Start Recycling!

I just finished reading this article about 50 things you can recycle! I thought it was fun,some of the things listed here I would never have thought to recycle before.

There are several things a person can do to become environmentally friendly. Some people change every aspect of their lives to live a greener lifestyle; they may eat organically, use organic care products, and clean with 100% natural items. Others simply chose to follow the 3 R’s: reuse, reduce and, recycle. There are also those people who chose not to take any action in making earth a healthy place. Some people chose not to do anything because they either don’t know how to incorporate a green lifestyle into their own or because they don’t think that their actions can make a difference. Many people believe that becoming environmentally friendly is hard and time consuming, however, there are several small things a person can do to help the environment. Recycling is a great start to becoming environmentally friendly. Recycling is easier than most people think; it only takes a few important steps for a person or family to play their part in keeping paper, cans, bottles, and other recyclable items out of landfills. Although recycling may seem like a small action, it can actually make a huge difference on the whole spectrum of saving the environment.

Recycling options vary depending where you live so first check out what your community or city offers as a recycling program. Visit www.call2recycle.ca for recycling information in your city. Some cities provide communities with recycling pick up services that work the same way as garbage pickup. However, this service is not very common in most provinces. Most cities have drop-off locations, where people can take their recyclables, these locations are often restricted to only paper, plastic, cardboard, glass, and aluminum, but that doesn’t mean that you have to restrict your recycling to these few categories!

I think it’s important that everyone start recycling, it’s a small action that can make a huge difference!

tech task #3

This weeks tech task was to create our own spread sheet, documenting how much money a person spends during the fall semester at school. This is the link to my spread sheet.

I am really happy that we are learning to use spreadsheets because I’ve never learned how to work one before, I can already see how beneficial they will be for calculating our students’ grades. I also like how you can plan a budget on them because this is something I often struggle with as a student!

 

The future?

Hi everyone, I just finished watching this video made by Scott McLeod. As I was watching this I started to feel a bit anxious about what the future will be like especially in regards to education and learning. Some of the issues presented here are a little scary, for example, “We are currently preparing students for jobs that don’t yet exist.. using technologies that haven’t been invented… in order to solve problems we don’t even know our problems yet”.  How do we prepare ourselves and our students for this new life?

It’s hard for me to imagine such a world, won’t it be a sad day when absolutely everything we do is tied to technology? Don’t get me wrong, I realize the opportunities that technology has given us, and it most defiantly has several benefits, I also realize that no matter how people feel about it, this will be our future.

Many people ask when the line should be drawn when using technology in the classroom, this video makes me think that this question isn’t relevant anymore- we should be requiring the use of technology in almost everything we do in our class, so that our students are well prepared for the future.

Molly

Responding to My Happy Place written by Mary Alice.

Reading about Hannah, made me think of my friend Kristin’s dog Molly.  She is also a golden retriever and she shares a lot of the same traits that you described for Hannah.  Molly died a little over a year ago from cancer it was a sudden and very sad death. Kristin and Molly’s relationship made me appreciate the part a pet dog can play in a person’s life.  Molly’s personality was very kind and calm which made it very easy and enjoyable for her to be around us.

Two summers ago a bunch of us girls went out to Regina Beach to stay at a friend’s cabin, Molly tagged along. As the day progressed we started to notice how well Molly fit in with us, we found it funny because it was as if she was just another girlfriend.  Kristin would pretend to be Molly and speak in this voice that we called “Molly’s voice”, she would respond to us and join in on the conversation, soon it became a running joke that Molly could verbally interact with us. Even though the verbal communication was a joke, the non-verbal communication wasn’t. When we would be sitting in a circle talking, Molly would come over, sit down, and listen to what we were saying, it was as if she could understand every word we said.  The connection we all shared with Molly that weekend really shows how a dog shows feelings towards not only his or her family but to those around them to, unlike the majority of people, dogs will become your best friend in a matter of minutes and will enjoy every second they spend with you.

Tech Task #2- Responding to “An anthropological introduction to YouTube”

I feel this video shows how many opportunities there are for people to grow and learn through media, social networks, and the internet. We are exposed to so many tools on the internet and many people don’t know how to use these tools to their advantage. I think that it’s important for teachers to incorporate YouTube into their teaching as much as possible because it gives students exposure to the advantages it presents.

Michael Wech explains how first time “vloggers” find it uncomfortable to speak to a camera because they become more self-aware than if they were speaking to an actual person in front of them. I feel this could be valuable in a classroom setting because first of all, it allows students to say and examine things they may not feel comfortable doing in front of people, and second of all, it encourages them to be self-aware.  YouTube also allows students to connect with people from all over the world, they are being exposed to people that they normally wouldn’t be able to and this can be very beneficial. 

I don’t think it’s a question on whether or not YouTube and other social networks and media should be incorporated in the classroom, but how it should be done. In order for these tools to be valuable to students and their learning, it needs to be done in a way that is meaningful. I would like to explore more ways of incorporating these tools into the classroom. 

ECMP355

Hi, my name is Courtney, I am in my third year of Secondary Education with a major in health and a minor in English– I find both of these subjects to be very interesting and enjoy studying them very much. I also enjoy reading, practicing yoga, running, travelling, and cooking. I was born in Moose Jaw SK and lived there for most of my life– I also lived in Edmonton AB for two years, where I went to the University of Grant MacEwan.

As far as technology goes I don’t have a lot of experience with it. I have a Facebook account and use email, I also frequently use Google to find out  answers to any quick questions I have through out the day. I am looking forward to gaining some knowledge with computers and how I can utilize technology into the classroom.

Although I feel a little nervous about using computing technology in the classroom, I am also convinced that it has become a necessity. I think it’s important that students are taught about and exposed to technology in order to learn how to use it appropriately and to their advantage. Technology allows people to connect with others all over the world and to experience things that they normally may not have the opportunity to do so. With that being said I feel technology is really beneficial for students because it allows them access to a broader sense of the world, they are able to converse and connect with people, allowing them to learn from others outside from the classroom, school, and even community that they belong to.

Through this class I hope to gain more confidence in working with technology, I hope to learn how I can incorporate technologies such as Youtube and blogging into my classroom in a way that is meaningful and helpful to my students.