Pharmacy Essay

My sister in currently attending the University of Saskatchewan and trying to get into the Pharmacy program. She just had to write her entry essay which determines if they actually get into the faculty or not. The essay topic was "Technology in the Classroom". I was shocked! I could have written that whole essay for her in record time, but people who are uneducated with this topic would not have much to go on. They had to read an article and either agree or disagree with the points presented in the article. I would have a hard time having a strong opinion either way. There are both pros and cons to technology in the classroom. As I continue learning more in ECMP, I am realizing how important technology really is.

Podcasting

I listened to a few pod casts and my favorite was If the Earth were a Sandwich on Ze Frank`s site. His little songs are hilarious and it is amazing how many people respond to his challenge to put a piece of bread where ever they are. Can you imagine if the Earth really was a sandwich. No one would be hungry, but we would also be running out of spaces to live because the amount of livable land would be slowly decreasing. Check out his podcast because he has a whole bunch of neat issues. I also enjoyed the Carve a Pumpkin Jamboree. Click here to check out his site.

A New Look

Want a quick makeover? Get a pair of glasses. You would not believe how much you can change your look with a new pair of glasses. It is almost better then buying a new outfit or getting a new hairdo. I just got a new pair of glasses on the weekend and I feel like a new person. It is a great confidence booster and quick yet expensive makeover. Find a pair of glasses to fit your face and look. Click here to check is Pearle Vision's interactive frame selector.

Hot Potatoes

Check out this quiz generator that is helpful for busy teachers. You can simply input the data into one of the follow areas and get instant games to amuse and assess kids:
- Cloze passages
- Quizes
- Matching games
- Crosswords
- Mixing games
Click here to check out my Weather Matching Game.

Scary Night at the Lees House!

We had a very interesting weekend. We just moved into a new house about a month ago and were quite enjoying our time until one evening. On Friday night, we decided to be an old married couple and go to bed ridiculously early. We were fast asleep by 10 and awoke to what we thought was a pounding at the front door around 11:30. The dog was barking, so we knew that he had heard something as well. Half asleep, we didn't really know what to think because we weren't expecting anyone. We waited for a minuted and there were no more sound, so we figured we all must have been imagining things. A few minutes later as I was now laying wide awake, I could see lights flashing into the window. Since our house backs onto a back alley, we should not have any lights in our backyard at all. After briefly seeing many horror movies, I automatically jumped to the conclusion that we were being broken into and were going to be chopped into bits. So I sent Tom decided to peek out the window and investigate. He immediately said to me I think I just saw two people in our back yard. If any of you know me well, I seriously panicked! He kept repeating that they looked like police because they have a red strip down the side of their pants. I responded by telling him that police have yellow strips (apparently since I am from the country I was thinking about the RCMP, not the city police). Now we were both scared out of our minds and did not know what to do. I sent Tom out to investigate while I stayed in the room close by the phone in case "the hacker" (I gave him/her a title) decided to jump out of a corner and attack him. I always go to the worst case scenario. Anyway, to continue my story, we decided to call the police to see if they knew what was actually going on. After speaking to the Regina City Police we found out that there "was a number of break and enters in our area and they sent the police out to investigate". I didn't know if I was more comforted or not finding this out. I was concerned as to why the police were targeting our backyard. Was the bad guy/girl hiding in our backyard? Were they trying to get into our house? Are they already in our house? Needless to say it was a fairly sleepless night. Luckily we have an alarm system in our house that was not yet hooked up. It is now hooked up and working well. I am feeling a lot more safe and protected form "the hacker". After telling this story to a number of people, you would be surprised how many similar stories are out there. I was shocked to find out that there are really no safe areas in the city. It is sad to know that no neighborhood is safe any more. So, just a warning to all the rest of you, don't take of advantage of the "safe" area you live in because you never know what will happen next.

Beautiful Day

It is amazing how weather can change the mood of so many people. My morning class is normally quiet and dull, but today everyone was buzzing. There were smiles and laughter in the air and everyone was talking about the weather. I got up at 7:30 without a problem because the sun was shinning in my window and I instantly happy! Amanda came to class ski pants free and Jenna didn't even wear her winter jacket. It is gorgeous! I didn't even have to scrape my window or start my car in advance. This weekend is suppose to be even nicer. It is about time that the weather smartened up. Unfortunately I can't even be outside today because I have class from 10 to 9:30 at night. I really want to get out go for a walk. So, since I can't please go for me. It is beautiful day so go and enjoy it!!!

Telecollaborative Projects

I have found a great telecollaborative project that works with math in a middle schools. The site is called "Come Fly with Me" and it is a project about exploring data collection and analysis. This site "engages students in a purposeful collaborative, data collection activity that will hone their measurement skills, their ability to work in a group to collect data, and their ability determine the mean and analyze the results. Students will also have the opportunity to work with classrooms from across the world and to enter into a fun and practical learning competition".

Click here to check it out.

This site is great, interactive and meets the curricular goals. See if you could use it in your classroom.

Blogging Phenomenon

I have just discovered this weekend how big blogging has become. I barely new what it was before this class and now it seems like all my friends are talking about is what is on their blog or their friends blog. I have a cousin in Italy and a friend in New Zealand who are using their blogs as a daily journal so that we can all read what they did that day. I did not know that they were as popular as they are. Now I am proud to say I have my own blog. A couple of my friends were talking about their blogs this weekend and what they like to write about. Even my husband decided he needed to join the blogging bandwagon because he was feeling out of the loop. It is getting bigger then e-mail and very widely recognized. It is a great way of communicating and a fun way to journal. I never thought I would actually put journaling and fun in the same sentence, but this allows me to. Anyway, hope on the blogger bandwagon.

Snow wreak's havoc in Regina

Well we were only forecasted to have 2 to 4 cm's and now we are up to over 10 cm's. How is that possible? I have witnessed two accidents already this morning and I feel like I am a target just waiting to be hit by any direction. I keep waiting for the snow to stop and yet in continues to loft down consuming cars, roof tops and various other objects. At least the weather is warm and as long as you have big boots or snow shoes, you can make it. Here is a picture to show the extreme conditions . . .