UDL Lesson Planning

Today I finished my UDL Lesson plan. It was interesting to look at lesson planning in a different light. Every person and every institution that teaches lesson planning focuses on a different aspect of the plan. What I gained from it was a new insight of how to help students. I think that as we use the knowledge we gain as we teach and study education we can create lesson plans that will really focus on the students and prepare us to find success in the classroom. The more we prepare and plan the more likely we are to find that success we are striving for.

PSA Review and Comments

At the beginning of this assignment there were four of us that were excited to work together and get the assignments done. We decided to work together and it was quite successful. During Pre-production we used different mediums to communicate and develop our ideas. First we posted and edited on a wiki some brain storming ideas. After a few days of that we then gathered for a group chat on Google. This was a very successful meeting in that we quickly and efficiently developed our ideas of what we wanted to do, who was going to do what job, and a timeline of what we wanted to accomplish. After that meeting most of our communication was by email with reports of how the work was going or questions and help that was needed. Throughout the process updates were continually made in our production document that was stored on Google Docs and on the wiki we were using.
One of the things that could have improved our PSA would have been if we had a budget to work with so that we could have got better equipment. What we had was usable, but especially in the sound recording realm there was a bit to be desired. Having a group of people working together was great because we were able to check up on each other and help each other on areas of weakness – especially with the copyright issues. Together we were able to check and ensure that things were done correctly and efficiently.

PSA Complete?

The PSA is now done... at least I think it is. There is still about a week until it is due, but our group was working hard to get it done early. Now we have a weak to review it and do any touch ups. It was funny because we made 2 copies. One with more Talking and one with less talking. In a group of 4 of course we all voted on the one we like and the winner was - a tie. 2/2 So I just made both go through the final cuts as well. I am only posting the one with more talking because that is the one that I like.

Making the movie

We ran into a few difficulties with transfering files. Tamara shot the video, but it was too big to email of course, and we couldn't just post it on the wiki, so we finally figured out we could use 4shared.com. It is a nice file storing site that will store up to 5Gb for free. So that worked well. Then I needed to convert it from m4v to wmv so that I could use it with a PC. Apparently m4v is only usable my mac... you know one of those things they do to make you love them more. I love mac's, but I don't have one :(

After converting it, I spent a few hours developing a rough cut of the video. I ended up making 2 because I wasn't sure which one I would like better. So they have been sent to the group. I'll post them both below as well, understand that they will only be up for a short time. After I finish the final version I will delete them.

So with that being said I just changed my mind and am not actually going to post them! LOL

Begining the PSA

So first of all I want to say thanks to all the people that are actually using the wiki. It is neat to see it being used. We are up to about 12 or so members and the activity is starting to pick up. So that being said... Thank you.

We are starting the Public Service Announcement (PSA) video now. Well, really brainstorming and such, but it is a start. I think it is going to be fun. I am working on getting all the communications set up, which is fitting I guess since I was a communications sergeant in the army LOL. Tomorrow we are planning on doing a chat meeting with all of our group members, so hopefully that will go well.

Non-graded Assignments???

Ok, I will be somewhat honest in this post. I personally think that making an assignment non-graded is good as long as it is not required. This week we had a non-graded assignment to make a video. It was to help us learn how to use video editing software and such.

That is a great idea, but what about us that already know how to use video editing software? It is non-graded but will be counted as a participation grade. If I'm going to be required to do the work, I would prefer to just get graded on it. I do the video recording, splicing, cutting, and burning for the wrestling team already. I feel pretty confident :P

Ok enough of that. Below is my video. It is a trailer for a Maplestory movie. The movie "Grinding: revenge of the strawberries" will never be made, but this is a trailer for it anyway. I did it for fun to show some of the other people that I play the game with. My students in class a few years ago go me to play Maplestory. It is a MMORPG that is simple but enjoyable. Since this assignment is not graded I didn't worry too much about the specs, but focused more on making it fun to watch.

Finished Photo Story

I completed my photo story today. Other than a few frustrating parts I enjoyed making it. One of the things I didn't like was how you had to divide up your script into different sections and record what you want each picture to have as it's narrative. I understand why PhotoStory 3 would do that, but at times it would have been easier to just read the whole script and then fit the pictures in the time line. That and the other thing that upset me was how I finished it and was publishing it...then the program crashed. So I lost all the narrative that I did because I didn't save it before the publish :(

But with no further ado, here is the finished product:

Ok, so call me crazy, but I am actually sort of enjoying this assignment of the photo story. So what does that mean? It means that we can actually make assignments as teachers that are fun and the students will enjoy... but we have to convince them to try first so they will find out that it is fun.

I managed to get all of my pictures picked out, now I just need to load them into my photo story and record the narration. I also need to figure out how to do the credits, or at least give credit to those that I took the pictures from.

I'm Back!!

It has been a few months since I have posted...basically since the last class we did that it was required. But once again we need to post for our new class. So you will see some posts here each week, at least for the next five weeks at a minimum! Most likely more. Hopefully we can use this as a place to join together and get through this course.