment. ALL SUBJECTS. The video directions are embedded below the written directions.

For today’s assignment,, we are going to try and have a little fun.  We have a multi-part assignment:

First, how confident are you in moving forward with content in the course?   Give me a detailed answer and explain why you feel the way you do. Your answer should be several sentences to a paragraph in length.  By content we will move forward with readings.  I will give you reading guides along with Google Docs and the online text.  I can add video notes/short descriptions to explain topics to go along with the readings. 

Second, what has been your favorite (school appropriate) song over our most recent break?   Go to YouTube and grab the share link from your favorite song. Once again, please make sure it is school appropriate.  I want to create playlists from your submissions.

As with Day One please submit your reply to this assignment via email or in Edmodo by noon Friday.You may reply to this email, or send me a separate email, or respond in Edmodo.

Type:  DAY TWO ASSIGNMENT across the top of your email.

In the spirit of the assignment, Here is my favorite tune from break…https://youtu.be/HUobIqf3tdk

It is a throwback to the 1980s, but the overall playlist is from the 1980s through the mid 2000s.

I will share other links randomly with posts just to help break up the monotony of the stay at home order.

Wakelet Student Ambassador First Badge: Curation All About Me

Okay everyone, the first badge we will be working on is Curation:  All About Me.  I am posting the assignment in Wakelet, the link is below.  I will also post the directions in the email I send out and here on my blog…redundancy is cool…no matter what others say.  I want to make sure everyone that wants to see this information has access to it.

Here are the written directions for the assignment:

Step One:  

Create an account in Wakelet if you have not done so already.  Email me your username.

Step Two:  Here are the instructions for you!

  • Create a collection about yourself with at least 15 items included. Please make sure you set your Wakelet to Private or Unlisted.
  • Showcase talents, favorite things, and hobbies.  (School Appropriate.) Use images, links, word art, draw images, snap a pic and upload, be creative.
  • Share a place you would like to live or visit. (Once again, share a or image.
  • THIS IS IMPORTANT, MAKE SURE YOU USE GOOGLE ADVANCED IMAGE SEARCH to look up photos.  There is a link below. Choose the Usage Rights option “Free to Use or Share.

Step Three:

Share your collection with Mr. Sal and another student, they do not need to be participating in this assignment.

Step Four:

Turn In the link to your collect with Mr. Sal via email.

Here is the Wakelet: