Final reflection for PBL class

The roll I think I played was that of contributor. Of the three people in my group: one was very good with technology; one with writing and organizing, and one as ongoing contributor and 'looker over'. I would probably work differently next time in that I would want to add more of my discipline in the project-I think this is important.

I was definitely happy with our final project-I think that we did a good job! People were a bit confused because I think they did not understand where we were coming from-maybe we could add something in there about that.

I would come in with more ideas but it was a little difficult because we struggled so much the first week so I just went with the flow. We really worked well the last week of class.

Rebekah has inspired me to use Blogger more-it is a very cool tool, more than I thought before. Blogger is more like a web site now.

I would like to develop a PBL project for my classroom-in digital format-like we did in this class but as well a field work.

Overall I enjoyed this class-we struggled in the beginning but I think in the end we did a good job working together; I learned and I grew.

PBL reflection

Today was a very good day in terms of things coming together. I thought the walk through preview was really helpful because we got to see what other people were doing and how we could improve our project. I also really enjoyed the team building exercise! That was totally cool.

The walk through was a really helpful resources. I also think that we are creating a very good PBL project. Our group members each bring individual expertise to the table I am learning and creating at the same time! I am getting some good training in collaboration- I often work alone and I needed this project, as I am becoming a better listener (this can happen when one takes too many online courses).

I see things coming together and our project is evolving-it is so nice to see. I am enjoying the class and the project. My initial frustration is gone!

I think our final steps will be completed tomorrow. We left today with ideas for tomorrow-that was nice. I am enjoying the process this week, things are really coming together nicely-I am pleased with our progress. Our final project is not so final, it is something that can continue to evolve.

Project based learning reflection

Yesterday was a very productive day (Monday 6/28/10). I felt like we got a lot done for our final group project. I am looking forward to the final product as I feel I have a better understanding of what is expected of our group; we are also working better as a group-in whole.

The first few days were tough as we tried to figure out our roles and how we could work most efficiently and effectively together. I had some frustrations as I was unsure where we were going with our project. We have three very strong personalities in our group and we really do not know each other that well and two of us have never worked together.

I was also unsure of what our final project was suppose to look like- I think we were all a little unsure. The most difficult part was agreeing what we wanted our project to contain. We were struggling over the most basic, yet important, parts-such as wording.I felt a lot of frustrating and I was unsure where to direct it-I did not want it to affect our ability to work together. We all took a step back and worked on our own-this was therapeutic and enabled us to be productive. We later came together and put our individual parts together to create a whole-this was a good experience.

Good resources were each other. We each had our strengths which added to the picture as a whole-a team; sometimes it is just better to work alone as I know I needed space.
When the puzzle started to look like a picture I felt the stress level decrease substantially-I think it is safe to say that this was true for everyone in the group.
Once I had a better understanding of what was wanted I could actually feel like I was working productively and in the right direction.

This weeks has been much better for me than last week.

Personal Learning Environment

Google reader seems really 'thick'. I am exploring each item one by one-there seems to be a lot of information here and I have only added a few of my personal settings. I want to be able to personalize it a bit more as I am grasping a better understanding of all of the features. I am spending a lot of time on the computer and I am noticing neck and eye strain and pain. I have to decide what is important to study and what needs to be ignored-though feel like I might be 'missing' something!

What I have learned

Blogging is a full-time commitment. I suppose it is if you want dedicated followers.
As far a classroom tool it is a very use way of connecting with all parent at once.
As a teacher you can comprise a brief daily journal of what you and your students' did in class that day. It is a very useful way for parents and student to keep up on daily activities.
Missed a class: check the blog. What is the homework assignment: check the blog.
I see the telephone becoming an obsolete tool for 'talking' and communication being completely digital. I think I might miss the 'talking' part !!

Fun and educational blogging

I found a few fun videos on YouTube that pair with my food pyramid and healthy eating habits theme. I am getting better at editing and blogging in general. I found a way to cut the size of YouTube videos! Pretty stoked about it!! Credit to Denvy's web design class. Might not seem like a big deal to 'experts' but to me it was a big step in understanding html code a little better.

Fun gardening video