THING # 23

What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey? Really enjoyed Photostory..just wish I'd of had more success posting it as a podcast as I spent a great amount of time creating and then trying to post them.
How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals? A giant step toward staying up with technology.
Were there any take-a-ways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you? Most of this was knew to me.. I was happy to find out about google.doc's.
What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept? As I said in the survey some of the more difficult discovery adventures could have used more step by step instructions to help us "older" learners.
If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you choose to participate? Possibly, it would depend upon the subject matter.
How would you describe your learning experience in ONE WORD or in ONE SENTENCE, so we could use your words to promote 23 Things learning activities? INFORMATIVE.
Now go and comment on some of the other Players' blogs?

THING # 22

Traveling through Nings was interesting. Most of the information I gathered was that you have to take this information with a grain of salt so to speak. Seemed like quiet a bit of opinions were stated. Had to dig through the "gossip" and comments to find helpful ideas and suggestions...

THING # 21

The light at the end of the tunnel has been spotted. OK... I've been working on this for several hours.. I really like the user friendly Photostory but Switchpod is driving me crazy.. I've created 2 photostories and have tried everything to make the podcast but after 3 hours.. I'm calling it a bust and moving on.. will return to this later. Here is the slideshow without the sound.

THING # 20

So many trails, so much information, it is truly overwhelming at times. I've really enjoyed learning about all these different sites and ways to communicate and collaborate. Simply AMAZING!


More on one of my favorite National Parks and the 1st of the our NP system.

THING # 19

This "Thing" journey has taken me too many new experiences and several recognized sites. I’m a computer gamer so, of course, I had to check out a couple of those sites. My mind becomes overwhelmed with all the valuable and helpful sites. The web is no longer a place to only find information and search for data but a place to work on any job, any program, and any thing you can dream up. Thank you for the journey to new and unusual places.

THING # 18

During the trek through Thing # 18, I learned about online document sites that allow you to do so much more than MS Word. The attribute of sharing allows for collaborative efforts during group projects. At this point in the journey, google doc would be my favorite trail to follow. However, it is great to know there are so many options out there to explore.

THING # 17

The trail for this adventure was very tricky for some reason. There are some twists and turns that will have to be explored again. http://rollyo.com/txhappycamper/geocaching/

THING # 16

The short trek through the video on Wiki in Plain English helped guide my travel to Lake Wiki. Some of the resources links on my journey were confusing to say the least, the gps was jumping around due to all the interference from trying to access the satellites through the trees. Upon arriving at Lake Wiki, it was time to stop for a snack and enjoy the view. Without any difficulty, I discovered the “What’s a Wiki” cache. Geocaching to the sandbox, taking swag and leaving swag was pretty easy, similar to a PNG (‘park and grab’ in geo talk). Just like in geocaching some sites you just stop and log that you were there and some sites you take and leave swag. The true test will be utilizing these attributes once migrating through the 23Things has been accomplished. Happy Caching! www.geocaching.com

THNG # 15

Does the water beneath the ice still flow?

Having hiked through many card catalogs and shelves upon shelves looking for resources and documentation to prove or disprove a theory, the information that is literally at our fingertips is mind boggling. Even on the many trips to the many libraries, facts and data were missed due to not being able to find the forest for the trees. However, with the use of technology and blogging and yes, Library 2.0 we now have much more information and facts at hand. Library 2.0 will lead us on a new path on the trail for information, data, facts and fun. Our students will travel along many routes and find out more information in an hour than we could have managed in a day or a week.

THING # 14

This trail took us on a very interesting look at how searching posts, blogs and tags produced such different results. The post search picked up the keys words and highlighted them. The blogs search revealed only blogs that were registered and tagged 2.0. The interesting aspect under popular was how different it is during exploration of each topic. While reviewing the map and gps (or in this case.. Technorati), it was not unexpected that the Top 100 blogs by fans and by authority was almost the same list. Tagging positively narrows the search down to a manageable result.

THING # 13

When hiking down the "Thing 13" trail, I was a little skeptical regarding yet another hill that must be climbed on this information highway. Can you say overload... However, after tip toeing through the sites and tutorials, my eyes began to see on the horizon an opening in the clouds of confusion. The view of a spectacular mountain began to come into view, yes, my friends there it was Mt. Del.icio.us. At that moment I new that organizing, cataloging and tagging my favorites and sharing with others was definitely the correct path to follow. The possibilities are limitless for use in the classroom, as a professional or as a student. Professional or personal use of social bookmarking will make research of any item or topic less time consuming and less confusing.

THING # 12

Commenting can be similar to traveling through the journey of life. Follow the trail you would like to follow, make corrections with courtesy, pick up the carry out the trash as needed.. leave only footsteps take only pictures. And your thoughts are...... After researching geocaching, which is another interest of mine, on google blog search, I found and posted a few comments on sites were others enjoy geocaching as much as I do. More fun to be had.. tell me about your experiences..

THING # 11

Very exciting to review the trail in all these books.. Nevada Barr, the author, of the Anna Pigeon Mysteries is or was in fact a National Park Ranger.

THING # 11

Thing # 10 ...again! :-)

THING # 10

Awesome fun.. must take these trails again soon. In our classroom, aka a gym, we have a conflict resolution area with prompt quotes to help the students with words and things to say to help them as they resolve their own conflicts. We could develop cartoons and illistrations with prompting comments. I could spend hours traveling through these sites and developing teaching tools.

THING # 10

THING # 9

Well it took me a few minutes to remember how to post on my blog since I've been away camping and geocaching for awhile..More on those activities later. Right now let me take you down the trail of Thing #9. First and always best when beginning on a new trail is to go with what you know therefore, I began by exploring with Google Blog Search and Topix.net . Google has to be my favorite waterfall of information however, the other stream and rivers of sites and information are worth exploring more later. I tend to get sidetracked as I travel though all the information available on the trails branches, i.e. Syndic8.com and Technorati, to name a few. Need to stick to the trail and the goal of the trail. Along the way it is great to stop and take pictures of the flowers and trees but getting too sidetracked can take you away from your original goal which is reaching the end of the trail for "Thing 9".

Thing # 8

Google Reader is very helpful and a great way to organize subjects that you are interesting in knowing the most up to date information. This tool could be use in the classroom, library or by yourself as you follow the information trail and learn of views and vista's on the way to your desination. The possibilites where "readers" can be used is vast and endless. Enjoy your trip through the world of knowledge. Students would be able to do a great deal of research in a short period of time. Libraries could link books together by subject matter to insure quick and accurate findings.

Thing # 7

Google has so much to offer.. By following the winding trail through the google stream. At each overlook, I discovered new things to explore on Google that I hadn't viewed before today. Awesome! Through the woods, I have used Picasa and have now put an album together for others to hike through.. Have fun as you travel with me through some of my Yellowstone NP pictures. I enjoyed getting my feet wet in the String Lake of google calendar. Students could use any of the google tools to explore and discover new data on all subjects as well as sharing pictures of their discoveries.
http://picasaweb.google.com/susan.penton

Thing # 6 - 2

Ok, it worked I am so excited.. Had to do some "hunting and pecking" to finalize the card and post it's link but have succeeded and am on to another trail. These cards could be made and posted for the students to view, print, trade and learn. The possibilities are unlimited.

Thing # 6

To trade or not to trade.. crossing my hiking shoes and holding onto the tree by the trail. Hope this is going to be a trading card.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28024937@N06/?donelayout=1

Thing # 5

As I was hiking through "Thing # 5, my mind drifted to the amazing amount of information available. WOW! and scary at the same time. Sometimes it is more than this brain can fathom. Although the picture I am about to upload to my blog wasn't taken by me, sometime soon you will begin to see shots of my trip to Yellowstone and Grand Tetons. Until then here's Flickr. :-)

Thing # 4

AWESOME! Have now submitted information for my blog and all to be registered and just anxiously awaiting the chance to move on down the trail.

Thing # 3

While creating my blog, advatar and such, I experienced some difficulty.. However, I faced it as another hill to climb and in a matter of a couple hours had it all set up. The data and options seem unending and a little overwhelming at times. Then I would remember to begin with the end in mind and that as things in this "Thing" progressed I could review and manage my decisions and if I choose, I can make changes. :-)

Thing # 2

The "Habit" that is easiest for me is setting a goal, ie. beginning with the end in mind. The most difficult "Habit" is number three - View problems as challenges. Setting goals is a natural occurance as you become a seasoned educator. Teachers are constantly setting objectives for themselves and their students. Meeting the students problems and helping them work out solutions is very rewarding. However, personally dealing with problems has always been a problem for me. Dealing with your own problems is much more difficult .. after reviewing the "Habits" I pledge to my self to work on being more proactive and seeing my individual problems and hurdles as challenges!!!

Thing # 1

Since I have been away, I am playing catch up some.. So far I think I'm getting the hang of it and ready to go hiking throught the "Things". The picture on the right is a picture of Fishing Bridge in Yellowstone National Park. The picture was taken on June 11. Of all the times I have visited Yellowstone NP in the summer this is the first time I have experienced this much cold and snow in June.

Camping..FUN

Check this out, am I blogging? After spending 2 weeks on vacation I'm home and working on this site .....Thing 1,2,3. Hope this is working. :-) If it is I'll tell you all about my trip and experiences while experiencing this technology.. Though not new but new to me. Happy bloging.