Before the first class: Sign up for Twitter, Google Account, Delicious.
Monday:
1. Pick a personal project to explore alone or with others (there will be a lot of common themes in class: video editing, blog creation for classes and publishing skills, Google Docs, digital photography, learning to use a Mac (since you've been issued one this week for the school year)... to name a few.
Over the week you can explore this theme and many others that you feel are relevant to your teaching, your interests.
Tuesday:
Explore. Ask questions. Take chances. Try to collaborate. Dive into the unknown... and see what you can find out. If you get stuck, ask a peer or call me over! I love this stuff!
Wednesday:
1. Sign up as an author to the blog. You can do this up front on my computer or with another administrator:
2. Each blog post has a theme. Add at least one comment on one of the blog posts about the theme. If you don't know how... ask! Examples: State your opinion on the post, ask a question about it, a personal reflection... take a chance at firing up a conversation. If you see something someone else wrote in a comment that inspires you, write another comment! Have some fun with it.
3. Continue to explore your project theme/s... or find a new one... something that is relevant to your work and life. Following Tuesdays theme: Explore. Ask questions. Take chances. Try to collaborate. Dive into the unknown... and see what you can find out. If you get stuck, ask a peer or call me over! I love this stuff!
4. Explore the class blog: More pages, resources, ideas are being posted through the week. If you don't see something you want up there, let's talk about it and we'll get it up there!
Thursday:
1. Comment on a blog post or create a new one to do something! Examples: Ask questions to the group, share resources, ... you choose! If you comment on someones post, offer good insight, opinion... some deep thinking.
2. Themes we'll explore... and we'll see what else comes up.
Opening video
The education cycle
Practical Theory Blog: What I ask of SLA Teachers, and What makes a great teacher
MIT: OpenCourseware, Media Lab, Lifelong Kindergarten Program
Explore your themes. Work on how you'll craft your final presentation... remember: It's not formal presentations tomorrow. I don't think it will have value in this course to ask you to craft an 'official' presentation. I'd rather see you have as much time as possible to DO your work. So, tomorrow, you sit at your computer, we'll visit you, and you have a conversation with us about what you've chosen, what difficulties you had, how you overcame them, what you learned, and what it's done for you. See Friday's 'To the class' item for details.
If you are confused... ask! We'll all help!
Friday:
Final presentations on the work you've done this week:
1.
To the class: Tell the class about what you've explored, what you've done, what you learned, and show them an example (or more).
Explain the difficulties you may have had and how you worked to overcome them: collaboration, asking questions, exploring.
Discuss what it was like to pursue your interests in class.
Share other thoughts on the class as you see fit.
2. Write an original blog post of your own on the class blog. Do a piece of reflective writing on the information above from your 'To the class' talk. Add any other information you want to share. Thoughts on resources we've shared, stories, videos, discussions, the week, the snacks, whatever you'd like. This blog post should be completed by August 9 (Tuesday) at 11am.
3. Comment on the work of others, on their blog posts. I'd encourage you, thought it's not required, to read the reflective blog posts of your peers and offer them feedback. You've traveled a long way together. Everyone has different skill sets, different opinions. It's important to hear other opinions, especially those of classmates and ultimately the students you work with. Hearing all different perspectives on how people learn can be of great value to you... it helps you consider more opinions.You decide; Celebrate, ask questions, share ideas and thoughts... all of the above, or something else!
4. Closing thoughts for the week.
5. Celebrate! After Friday you will have completed all your courses, a long journey in this Masters program. I can't make this mandatory... but, come on... it's MEXICO!
