What kind of writing do you do in your daily life?

Hear their responses below.

Student Responses

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There are many Operating Systems Apple, Windows, Linux and there are many browsers Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer, Opera. But lately, it doesn’t matter because of the online tools that educators, executives, and learners call Web 2.0 can operate with any computer and any browser.

Of course, some Web 2.0 tools work better with certain computers. And some browsers and network connection speeds make your computer sssslllloooooowwwww or stops your computer while using certain Web 2.0 tools The only way to find out what works for you and your hardware is…you need to keep signing up for new tools, trying them out, and share them with others!

My inspirations on all things education and technology:

Michael Wesch

Alan November

Common Craft Show

TED

Where I put YouTube videos that inspire me or that I’ve created:

My EduTechJapan Infinite Playlist.

Library things Sakura Medal Description, LibraryThing, blog, Voicethread

My things Professional Learning Networks + Ning

Yokohama International School things homepage, The Learning Hub, Google Apps, wiki, YouTube, Vimeo, Livestream, Flickr, Voicethread, Student Tech Team, Educational Technology Help Desk

Fun & Easy things to get you started on Library 2.0

Animoto for Education
Yokohama International School
Grade 2 IB Primary Years Programme
“Technology Can Connect People” Unit of Inquiry

Wordle

Use a Flip Camera & Upload to Vimeo

Great education videos on 100 Best YouTube Videos For Teachers, TeacherTube, Edublogs Videos, Nibipedia, Edutopia, TED.

Blogging platforms I like:
Blogger Easy, just use your Google/Gmail Account
Edublogs Intermediate, need to sign up & great for teachers and students to use
Wordpress Advanced, it’s a great platform & fully customizable

If you don’t want to blog why don’t you glog?

Suggested library-related websites via my delicious tags libraryblogs, booklists, uwlibrarycert, literacy

Guests and their online presence Marcoux, Gustafson, Younker, Leaf, Kilcup, Parsons

To Tie Everything Together…

Here’s a screen shot of but one site that shows a sliver of the tools available online:

Each icon represents a social networking site. And there’s even more! There’s just way too much out there for me to catch up. So I don’t. I just try out ‘things’ that come by way, put it into categories of ‘maybe use’ or ‘rarely use’, and always share it with someone else. And I may never go back to that site until I delete my account and/or unsubscribe to marketing emails, and that’s okay because there’s going to be a whole lot more that I discover tomorrow. The best I can do with information coming at me is I don’t try to fight it, but I hesitate to embrace it, and then sometimes (now and then) I find a real gem of an online tool and use it frequently.

For my Library course on how to market literature to PK-12 and adults, I am picking a fiction and nonfiction book that complement one another to create a short book talk presentation. The idea is to create a ‘trailer’ for the book and ’sell’ it to the potential reader or ‘buyer’ (to extend the metaphor).

Assignment description verbatim:
“Books Pairs (due 7/8): In an attempt to expose you to as much literature as possible in a very short time, each student will make a short book talk presentation with two books as the focal point. Works of fiction should be paired with an expository work, like a magazine or nonfiction book. Presentations should not exceed 10 minutes – Chris Wolfe, National Board Certified Teacher/Librarian.”

Before I begin my presentation I must say:
Before I begin, I just wanted to say that my purpose for this Book Pair presentation is to try to get you interested in introducing this Book Pair or similar pair to your school.

I’ve chosen a fiction book called The Arrival by Shaun Tan because I have been always interested in graphic novels, illustrators, and the topic of immigration and identity. The nonfiction book I chose to complement The Arrival is a book called Perspectives: A Multicultural Portrait of Immigration by Petra Press who also wrote the following books on history. In the introduction, Press offers an insight to identity and that it is a one’s belief and creation, “The labels used in Perspectives represent an attempt to be fair, accurate, and perhaps most importantly, to be mindful of what people choose to call themselves” (Perspectives, Introduction).

The direct link I found to make these 2 books a Book Pair is in the passage below and would help children and young adults make sense of the plight of immigrants in The Arrival:

The following chapters will show why these groups came to the United States, how they made the passage, how difficult it was to adjust to their new homeland, and why they stayed – if indeed they did. As we know, not all came to the United States willingly. Some came as slaves; others came as desperate refugees from war, famine, or natural disaster. Not all realized their expectations. The streets were not paved with gold as many believed, nor were men and women of all colors and creeds given equal respect and opportunity. Almost all still had to fight for that equality once they arrived. But regardless of their color, religion, economic status, or political ideologies, every group of immigrants that arrived in the United States made tremendous cultural contributions in every field of human endeavor from the arts to medicine, science, education, politics, and technology. They have, with their skills, intelligence, and spirits, quite literally formed the country that exists today – Petra Press, Perspectives 1996

Although this passage mentions the United States, the description of the reasons for immigration and the contributions of immigrants to a country is what the immigrants experience in Tan’s book. The Arrival is not bound to any one or any identity, which is possibly the most beautiful aspect of the book, that Press’ interpretation of immigrant history complements what occurs in Tan’s book.

Tan’s book has a message and meaning for everyone and all ages can enjoy and interpret it on various levels. Having a wordless format also invites the reader to interpret and use their imagination and creativity which is so important in education. This book can be connected to any subject area covering immigration topics such as social studies but can also be used for a language arts and visual art classes. This book can also be used as a reminder to how new students feel and for a PSHE (Personal, Social and Health Education) class on topics of identity.

Not included in presentation but why I chose Perspectives:
I was impressed with the way Press writes a history book (ie. in chronological order) where she combines her writing with extra text boxes, illustrations, photos, and offers interpretations on common knowledge, such as the fact that the name of the city ‘Los Angeles’ is the derivative of a much longer name El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de Los Angeles de la Porciuncula or “The Town of Our Lady, Queen of the Angels of the Porciuncula.” In addition, Press only writes history in relation to immigrants to the United States starting from the 1600s ending in the 1900s which makes an excellent connection to Tan’s book. I do wish that Press makes a second edition as I would be interested in her take on how she sees the world from the early 1990s to present day.