Inextricably Interwoven

Wiki Reflection

2010-02-05T12:33:00.001+08:00

Today you should spend a little bit of time reflecting on the progress you have made on your "What will the future look like?" Google site. You should also reflect on what you still need to do.

Include a full paragraph that includes an introductory sentence, gives examples of how you have worked with your partners in Texas, and what good contributions you have made, as well as what you still need to do.

Working with Pewitt Junior High in Omaha, Texas

2010-01-19T09:13:00.002+08:00

We are beginning our collaborative project with our partners from Pewitt Junior High in Omaha, Texas. We have assigned our groups, and today we will begin communicating with our partners from Omaha, Texas. You have been assigned a partner (or two in a few cases) and will begin introducing yourself. First write a brief introduction on your blog post and then copy it in an e-mail to your partners.

You can also visit our collaborative project to see which partners you will be working with.

Remember to avoid writing personal information. Just put your first name, and don't tell your birthday (though the month is okay). Tell about your hobbies and favorite things --what books, music, movies you like, as well as general information about where you are from, where you have lived, what pets you have, and other information that might be of interest.

Once your blog post has been completed and approved, then copy your post into an e-mail to your partners. Include a link (the URL) to your blog if your partner wants to investigate more about you.

Your Life in 2020

2010-01-13T12:02:00.003+08:00

In the year 2020, many of you will be just finishing University. You will be 22 or 23 years old, probably. You may be deciding what career path you will follow. Think about your life in the year 2020 and write a fun story telling about how you communicate with your friends, how you conduct business -- buying or selling things and completing transactions. What will you do for fun?

Write some of your ideas in a post on your blog.

Welcome Back!

2010-01-11T13:16:00.001+08:00

Welcome back from winter holiday. Hopefully everyone had a great time. We'll be anxious to share highlights of our travels, as well as begin working on the new year.

For today, you will add a blog post about your holiday experiences, as well as make sure your blog has a link back to this page.

Good luck!

The 09 Campaign

2009-12-16T10:08:00.001+08:00

It is fun to have a new class of 6th grade IT students, and they have been exploring Emerging Technologies. Look at their posts (see their addresses at the right to see more about what they are learning in class this trimester.

A break from IT

2009-04-21T09:25:00.001+08:00

As we are now in our final trimester, we are taking a break from the 6th grade IT course, and Mr. Woodward is enjoying the opportunity to teach 7th & 8th graders Digital Video.

We will pick up this blog once IT resumes again in a future trimester.

Reflecting on Progress & Finishing the Wiki

2009-02-09T20:41:00.002+08:00

LESSON PLAN FOR TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2009

Today I am away at FRIM (the Forestry Reserve in Malaysia) with the 7th graders, so you have a substitute for the day. You have two tasks which you should complete. We hope to finish the wiki by this week -- so you should spend some time reflecting on where you are at -- and then work to finish your wiki.

FIRST, Log onto your BLOG and reflect on your work thus far on your wiki. Include specific contributions to your wiki which you have completed, and what you still need to do.

I should see which section (introduction, communication, business, entertainment) you think is the strongest, and which section you think is the weakest. I should also see you reflect on some (at least three) of the key requirements. You may want to look at the rubric to ensure you are on the right track.

PURPOSE: Our wiki has a clear purpose. Every part of the site enhances the purpose.

INFORMATION: Our wiki covers content that is important for the purpose. Our information is thorough, balanced, and fair.

SOURCES: We get information for our wiki from a variety of credible sources. Readers can easily find out where we found our information.

CREATIVITY: We include surprising and original insights, ideas, language, and multimedia features to support our wiki’s purpose.

COLLABORATION: We discuss our ideas and agree on the major components of our wiki. We respect each others work by offering support and constructive criticism. We agree on any changes that we make to the wiki before we make changes.

PAGE ORGANIZATION: Each page in our wiki thoroughly describes a section of our topic. We effectively use headings and subheadings to help readers find what they are looking for.

LINKS: All the links on our wiki work, are appropriate for our audience, and relate to the purpose of our site.

LANGUAGE: We use powerful, concrete, and accurate words on our wiki. We use a minimum of technical language and include definitions, when appropriate.

CONVENTIONS: We have no errors in spelling, capitalization, grammar, punctuation, or sentences.

Your blog post will be graded based on this criteria.
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THEN, when you finish your blog post, spend the rest of the class quietly improving your wiki. You should focus on making it look professional, ensuring that you have all of your sources documented, and that your ideas are creative and interesting.

Continuing Efforts on the Wiki

2009-02-03T14:15:00.001+08:00

We are making some progress on our wiki. It was fun to see our partners work on their new blog postings. Some of their work which was posted on their blog, we copied and edited to put on the wiki -- in the hopes that we can continue progressing toward our final product.

Many groups are getting good paragraphs for each section and are beginning to insert appropriate pictures (and their sources!) We are not yet ready to insert YouTube videos, but can follow the tutorial to find out how to do it.

Progress on the Wiki

2009-01-29T09:10:00.002+08:00

Today at ISKL, we have returned from our short break for Chinese New Year, and are enjoying a short week (3 school days!). This morning we found out where we are going for Malaysia Week -- the one week without walls when our whole middle school disperses to ocean, river, and rainforest sites around Penninsular Malaysia. There is lots of excitement as some will be river-rafting, others snorkeling, and others going on jungle walks through the rainforest.

In IT class, we are reviewing the introduction for the wiki and going over the rubric in order to focus our efforts on our content. Then we are spending time editing our wiki in preparation for content. Hopefully some students will be ready to find pictures and maybe even videos to illustrate their points.

Life in 2020

2009-01-23T09:48:00.002+08:00

Today in IT class, we are working on updating our wiki, which we are working with on our partners from Liberty and from Ms. Narsiman's class.

To get an idea of how we will communicate, how we will conduct business, and what we will do for entertainment, we are trying to picture our lives in 2020. Today, students should write a blog titled, "My Life in 2020." This can be a creative story or a factual account, but should look not only at their own lives, but also what is going on around them.

Back from the Break

2009-01-13T10:43:00.002+08:00

Today in IT, we worked on catching up on our blogs and preparing for the next step -- working with our partner on our wiki.

We posted a summary of our vacations and put two comments on other people's blogs, including some of our partners in Ms. Narsiman's class.

Some of our Emerging Technologies presentations will be presented next class.

A final parting before the holidays.

2008-12-19T09:15:00.004+08:00

Sorry I'm not feeling so well -- and had to head home to rest my cold. Here are the details for today's class.

6th Grade Information Technology

Overview for Friday, December 19, 2008 1:30 – 2:25

Important note: Please send your Emerging Technologies PowerPoints to the PVT folder; we will have to wait until January to present.

TASK 1: Student Blog Entries (40 minutes)
Students should go to their blog and write an entry titled
* My plans for the holidays
• Do not enter personal information (specific hotels or last names)
• Have a peer proofread before posting.
• Mr. Woodward will grade your posts.

TASK 2: Student Responses to Blogs (15 minutes)
Students should visit their partners’ blogs and one other and comment on any additions.

Again, check for spelling and grammar and have someone proofread before posting.

TASK 3: MS Assembly (last 20 minutes)
By 2:30, the students should be in the theater, seated for the final good-byes and singing a few carols.

Helpful Links (where you can get to see resources. )
• Visit to the BBS to see this document.
• Mr. Woodward’s Blog: http://inextricablyinterwoven.blogspot.com/
• Mrs. Glavan’s Blog
http://libertyglavan.blogspot.com/

Commenting on Posts

2008-12-15T11:15:00.002+08:00

Today in IT class, we saw a picture of Mrs. Glavan's class from Liberty Junior High. We are working with them, and were assigned partners. Our students were required to respond to two posts which were written by the students from Liberty Junior High.

We should also have two posts completed on our blogs. One telling about ourselves, and the second reflecting on what we've learned about our emerging technology.

When we return in January, we should be ready to begin our wiki exploring what the world will look like in 2020.

Introductions

2008-12-10T13:33:00.001+08:00

Today in IT class, our students wrote a brief introduction to share with our colleagues in Illinois.

Hopefully this biographical information will be the beginning of budding friendships and students' realization that, indeed, we are inextricably interwoven.

The friendships and collaboration that could come out of this project will hopefully have a good impact on the students and their understanding of technology.

Emerging Technologies

2008-12-03T13:11:00.000+08:00

In 6th grade IT, we are exploring Emerging Technologies. Working in partners, our class of Digital Natives are pretending to be immigrants from an ancient land. What are these wikis, blogs, cell phones, video games, and flash animations?

Where did they come from and where are they going?

How have they changed, and what will they be like when our sixth graders graduate from University in 2020?

Check out their posts to summarize their reflections.