Project Update

I am getting close to implementation.  I am going to finalize my Moodle page that explains the initial set up and will have the kids work through the initial set up of their Glogsters. I will have to post a screenshot since its a closed network, though I can grant guest access to anyone who wants to see it.

I tried out a mini-version of this with my one of my other classes and they were able to follow the video instructions and set up their Glogsters with no help from me.  It was a great time saver so we could hit the ground running when they came in.  The students are used to this format though since I use the flipped model for class content.

When I implement this with my target classes I will do my best to record what happens.

On the side. I had my Astronomy class create individual student blogs where they blog about their activities and or lessons.  Its rough this first time through but its a great first step in classroom transparency.  I will share a couple of these as an example.  Still a work in progress and they need to write more but we are learning together and they are doing all the work.
http://astronomy16.blogspot.com/
http://astronomyproject12176.blogspot.com/

Interest Book to read on Hands on Learning

Shop Class as Soul Craft: An Inquiry Into the Value of Work by Matthew B. Crawford

Tech Ed Transparency

For my project, I said "I would like to present the standards and tasks for each unit  in two column charts and post the charts online for students to access."

So far I have set a few units up on a wikispace and added a few tasks. The wiki is gngtech.wikispaces.com. The 7th grade agriculture unit has some tasks for the first standard that contain links to the videos that students will watch. It is possible to embed youtube videos on a page in the wikispace so that students stay on the wiki. I like that youtube has a check box to not show suggested videos when the video finishes so there is less possibility of students clicking on a video of a bare breasted woman smoking cannabis while skiing down a mountain slope.
The chart feature on the wiki is difficult to work with. I would like the lines to be darker and to be able to adjust the width of a column. It seems to have limited formatting capabilities.

I made a couple of how-to videos for parts of a 6th grade project that seem to work very well. They have been able to watch the video and then complete that part of the project more successfully than when I have given a whole class demonstration. It is not online at the moment.

Plan Update

Just to update on where I am at with my project: Excited to announce that my seventh and eighth graders got their laptops this week! Now we're geared up and ready to go! I've been using my school Google site to update students and parents on what's happening, photos of what we're doing in class, etc. I decided that with some of the projects I did in my video class this summer I'd actually use in my classroom this fall, and they are now posted on our site. I love having these little tutorial videos - cuts down on my "How do I do that?" questions I get 4938204 times a day - just check the video! 

This week, this video will be their "homework" to watch on Monday. A little lengthy, but I wouldn't mind watching a video for homework.

Will keep updating soon! We're working up to Google Sites! Next up though, BLOGGER! :) 

3D Printer to Make Working Gun

I was just perusing Yahoo! News and came across this interesting (and scary) article about using 3D printers to replicate working guns. While it isn't yet likely that a printer, especially a plastic printer, can create a gun that will actually withstand a firing, I'm curious about metal printers and the capabilities they may have in the future.

My project

Hi,

Here is a link to my Google Doc on my project.  Its still a work in progress so please check back. Any comments are welcome.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dDbEIFuvtNAGOqtbPDzv5lb2w6ee_uC1FVQAv1aHcSQ/edit

Art