Connecting with anything and everything!
I was very intrigued in this session as it was around Manaiakalani's concept on being and staying connected. As it is human nature to want to connect to others, whether it be with those we consider close to us, those that pop up on our feed, or those that we see on a day to day basis, we are always and will constantly choose to make connections.
We as humans make stronger connections with those we have things in common or think and feel in a similar manner, but tend to forget or lack appreciation for those that we differ from. We learn from the day we are born that connections with others is how we survive, learn and go through life, whether they be positive or negative.
So it's imperative that we teach and guide our students to think beyond where they are now and inspire them to begin thinking of the where to, how to and who with. These powerful connections with our students encourage them to go forth and crave their own connections to enhance their growth in their learning, who they are and how they see the world.
A classroom is an infinite zone of aspiration just waiting for connections to happen, and our students are apprentices in conversing and are only scarcely starting out in making their own connections, with those in our school, our community, our nation and others across the world.
So lets get out there and start promoting whanaungatanga (connections)!
Also, it was another session on Google Sites and how we can make them appealing and more accessible for our students to use. When making sites, we always have to think about what their purposes are, who the audience is and how the site will be used by students or others.
I found that making the learning on the Class Site was more inspiring and engaging when it is parallel to the learning that is happening in the classroom. It also enables the learning to become more stimulating and rewindable for those that are interested in extending their learning.
A couple of must dos while making a class site is, limiting the amount of clicks it takes for someone to reach a learning task and making sure that all the items attached to the site are visible for everyone to view.
The less clicks the better! Make it visible people!
During this session I took the time to update my Class site and ensure that all the items I had embedded into my site were visible and accessible for everyone that clicks onto my site.I had some spare time left, so I took up the opportunity to practice making digital badges with Google Drawings. I have to say, Google Drawings is starting to become my new addition. Move over Google Keep! It's time for the next new thing.
Check out my basic but cool badges here:
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