Category Archives: EC&I 831

Humbling Myself

After a whole two weeks of running at the same pace, I am finally starting to feel some progress being made. I had a serious head cold last week — yay for my physical health taking a toll on me try to work on my mental health! YAY! 

I am back on Tik Tok again this week to try and learn some tricks. The best thing about learning on Tik Tok is actually listening to people talk. That lead me to my second source this week — Pinterest! Her are some of the resources that I found and how they helped me! 

https://www.tiktok.com/@maeveannemcm/video/7194236809793113390?_r=1&_t=8d7YeBBtHXh

This link taught me about eating and supporting yourself through runs. Since doing some research about how to eat to support my body before and after running, this has been super helpful in the recovery but also the stamina that I have built. A co-worker actually did something called a “bun run” this week and I could not believe that someone could eat a dense cinnamon bun while running! 

Although I have never considered running a super long run, this link https://www.tiktok.com/@hannah_miller0/video/7205237002999057710?_r=1&_t=8d7YicaCE6v gave me the ideas of how to prepare in the hours leading up to a run. I find I am still balancing how much water to drink because it can cause some problems for me when I hear that swooshing around in my stomach. Again, it is all a learning curve. 

This post that I found on Pinterest https://bestplaygear.com/how-to-get-back-into-running-after-gaining-weight/ allowed me to give myself the mental support that I need. It really did break down the ideas of not letting the mental block I create for myself reaching success. I am mentioned in my previous post that I play numbers games, and I quite regularly think when I weighed 15, 10, 5 pounds lighter. I am working to revere that so that I can be comfortable in my own body. 

I am starting to really get back into it, and I have now realized I need to give myself grace as I am working really hard and that is what matters. When I look at my students in my class and watch them crush out their 6 day action plans over the last week or so, I realize that they have also inspired me to strive for and reach my goals that I have set for myself. This has been a humbling experience for me.

BREAD WEEK #6 – Last but not yeast….

Embarking on this journey of learning to bake bread using online resources has been, actually, quite great.  There were tears, laughter, frustrations, some swearing, but also some joy. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but I’m impressed with how much I’ve grown in just 5 short weeks. I don’t know why I was surprised about the wealth of information available: recipes, techniques, tutorials, tips, videos, apps, and history lessons from the seasoned vets, professionals, and then just the regular people, like Larry. From regular ol’ white bread, to artisan loaves, to soft and fluffy buns, and from herb-infused focaccia to flavorful bread knots, the online baking community offers a wealth of knowledge and creativity.

Independent, online learning is no joke. It was actually quite overwhelming to see the amount of resources, suggestions, recipes, tutorials, and videos.

Tone It Down Too Much GIF by Hairspray Live!

I think it’s really important to read reviews and feedback from those who have made the recipes. This was a crucial step in choosing the right recipe to follow. As much as I was looking for tastiness, I was also looking for recipes that didn’t take hours upon hours, and recipes that were easy for a beginner.  That said, I’ve realized that the online baking community is very passionate and often shares tips on achieving the perfect texture, consistent results, and experimenting with various fillings and toppings to elevate bread making skills. Bread is not something that can be mastered after one bake.  It takes patience and time….kind’ve like waiting for the dough to rise….it’s all about the journey.

fox tv find your grit GIF by American Grit

Here are some of my key learnings from the past 5 weeks:

  • Quick rise yeast is the MVP.
  • Before beginning, read the whole recipe and watch the whole video.
  • “Kneady” is a super cool app that I’m legit going to keep on my phone and use
  • Kitchen Aid Stand Mixers suck at kneading dough – USE YOUR HANDS.
  • Breadmaking is a time investment – there’s not quick way about it
    ***pssssssst: you could also just buy frozen dough from the grocery store – I won’t judge you.***
  • Although Jaime Oliver is a superstar, he’s relatable and easy to follow. I will 100p be using his recipes in the future.
  • Coat your herbs in some olive oil or they will have no flavor.
  • Larry is deadly at making homemade bread.
  • Focaccia is the best and easiest bread to make. DO IT.
  • Mamma Val is the best, and she gave me a solid base of cooking knowledge to start this project. Thank you for all the years of teaching me how to cook and bake. Love you.

In the end, I did enjoy the learning process and felt a lot of satisfaction creating my own homemade bread from scratch. My house smelled incredible over the past 5 weeks. It was a delightful adventure, and although I’m no expert, there may be a little bit of a bread enthusiast inside my bones.

Bread Oprah GIF

Thanks for following along with me. If you’re ever thinking of trying out basic bread, buns, or focaccia, I encourage you to embrace the opportunity to let the internet (and the “Kneady” app)  be your guide as you experiment, adapt recipes to your preferences, and share your creations with those you love.  Overall, I give this learning project 5 doughballs/5.

fresh raw doughfresh raw doughfresh raw doughfresh raw doughfresh raw dough

 

Over It Reality Tv GIF by Braxton Family Values

Open education and the lessons we learned in kindergarten

I get the frustration teachers have with the freeloaders — people that just take, take, take resources, and don’t share (or create) anything themselves. We’ve all experienced that frustration, and to be honest it’s really difficult not to fall into the trap of selfishness. I won’t share anything because you aren’t sharing anything with me. … Continue reading "Open education and the lessons we learned in kindergarten"

learning project – studying spanish – final evidence of learning

Este es mi post final por mi Proyecto de Aprender, donde yo estudio español. En mi videos, yo hablo con Rebeca. Nos conocimos en 2019 en un viaje de India y Nepal. ¡Muchas gracias por tu ayuda, Rebeca!

(This is my final post for my Learning Project, where I study Spanish. In my videos, I talk with Rebeca. We met in 2019 on a trip to India and Nepal. Thank you very much for your help, Rebeca!)

Donde Yo Soy / Where I Am

In my first update post for this project, I mentioned that I wanted to demonstrate my final learning by recording myself speaking Spanish with someone. I tossed around a few ideas of who I could talk to, but nothing seemed quite right. I thought about conversing with:

  • my sister (she had been learning Spanish on Duolingo, but has since dropped off doing the app, and I didn’t think two beginner learners would be able to have a very good conversation)
  • my uncle (he knows sufficient Spanish to get around in Costa Rica, where he has a vacation home, but he isn’t a native speaker)
  • a user on Tandem (I tried asking someone I had been chatting with for a while if they’d be open to my recording a session of us chatting, but I think they were a bit freaked out by this – reasonably so! haha)

Just as I was beginning to give up hope on my idea of speaking Spanish with someone, Rebeca answered my prayers and, seemingly, fell into my lap! When she followed me on Duolingo, a lightbulb instantly went off – I knew a native Spanish speaker from my previous travels! I asked Rebeca if she would be interested in having a conversation with me on Zoom and she graciously agreed. Last Thursday (day 37 of learning Spanish for me), we sat down for a Zoom conversation and spoke almost entirely (I’d say 95%) in Spanish for about 20 minutes!

I’m sure many people won’t want to listen to a 20 minute conversation in another language, so I have created two different videos that you are welcome to check out below.

This video is a shortened version with some of the ‘highlights’ of our conversation.

If for some reason, you want to check out the ‘full meal deal,’ this is the video for you.

There are chapter titles in the video so viewers can tell what topic we are discussing in each section. I wanted to include the full conversation to have an authentic artifact that captures my progress at this juncture.

Rebeca was an amazing conversational partner, who understood my stilted and hesitant sentences, offered clarifications on things I didn’t know, and provided lots of complimentary feedback! Being able to have a conversation in Spanish with a native speaker was an invaluable experience – I was very nervous, but also left our Zoom conversation buzzing with pride and excitement. Thank you again to Rebeca for being so generous with her time and agreeing to speak with me and be recorded for this project – I literally could not have done it without you!

¿Que Proxima? What Next?

I fully intend to continue learning Spanish, and am hoping to jump into a more intensive language Sprint on Lingoda in the fall. I’d love to learn more vocabulary and increase my knowledge of verbs/conjugations, as that is a weak spot for me right now. In addition, I’d like to expand my ability to speak in present or future tense, as I am currently limited to speaking in present tense. I can’t wait to visit another Spanish speaking country and continue to practice my Spanish!

Thanks everyone for joining me on this journey! It has been an absolute blast and I am left feeling so satisfied with how my Learning Project turned out! I am eternally grateful for the opportunity this course gave me to kick-start my Spanish learning and I will definitely continue with this as a personal goal moving forward.

¡Adios!

Until next time,

-KKF

The Best Photography Platforms…and it’s not Google

Hey guys!

Thanks for all your support in reading my blog each week. This last week was tough for me to accomplish what I had planned to do. I was really looking forward to trying a long exposure at sunset and also videoing my process. Unfortunately, my husband (who I was going to ‘hire’ to film me while I walked you through the process) got called away for work this week, so I wasn’t able to simultaneously vlog and take photos. My second dilemma was that the weather was just not great. Between the rain and mosquitos, I wasn’t able to get a long exposure shot like I had planned. So I still took some photos, most of which are not nice enough to share, and I settled on one that was neither long exposure nor a vlog. However, my plan is to do a final wrap-up post of my project this week where I am able to deliver both of these things! **Fingers Crossed**

…if only it was a long exposure

With all the unpredictable weather this week, I spent a lot of time continuing to research photography tips and tricks. As I was researching I started to notice that there were certain platforms I preferred compared to others. Some were a lot more user-friendly, inspiring, and more informative than others. So for this week, I thought I would compile the various sites/apps I have used on my photography journey and review which ones I felt were helpful in my self-taught journey. (Ps. I borrowed the rating system from Laura Gaboury when I saw the way she rated her bread with dough balls! Loved that!)

Self-Teaching Apps/Websites for Photography

As you can probably see, I have found Pinterest, Youtube, and Instagram to be the most helpful in my photography journey. Although I have used all 5 to help with my photography, I have found those three the most useful. However, the nice thing about all 5 of these online spaces is they are a great springboard for finding other really neat resources and websites. I actually considered listing Google but I realized that I seem to prefer to start my searches on one of these sites OR Google eventually takes me to one of these sites. It’s interesting to think that Google was ALL the rage and now I rarely use it.

Do you find this as well with Google, or am I the only one?

Overall I have really enjoyed growing my photography learning network through these platforms. I think that the ability to save, share, or create allows these platforms to work better as a teaching tool for learning a skill online. Being able to participate on the platform or save things for later is a BIG plus!

I’m curious though, what platforms have YOU been accessing the most on your learning journey?

P.S. Not photographed…the mosquitos drinking all my blood while I took the photo below

Open (ing the door to accessible) Education

When Alan Levine posed one simple question at the beginning of class, my mind went blank. “What is open education?” and I was wondering, “Yeah, what is it?” The class as a whole seemed to be in silence, which made it apparent how little this term is used, and therefore, it appeared more as a philosophy than a practice.

So what is open education anyways? Open education is the belief that everyone should have access to a good education which is done through sharing materials and resources free of cost. It gives us access to a variety of sources, all over the world.

“Open ed resources can be revised, so they’re never out of date”

unlike that Math Makes Sense textbook. Open education allows us educators to have access to resources that are adaptable, at the tip of our fingertips and gives access to all despite where they are and the money they have to spend. Sounds easy right? So why aren’t we doing this then?

In my own experiences, I have been given access to resources like Pearson and Treaty Resource Kits. Sure, these are essentially free and accessible to me but the school had to initially purchase them with their limited money. Since then, these textbooks are old, outdated, and not looking as fresh as they once were. When will we get to the point that we no longer need these resources and instead, turn to open education? Is this feasible? Will Pearson make the switch to make their resources accessible to all, at no cost?

The idea of open education is amazing and as it was stated, “is changing lives” but the question remains in the HOW. How do we make this switch when so many resources currently involve funding, donations, and your own personal money.

One online resource I use frequently is Teachers Pay Teachers (TPT). I wonder, what does this mean for TPT then? Countless hours and time are put into creating resources and then putting them on the web for money. How do we shift this notion to create more open educational resources? Who is going to do it? I know I would have a hard time putting in many hours and time, to share a resource free of charge, especially if this is your side income, that you need.

On the flip side, I have seen the magic in sharing and collaborating amongst colleagues to give our students the best education we possibly can. While I do believe in the belief of open education and the concept of “No sharing = No learning,” I fear it's a hard shift.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJWbVt2Nc-I&t=15s

Open education can open the doors and allow students to have an educational experience that we have not quite seen before. But the question remains, can we do it? How do we shift our notion of thinking to make it happen?

She Made an Appearance on TikTok!

Well, this was a week of success! I feel so proud of myself for all I have accomplished and my willpower to get out and run! This week, my runs were in parks, down street roads, back roads, and even some different paths.

This week's stretching facilitator was @ryleejade.fit, as she led me through many different dynamic stretches before each run. I have realized from injuries, illness, and soreness, how important it is to warm up for a run. Beforehand, you would see me out the door and immediately running. I could never imagine doing this now! Further, @runwithestelle & @rhiannoncbailey, accounts that have facilitated my stretches in the past, were revisited throughout this week. Together, I have created very in-depth dynamic and static stretches for myself.

My goal this week was to record using video format as opposed to always pictures and to revisit accounts that I have been using, as I was noticing each week was a different account and it was becoming overwhelming. Although @ryleejade.fit was a new account, she was very similar to the others but broke down some stretches into step-by-step pieces which were very useful for me to see and use, to avoid injury and ensure I am targeting the correct muscle.

So without further due… My very first running TikTok. Cmon’ I know I still have work to do but the music, the voice, the different clips, ✨STUNNING.✨

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/2d2868_6f089b6df625471a9ed7e47db15bf452/480p/mp4/file.mp4

As I continued stretching throughout the week, I created another TikTok that incorporated some of my favourite stretches!

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/2d2868_2880703c5f03459f85f5dd7428e9a17f/480p/mp4/file.mp4

Finally, @hollyb_fitness and @kaitlynwitha_k_ brought me back to reality, realizing we all start somewhere and it is not a linear process, it involves many bumps in the road and rather a rollercoaster. I learned the power of self-talk and just getting yourself out there, even when it is hard. I feel this is so valuable while running, as I often try to talk myself out of a run and/or wish my body looked different. But it's all about the process and I need to embrace where I am now and the progress that has been made since the beginning of the semester.

As I have got more into the running progress, I have realized that I have been going away from using Youtube and instead, using TikTok more frequently. I think due to the shorter clips, an app on my main screen of my phone and when I am scrolling, I am on running TikTok. I think this has created a different dynamic for me as I am always saving and liking videos and then incorporating them into my running journey.

My learning journey has been beyond enjoyable! I am excited to keep going with my new running lifestyle and see what the future holds for me.

Running = What I do for myself.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/2d2868_7e77f83f2f924505a5ba705efa4ddeae/1080p/mp4/file.mp4

How do you hold yourself accountable for doing things that are sometimes hard? What are your tips and tricks?

Open Education: some thoughts

I had no idea what open education was , and Alan Levine opened my eyes to its potential. I was really enlightened to hear about this philosophy. In its simplest form, I now understand that open education advocates for everybody to have access to high-quality materials for free.

Sharing is caring. Isn’t that we are all taught?

Dog Puppy GIF by Originals

In their advocacy for open education resources, the Hewlett Foundation argues “that well-designed, customizable, openly licensed materials can engage students and energize educators in ways that enable more responsive teaching and better learning”.

ENGAGING STUDENTS?

ENERGIZE EDUCATORS?

MORE LEARNING?

Celebrity gif. Lizzo wears a shiny sleeveless gown, shakes her head emphatically, and pumps an award statuette in the air while shouting, "Let's go!"

This resonates with me and aligns well with Alan Levine when he mentioned that making content available for many people to have access to is just going to make the resources better. The more people use it, the more eyes on it, the more adaptations can be made, and the better it gets. I see this as the ultimate form of collaboration, and that is where the magic happens.

I had some questions pop into my head about open education.

  1. Who benefits from this?
    • Literally everyone.
  2. Who is most directly affected?
    • Educators and their learners.
  3. What are the weaknesses?
    • Intellectual property/copyright concerns.
    • Difficulty accessing technology.
    • Potential for low quality resources.
  4. What are the strengths?
    • Eliminates barriers and expands access to resources.
    • Promotes equity and equitable opportunities.
    • Removes high-cost materials, making them affordable to literally everyone.
    • Promotes collaboration.
    • Takes the business out of education.
    • Opportunity to save money, removing the stress of loans/debt.

I think it’s clear that capitalism plays an important role in this.  If education opens all the doors, there needs to be a shift in thinking.  I just ordered 40 “new edition” textbooks for a colleague’s class, and that ended up costing our division over $1800.00. That may not seem like a lot of money, but if every course has to do this (and they do), think about how much that adds up.  Also, in order to offset some of that cost, students have to pay a fee to take that course.  This is just in high school.  If these textbooks were to be openly sourced, everybody would fare that much better.  Divisions would save money, which then allows them to put more funds into other areas of need like support workers, nutrition workers, or even, perhaps, pay for a license for teachers to access materials for free.

Some open education resources available right now by these respected institutions (source: Blink Tower’s “Why Open Education Matters”)

If education is supposed to be for all and we are here to support everybody having the best possible education available, the culture of sharing educational resources needs to shift. I think it’s time to move from philosophy into practice.

Craig T Nelson Yes GIF by CBS