Online Photo Editing

While on vacation this past summer, I took this picture in Seattle at the Fish Market.  I have decided to edit this photo because I have always felt that it had so much potential, but really didn't turn out like I had hoped.  This school assignment worked out really well for me, not to mention that I think I learnt quite a bit. 

The first website I choose was Picnik.  It was easy to use and took me 5 minutes to upload my picture, edit it, and save it to my computer.  That's pretty amazing considering me and computers don't always get along.  I increased the saturation and boosted the colour and this is what I created.  Who knew it was so easy to make this photo so amazing?

Next, I went to Sumopaint.  This one was definitely more confusing in the beginning.  I have no idea what "layering" means, but if I had some time, I bet it would be pretty cool.  For this one, I increased the colour temperature and equalized the tones, then quickly added some text (since text was a requirement for this assignment).  Can anyone guess where my quote is from???



I found Picnik much more user friendly.  For anyone who is new to online editing, it is definitely the one I would recommend.  There were lots of cool and fun things that you could do, and it took no time at all to figure it out.  Sumopaint seemed like a great tool for those with either more experience or lots of time on their hands to learn.  I found it similar to Photoshop, which by the way, I have yet to really figure out either!  I'm learning though, and that's the main thing, right?

Tweet Tweet

Is Twittering (or is it tweeting?) in the classroom useful?  I have never really   
understood the appeal of Twitter.  Isn't it the same as updating your Facebook status?  Sure you can add photos and have discussions, but doesn't Facebook do that too? 

Twitter, in a classroom setting, can be useful.  In a larger class (100+ students), it can definitely be easier to ask questions or create debates.  Rather than trying to raise a hand and get lost in the crowd, your question/comment will pop up immediately.  And for those students who just love their laptops and cell phones, this can be a way to reach out to them. 

High school classes are much smaller, though.  As teachers, do we really want to encourage students to hide behind a computer to ask their questions?  I believe we should be helping them to build their confidance and to interact not only with their teachers, but with other students as well.  Face-to-face interaction is so important in order to make a connection with someone, and if we rely solely on computers, those connections may be lost (or never even made in the first place).    

The idea of technology in the classroom is one that I embrace.  I believe that blogs or websites for classes are useful in many different ways, but is it really necessary to add Twitter on top of email and Facebook and blogs?  You have to draw the line somewhere. 

 While there are some good points to it, overall I feel that there are better tools out there to use in the classroom.  Sorry Twitter, you didn't make the cut!

The First Post of my First Blog

Welcome to my blog.  I have never been a "blogger", nor did I ever imagine that I would become one.  I am a wee bit nervous to post things online, but excited to learn more about blogging and how it can be used as tool in the classroom.  I guess I should start with a little bit about myself.  I grew up in Brentwood Bay, which is located on the outskirts of Victoria.  I absolutely love living on the island, and couldn't imagine living far from the ocean.  I recently completed my Bachelor of Arts at UVic with a major in French and a minor in psychology.  I am now in the PDP program, which I am assuming if you are reading this, you are probably in my class and know this already!  I hope to teach French (preferably French Immersion), however eventually I want to complete my Masters and become a counsellor within a high school. 

Since this is my first blog, I have decided to start off nice and slow... but hopefully as time progresses, I will become more comfortable with it and have something a bit more interesting to write! 

-R