Reward for effort!

After joining the very steep learning curve of e-learning I will be tech support for an online class in a couple of weeks.  Looking forward to it, scary that it is. Over the past few months I have been developing an online course as my Project, using wikispaces.  However, I have also been introduced to Moodle through attending a lot of PD online and classes, so will be having a play in that (during the school hols).  It does seem to be more flexible than wikispaces, though it seems to take a lot of playing to get the full potential.  A session with Leo Gregorc on Friday showed that.  There are so many programs that I have been introduced to throughout the year, but the one I have found really useful is quizlet. Because my current work is face to face, this is the way I can introduce something different, light but challenging to learners. Last week I created a quizlet matching words with pictures for my Intro to Retail class of disability students.  They loved it and it has encouraged me to do more.

Check it Out!

Hi Everyone.
we have had a major problem with internet access at the Bridge where the folio group meets which means they have not been able to post to their blog this term. They like to do it as a group activity still, so no one has posted from home yet. I am sure that will change as confidence grows.
However I am really pleased with the way they have embraced the technology and they love putting their work up for people to see. If you have a minute, take a look at Japarafolio.blogspot.com or google Japara Folio 2103. They would love some feedback. I have lined up another group for them to share with once we get the problems ironed out.
This term they are working on a theme of "home" and their online home will be one more interpretation of that theme. Next challenge is for them to post a short video or add some music.
Looking forward to the Showcase and hope everyone else is doing well with their projects.
Cheers
Ros

March in the Ning

Hi everyone - it is our month faciliating in the NIng and I would invite you all to participate and keep the Ning vibrant especially during our month. The topic is "Adventuring with images and voice" and already there is a great discussion going on about free and low-cost imaging programs and what people are doing with images.Participants are also giving out plenty of links to resources as well. Look forward to seeing you in there contesting for the prize for the eLeader who contributes most to March in the Ning! I also hope you are travelling along well with your projects, you are all doing so many amazing things I am impressed with your commitment. Keep it up and I hope you are all benefitting from the learning. I know I am :)
Our next session in the online classroom is next Tuesday 12th March on creating a Voki avatar. I did run this at the end of last year but we didnt have enough people attend to run it so am offering the chance for people who could not make it then to join in with us next Tuesday. Look forward to seeing you. There are also other webinars advertised in the EVENTS section of the Ning as well. I am attending one today with Michael Chalk on using Dropbox for cloud storage. I am looking forward to it.

See you in the NING!

Quizlet

After our Quizlet session yesterday, I got busy and completed a scattergame to put into my wikispace for my online Word project.  Thank you Christine! It was easy to do, and I ended up with 10 terms with 10 matching definitions.
A little problem arose after embedding into wikispaces, in a cell in a table.  I have found that the size of the quizlet can't be expanded and so my terms and definitions are all on top of each other, very squishy.  While in Edit mode I tried expanding the link (like a picture) but when saved reverted back to smaller size.  Then I tried putting spaces into the table column to expand the cell itself, but when saved reverted back also.  Any suggestions welcome.

elearning via Footy Tipping

We had a great meeting with Christine this week discussing using Google doc spreadsheets to record the footy tips scoreboard. This will also involve creating email addresses for some of our participants. The footy tipping is a popular attraction at the House so we see it as a great opportunity to get everybody on line and involved.

thanks Christine.

Sandy

Our First Online Session for the year!

We were delighted to see such a good roll-up at our first online PD session for the year on the Ning. Hopefully, those people will now feel a little more confident about using it to get information, resources and to join in fascinating discussions! We were also delighted to welcome Pat Grosse the EMentor from Hume and Shauna one of the Hume eleaders to the session. As you are probably aware, our region has joined together with Hume to become the North East region .

If anyone was not able to attend the session and wants some help in joining the Ning please let me know and I will help. This month in the Ning the topic is about using Microsoft Tools and this includes One Note, Microsoft Server. Microsoft LYNC as well as the usual Office tools so pop in and join in with the discussion. Tell them about your favourite Microsoft tool!

Next month is our month in the Ning. The topic will be "Adventuring with images and voice" so keep an eye out for that one!

Our next fortnightly online PD session will be Christine leading us through setting up a Quizlet. Make sure you get on board for that on 26th Feb at 4.30 pm!

Lynne

Still Plodding Along

Wow! Well done Maree.The bar has been set pretty high now. Maybe I'll be able to slip underneath.

Had a good meeting last week with the tutor and class members and support workers who will be using the blog I am creating for them. They are very enthusiastic and looking forward to learning new skills,. We used a large part of our Commonwealth equipment grant 2012 to buy ipads  and they are very excited about the possibilities of using them to capture images which they can play with before posting to the blog. Hopefully in a couple of weeks I will be able to invite you to join to see for yourselves. It is frustrating that they are only with us for a couple of hours a week.

Enjoyed catching up in the online classroom yesterday. Hope to see some of you at the Transport in the East expo at Mooroolbark Community Centre on 25/2. For details check out getmeabout.org.au/expo .

Completion of Project - Well done, Maree!

I have just spent an enjoyable evening at a tutor meeting at Pines Learning.

The highlight was the presentation that Maree did to demonstrate and explain the Google doc she created for a number of tutors to use to complete the A-frame documentation for a new pre-accredited course that begins next week.

She used the data display to show us the Google doc and demonstrate how to use it. She also distributed notes on how to use it. None of the other tutors had previously used Google docs and their interest was demonstrated by the in-depth questions that Maree answered very well.

Maree has completed the project set for her last semester and produced an online document that will be in use at the centre from next week. Her answers to the questions she was asked showed that she had done a lot of research and demonstrated her knowledge of Google docs.

Congratulations, Maree, and thank you. I will be one of the tutors using the Google doc and it will make our work easier.

I look forward to working with Maree this semester on her new project.

Maree is our new Google docs guru!!

Google Cloud Connect & Drive sync

Have been working in Google docs uploading an AFrame and converting it for collaboration with other tutors during 2013.  During this process I have come across Google Cloud Connect and Google Drive for Mac/PC for syncing files. 
It seems that with Google Cloud Connect, all Microsoft files created end up in the cloud. Has anyone used this or Google Drive sync and found them really useful?  If so, would appreciate some feedback.