Who Do I Follow on Twitter?

I have found twitter to be really useful for finding resources, websites, and information on educational technology and homeschooling (or quilting or autism or anything else you'd like to search for and connect with other people about).

Here are some folks I follow:

Education and Educational Technology:

• Weebly - a free website creator for educators
• Brain Pop - a great educational video site
• IEAR - recommends iphone and ipad apps
• EducationWeek 
• HistoryChannel
• SpellingCity
• Scholastic
• GameClassroom - posts on using educational software in the classroom
• NBCLearn - updates from the educational arm of NBC
• BJNichols - educational technology dude
• jimmylogan - educational technology teacher
• ABCYaGames - educational website
• Internet4Classr - updates from Internet 4 Classrooms
• Planet_Tweets - posts from Promethian Planet (for the Promethian "smart" boards)
• PBSKids
• DirectTech - technology teacher
• Edutopia - posts from the education magazine
• iphonekidsapps
• firstlegoleague
• kandersonpds - a technology teacher of preschoolers at Presbyterian Day School in Memphis (and they know what they are doing with educational technology at that school)
• smcorcoran - the Head of School at Brainerd Baptist School
• ckyle - Director of Technology at PDS
• EduTechSmith - technology teacher/trainer of upper elementary at PDS
• Cindybrock - technology teacher/trainer for lower elementary at PDS

Homeschooling:

• HSarticles
• Homeschoolchann
• homeschoollounge
• Homelifeacademy

Other:

• middayconn - Moody radio's Midday Connection radio program updates
• chattanoogafun - updates on what is happening in Chattanooga
• J103radio - a local Christian radio station
• WRCB - local TV station
• Rgallaty - our pastor at Brainerd Baptist Church

You can go to the Twitter website to find out more about Twitter and the basics of how to use it.  

Heather's review of The Kane Chronicles Book 1: The Red Pyramid

 The Red Pyramid is the first book in a new series by Rick Riordan, the writer of the much read Percy Jackson series. This new series is about Carter and Sadie who are the most powerful Kane children ever born. When their father was blamed for their mother's mysterious death, a court battle led to the younger of the children, Sadie Kane, being separated from her father and brother at a young age. One day when her father and Carter were allowed to visit, they went on a trip to a museum and every thing went wrong.
 This thrilling tale about the Egyptian gods and the battle between order and chaos is a great read but is also educational, telling about Egyptian mythology and history. Even Christians would like this story about good versus evil and overall it was a book I would recommend to any one.

AR (Accelerated Reader) Level:  4.5
AR Points:  18

 

Introducing Heather

I would like to introduce my daughter Heather.  Heather likes books, lots and lots of books. She is a new homeschooler for sixth grade this coming year and will be writing guest blogs periodically.  She will be reviewing books she reads and other interesting things like movies, animals, and more.  These blogs will be part of her writing assignments for school.  Enjoy!

Facebook and Twitter

I don't know what everyone thinks about Facebook but I found a new reason to love it yesterday.  I reconnected with a BFF (can I use that term if I am over 40?) from when we were both working on our master's degrees in Educational Technology and Bible in Knoxville at Johnson Bible College.  Her daughter (then middle school aged) kept my elementary school aged kids during a two week intensive course.  Her daughter is now in college and my kids are middle school aged.  Anyway, we got to chatting on Facebook and worked out a visit for this coming week!  I am SO excited about seeing her again. 

A month ago, I reconnected IRL (in Real Life) with a friend from 1985.  We went on a missions trip to Israel with Teen Missions International together.  She lives in California but was traveling in this part of the country for work.  We met for lunch and really enjoyed talking and catching up.

Facebook has helped me connect with high school friends, college friends, former church friends, and current friends.  It has been great for sharing prayer requests (no, really, not gossip but real prayer requests, I promise), encouraging others, being encouraged, and staying in touch. 

Once I got past the playing games on it all day and posting my status every time I sneezed or blinked, it has been a blessing and a very good thing.

I am a latecomer to Twitter. I just got on Twitter in May.  I use Facebook for personal connections but I use Twitter for mostly professional connections.  I went to Memphis and visiting the technology coaches at Presbyterian Day School and found out how they use Twitter to get educational technology ideas and to connect with other technology educators and companies.  It is also good to get input from other educators when you ask for it.  It is like a really large pipeline of information, depending on how many people you "follow" or get posts from, but if you learn to scan it and not worry about what you might be missing, it is a great source of tips, links, ideas, and information.

Cindy Brock, from Presbyterian Day School, is one person I follow on Twitter and on her blog.  You can follow me on Twitter at the link to the right of the page. 

Happy Facebooking and Twittering!

Creation Science Movie

We watched a movie last night for homeschool called The Mysterious Islands.  It was a good Creation Science video which showed some really great wildlife on the Galapagos Islands (LOVE the turtles - one was over 200 years old) and described Darwin and his research from his visit to the Galapagos and how that helped lead to his theories of evolution and then clearly explained the Creationist position in comparison to Darwin's theories.  My kids (ages 14 and 11) were really interested in it and paid attention through the whole thing - didn't even complain once about watching a 90 minute science/Christian/homeschool video.

One point that they both found fascinating (and I did too) is how the theory of the survival of the fittest led to the devaluing of human life and the idea that some creatures are more valuable than others.  Hitler took these ideas and thought he'd help evolution along by eliminating the less likely to survive and less valuable (by his estimation).  Margaret Sanger was another person who helped start Planned Parenthood and decided that some people were not valuable or not even people (like unborn babies).  What a contrast to the way the world would work if people believed that all people are made in God's image and that we are all fearfully and wonderfully made with no mistakes or no one less valuable. 

Genesis 1:27 says, "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them."

Psalm 139:14 - "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well."

Plus - I got to see video of the blue footed boobie (a bird) which does indeed exist and does indeed have blue feet!  : )

For more resources about Creation Science, check out the Answers in Genesis website or the Creation Museum website.