XtraNormal movie making

www.xtranormal.com

This is my example movie. I think it is really pretty neat for a free movie creation. Since I spent the time seeing what it was like, I threw together an assignment for my daughter who I am homeschooling right now. That means that this movie is going to tell you what to do. Don't stress, I am not waiting for your movie. :)

The setting, characters, number of characters in the movie, ambient noise and background soundtrack can all be manipulated to create many different movies.

It was fun to make and certainly worth attempting a writing assignment to test it out.

Free workbooks

Free books! This is really cool. The Library of Congress  published a TON of books. The subjects cover math, reading, writing, job training, test preparation, and so much more at various levels. Each link is a 3-4 hundred page workbook with pre-test, post-test and a key.

I am trying not to download everything at once.

To twitter or not to twitter, it isn't really a question!

http://docs.google.com/View?id=dhcbw9bz_228g76svdhf

If you go through these resources you will find that this title isn't unfair.

http://mrslwalker.com/index.php/2009/03/29/nine-great-reasons-why-teachers-should-use-twitter/

This is another good one, but I like the first one more.

Are you holding yourself to the best standard?

http://technologyinclass.com/blog/2009/12/09/teaching-the-unprofessional-profession/

This is an excellent article. I think every teacher should read it and reflect.

~In reflection on work: “that’s someone else’s job. I don’t want to step on any toes.”

How many teachers are too afraid of stepping on toes? That can't be how we approach our jobs or we are sacrificing the children we aim to serve. I have seen it too much. I refuse to be that teacher.

"When I care the work involved is not an issue. I’ll make the time because I’m passionate about it. I’ll work with my administration. Chances are they welcome the input from teachers on how to make staff development more relevant. This takes tact. We don’t want to make their jobs more difficult unnecessarily."

~I hope every teacher has the opportunity to reflect on this article.

Math Powerpoint games

http://mathbits.com/MathBits/PPT/powerpoint.htm

There are quite a few powerpoint presentations put together as games and study material at the above mathbit site. Everything is free.

More art and geometry

Creating your own mutated art is the idea behind this site at

www.mutapic.com

There you choose two images from their selections and what types of

changes you want to occur based on geometry terms and art terms. 

It was amazing to me how many things can be

interpreted like Georgia O'Keeffe made them herself.

I don't think I will be any more explicit than that.

I mutated these shapes as a representation of my experience of online technologies and my learning.

Because of that I will just give a short caption of what I see in each image.

My learning revolves around me.

 

It gives me joy to create. I think that is nature's way.

 

My entire family can be involved together.

 

I feel free

Sometimes it is frustrating. This mutation seemed to illustrate that feeling you get when you have had enough.

 

Even with the frustration, I feel like a part of a community.

Myoats geometric art

 

I made this.

I did not make the rest of these but I like them. This is a really cool way to show children the

geometry of art in action. They can use the language and the concepts to show a more 

complex understanding of what they learn in the book.

http://www.myoats.com/

Can you see the geometry?

 

  

I couldn't help but add this one.