Just Pin It!

A few weeks ago I was sent an invite to Pinterest and after a few days of playing around I was hooked.

So what is Pinterest?

Pinterest is virtual bulletin boards. When you see something on the Net that you like or want to remember you "pin it" instead of bookmarking it. You create your own profile with your own boards. You choose the name or subject of your own boards, and you can have many boards. I don't know if there is a limit, but I have almost a dozen boards and have seen profiles with more.

Another great thing about Pinterest is you can look at boards created by other people. You also have the option to follow other people and when you log on to Pinterest you will see their new pins. You can follow a person's entire profile or just select boards that interest you. When looking at other boards you can "re-pin" links to your own boards.

I have been using Pinterest for managing and originating teaching resources. I have to admit that I had a very inefficient system of organizing information I found until I was sent my invite to Pinterest. Not only is my information organized now, but I have discovered a great source for sharing new information and ideas.

I can't forget to mention one more advantage to Pinterest. Another problem I had with organizing my bookmarks was due to the fact that I was creating bookmarks on multiple computers. Now I can pin something on my laptop or my PC and it goes to the same place.

There is one thing that I do not like, and perhaps there is a workaround that I have not figured out... It appears that you cannot pin a page that does not have an image on it. I have come across many online documents and articles that I would like to keep for future reference and if there is no image on the site you can't pin it. I guess I will have to stick to bookmarking in those cases.

Despite the one minor drawback I have to say I absolutely love Pinterest!

READING POWER

I was first introduced to Adrienne Gear's Reading Power in my last year of student teaching. I asked the schools learning leader to collaborate with me on designing a novel study for grade 5 students and she brought the book Reading Power to our first meeting.

As a new teacher it can become very overwhelming with the number of resources available and trying to decide what it worth the time (and money). I have to say I have grabbed on to Reading Power and I can see how it would with how I would design a balanced literacy program.



"Based on the research of David Pearson and influenced by Stephanie Harvey, Reading Power provides students with the tools to become more thoughtful and meaningful readers as well as how to become “meta-cognitive” or aware of their thinking while they read. Developing a “common language of thinking” across grades is a key aspect to this approach, while teachers learn the importance of using this language in all aspects of their teaching."




I highly recommend this resource. I have spent the last few days reviewing the book and I really appreciate the easy-to-follow way the book is designed, the book lists, black-lined masters, and the grade level suggestions.

Bike Safety

Jordan is being picked on by a few kids because he always wears a helmet when he is on his bike or scooter.  I have to say I am very proud of him for sticking up for himself and defending why he wears a helmet.  I am also very happy that he hasn’t tried to not wear his helmet.

A few years ago when many of his friends stopped wearing helmets we had a conversation about the reasons why it’s important to always wear a helmet, even for a short bike ride.  Nothing seemed to work and I felt like I was having a hard time getting through to him.  I think the desire to appear cool was stronger than any of the reasons I gave for wearing a helmet.  I had to think hard and get creative….. Of course I told him that people have lost their life from not wearing a helmet, but I think that many young children feel invincible and I had to appeal to is sense of looking cool.  I talked to him about brain injuries and how a brain injury could impact his independence and ability to perform everyday activities, like walking, talking, and using the washroom.  It was after this conversation that Jordan never asked again if he had to wear a helmet. 

If you ask Jordan why he wears a helmet his answer is always because he doesn’t want to wear diapers.  He will sometimes tell his friends that don’t wear helmets that they should wear helmets or they might end up wearing a diaper instead.  Usually Jordan's defense of wearing a helmet requires some additional explaining.     

I realize that making sure he wears a helmet during the teenage years is going to be even more difficult, but for now I know when he gets on his bike he will always have a helmet on.