Monkey Mia

chris hope

We had a drive out to Monkey Mia today and it was very enjoyable.We set off at 5.00am, but straight away we hit trouble; we ran into fog so thick we could only just see the white lines and kangaroos were darting in front of the car. In the dark and the fog we could easily have hit one, but luckily we didn’t. Anyway, here’s a short video with the dolphins that came in for a free fishy feed.

Well, the video was supposed to be here, but as I’m trying to do this on my iPhone and iPad it gets a little complicated. I will try and figure it out, especially as I would like to work out how to be able to use these devices for blogging. It may be that it’s the wrong file format, but I can’t change that til I get my computer. Anyway, I will check it out. Fingers crossed!

Worth A Visit

chris hope

Hi all. This is a blog that I think is well worth a visit, it’s from Sophie and is kept pretty well up to date. See what you think and leave a polite comment if you wish. Alternatively, have another look at the students’ blogs attached to the excellent Huzzah blog. Don’t forget, you can still read and comment on each other’s blogs. Another idea worth considering (I think I may have already mentioned this one) is to see if your old school, perhaps in the UK or elsewhere, has a website or blog you could leave a comment on. Say hello and remind them of who you are and whose class you were in.

Well Done AGAIN!

chris hope

Once again I need to say a very deserved “well done” to several of the students for continuing to blog throughout the holidays. Monika, as usual, has continued to be a very prolific writer, and Holly, Tiana, Michael and Pharyn are also putting in an impressive effort. A special mention, though, goes to Georgia who has kept an amazing diary style blog going for the holidays. It has been fascinating to read and is well worth a visit. Well done once again to the students of LA19.

Edublogs App

chris hope

Okay, following my seriously unsuccessful attempts to use the Edublogs App (and moaning about it for not working) I have now got it sorted. Whilst I was already signed in I thought I would try signing out and signing back in again. It worked! Now all the features which were supposed to be there ARE there. I’m going to try again to post a photo so wish me luck!
🙂

20130427-152313.jpg

On Holiday

chris hope

This post is a personal one, and also a bit of a test for myself. Seeing as we’re off school for two weeks I’ve come up to Kalbarri for a bit of a break. However, that also means I don’t have my wireless or computer so I’m doing all my posts and comments from my iPhone.

I’d have to admit that I don’t find the Edublogs App very easy to use. In fact, having installed it on my iPhone and tried to use it I am extremely put off by the level of complexity. I’m not sure how the images on the examples on the app store are supposed to be relevant but, no matter how hard I try I simply cannot get it to link to my blog. I am logged in with passwords etc. but I just keep getting frozen screens and links to the website. Non of the navigation or tools that are shown on the instructions appear, even when I click on the icon shown in the same instructions. I just get a link to My Sites which then tells me I don’t have rights! VERY frustrating and disappointing.

Ah well, I am still going to try and post this with a photo, so fingers crossed. Kalbarri is great, as usual, even though there’s not much to do. I guess it’s perfect for relaxing and building my energy back up so I’m ready to face the students for another term! Here’s a photo of Kalbarri – I hope!

Well, the photo proved too difficult for the iPhone app to figure out. I will keep trying, just don’t hold your breath. From the frustrated and annoyed (can you tell?) teacher of LA19!

Well done!

chris hope

Well, we might be on holiday but that hasn’t stopped Georgia and Monika from continuing to post great work on their blogs. Well done girls! Also, a BIG thank you to parents (Oriyah’s, Pharyn’s, Gian’s, Georgia’s) for taking part in the Parent Blogging Challenge. It’s great to have parents involved with what we’re doing.

If any students wish to post while on holiday you can. Tell us about your trips, sleepovers, go-kart races, the tv shows you are watching… If you are from England (or anywhere else, really) it might be a good idea to find your old school, see if they have a blog and leave a polite comment.

On another note, I have been going through the blogs and have noticed that some of you have a number of comments that you need to check. They may need approving or trashing, depending on what they’re like. Remember, some people wait to see if they get a reply from a comment and may be disappointed if it doesn’t arrive. Also, PLEASE check your writing before you publish your posts so you can avoid those simple errors that make us look bad.

Have a safe holiday  🙂

Holiday Time

chris hope

Well, we’re all about to begin our two week holiday, so it’s going to get a little quiet around the LA19 blogging scene. While we’re on our break we won’t really have any formal blogging tasks, those will wait until next term. However, if anyone wishes to write a post about what they’re doing over the holiday then that will be fine. Just remember, our privacy and safety are the most important aspects of our blogging experience, so take care with which details you include. Also, ask permission from anyone on a photo you want to include.

Have a happy and totally safe holiday.

Parent Task #1!

chris hope

This time it’s the parents’ turn to get blogging. Parents are invited to post a comment on this blog, their child’s blog or even another student’s blog. There are quite a few things on this blog which highlight some of the great work the students have been doing and it would be quite special to get feedback from some of the parents. Also, it would be great for parents to have a read of their child’s blog and see what they’re writing about. Students need to remember, though, that we are commenting experts so we will have to teach our parents how to write an appropriate comment so it doesn’t get trashed.

🙂

iPad Art

chris hope

Eesha

Josh

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the past few weeks the students have been creating art masterpieces using iPads. We looked at the art of Julian Opie (famous for the Blur album cover that people as old as me may remember) and have tried creating our own versions of our own faces using the Brushes app. We first took photos and uploaded them to Dropbox. Next, we connected to Dropbox on the iPads and downloaded the photo’s so we could work on them. We opened the photo’s in Brushes and away we went.

This activity had many learning opportunities attached to it. The obvious one is that we learned to use a new app on the iPads and developed our skills in working with the technology. We learnt the concept of using layers in art applications, the same types of skills which are used in Photoshop and other design programmes. We also developed our understanding of working in “the cloud”, of how we can store and retrieve work external from the device we are using. Finally, as I’m sure you’ll agree, we made some amazing art.

Banknote Project

chris hope

Monika’s Cover Page

This term the students have been developing their research skills through a project on Australian Banknotes. The topic was chosen because it lends itself to several levels and aspects of research. It’s interesting once you start looking closely at your national currency just how much there is to find out. There are the obvious faces, but there are also many images which are in the designs that we never get to see unless we take a really close look. There are also many security features on the notes that we just assume are part of a fancy pattern. The students learned to find simple factual information and also how to research the historical figures used on the notes in detail. The project showed us the type of people are regarded as being respected enough to be included as national representatives on the Australian currency.

We had some very good projects and some of the students learned just how tricky it can be to complete a whole research task to a high standard.

Facts on the $20 & $50