Being An Innovate Learner And Thinker, And Unlearning

I have had a lot of fun this semester, and I really enjoyed being innovate. I loved thinking about my Canva creation, I loved figuring out what I would do for my DS106 Daily Creates, and I loved being an innovator while writing blog posts and tweeting thoughts. Before this week, I was doing something I didn’t know that I was doing. I was being an innovator. I wasn’t only thinking about new ideas, I was actually coming up with new ideas and then sharing them with the online world.

“I believe that my abilities, intelligence, and talents can be developed, leading to the creation of new and better ideas.” -George Couros.

This semester in this class, I believe that we have all been innovators. We found innovative ways to learn and communicate.

I didn’t go to a traditional classroom and pay a teacher to teach me. Instead, I found my own ways to discover information. For example, with my Independent Learning Project (guitar). I found this app called Yousician, I found books with lots of chords to play, I got online and I found out different fingerpicking techniques, and I watched lot of other musicians play the guitar, and in their own, unique ways. Everybody in my class this semester has found their passions and discovered ways to be innovate in their search for knowledge.

“There is no curriculum for unlearning, and, of course, in many ways it’s simply learning to see things differently or to at least be open to it.” -Will Richardson

In this class, I unlearned that all schools are poorly run and holding students back. I’ve always felt bad for my friends because they hate school. But this semester, seeing all the great schools like the NorthStar and Sudbury Valley School, I’ve come to realize there are many innovative options that allow students to have freedom and choices as they explore the world and figure out what THEY are interested in doing. Children are natural learners, so it’s wonderful they have the opportunity to discover their passions. I have also unlearned the idea that passion is a constant thing. In other words, I’ve gone back and forth on guitar throughout this class — trying to decide whether I enjoy it or not. I guess now it’s just a choice I’ll make later on after more learning and practice.

I’m glad I’ve done a lot of unlearning this semester, but I’m sure that I will find some things that I should unlearn (or at least be more open to in the future).

I think that innovation is very important to learning. Unlearning is equally important, for both the teacher and the student. Thank you for reading, fellow classmates! I hope you enjoyed the semester as much as I did!

Learning And Teaching Metaphors

I hope you like my Digital Story about learning and teaching metaphors! 🙂

Guitar Has Opened Up My Musical Life

This year, throughout every week of ILP work, I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed guitar. But I do have to confess, I had many bumps on the road to actually being able to play anything. That was especially true of one specific week when I had a lot of trouble with guitar… That one week, I had fallen behind. It was already Saturday and I had barely done any of the assignments for the week. I almost felt like dropping out of the class… But luckily, I ended up sticking with it and I’m sure glad that I did. I quickly did all the assignments, and I played some guitar.

Guitar has helped me gain the passion to sing. So it’s been exciting to work on that goal. One important thing I’ve learned on this journey is that I am a music person! I had to listen to a lot of music, play a lot of music, and last but not least, SING a little music. All together, that made something click, and that’s what helped me realize that I am a musical person! I have always thought that I would be an author, or an athlete (especially with basketball or softball), but now  music has filled my ears, made me strive to learn and practice more, and it has made me very happy! I’m glad that I didn’t quit and that now I have another amazing career option floating around in my mind.

You want to know why I didn’t get to share a video of me playing a song? Because this semester, instead of quickly skipping through everything to songs and so on, I had to thoroughly take my time to learn everything I need to know before taking the next big leap for guitar. Part of that is because of that one week where I almost gave up. That week was tough and I honestly did not do as much as I wish I had. But at least now I know that I can continue learning even without being in this class! I can motivate myself to grow without it being an assignment. Singing while playing is coming along, slowly.

With that being said, the easy way to motivate myself was my goal of getting to a point where I could sing while playing. Just plain playing guitar was fun, but singing was better. And of course, when I would fall behind, I would feel very frustrated and passionate about finding more time for guitar. It was an interesting cycle.

The best part of my Independent Learning Project was being able to put my fingers and voice together and sing while playing! I am really glad that I chose the guitar for my Independent Learning Project. I have truly enjoyed the challenge and I hope to continue to be motivated to learn more.

The Right Resources

This week, I actually put off for a long time. Why, you ask? Because I pictured this week as just a smaller week. I was really disappointed that tweets weren’t required, because I was looking forward to doing them this week. But finally, today I used my laptop for something other than YouTube, so I checked out Canva and Piktochart. That’s when I realized that I should have gotten on earlier!

This week, it was really mostly focusing on how useful those little resources can be, if you can find them, that is. So not only did this week help me and my classmates in discovering how much these tools can do, but it helped us FIND some of those really cool websites for the first time!

I think that not only us, but future students, can really benefit from these unique, simple websites designed just to make our lives’ easier! (By the way, whoever came up with the ideas for these websites, are GENIUSES!)

While I was creating my own biography on Canva, time really flew by quickly. Before I knew it, Viola! I had finished, and it was beautiful! It probably went by so quickly because I really enjoy being creative. I think that is probably one of the best qualities of these resources. You can do just about anything you want with it, and that is really cool!

Before this week, I usually would go to the Windows app Paint to make something I needed. Or I’d use Picmonkey if I wanted to use pictures to make something. Those are still really great websites that I use a lot. However, it was really great to find even more options to experiment with!

In everyday life, I really enjoy Picmonkey because of all the options and formats as well, but especially because of the fact that it’s very simple, fast, and free (although my parents subscribe to the higher level royale options).

I like paint because it’s, of course, always there on most computer systems, even without Wi-Fi. But it does have it’s downsides: It’s very hard to use, and doesn’t have too many options.

I really liked Piktochart because it is also very unique, fun, easy to use, and easy to share with friends! It is very useful and handy for charts. Even though I may not need it much now, I probably will later on in life.

I also found Canva very fun, easy, and quick. All things that people look for in a tech tool!

Overall, I like all these websites and resources, and all that I learned this week!

 

 

 

 

 

How The Internet Inspires

I thought it would just be really fun to go over how the internet has really inspired me and my brothers to pursue various passions.

I guess I shall start with me! I’ve always been a fan of the Internet. Really, I have. As you might have read in one of my previous blog posts, the whole reason I wanted to learn to read and write was so that I could private message my dad at work, just like my mom did! I was very inspired to learn to read and write. So very quickly, I did!

Since from about the time I was 6, I wanted to be an author. A big part of that comes from the internet and all the reading options. For example, I have a kindle app on my iPod that I use (especially while on trips), and I really like having the option to explore all that is available. That helps me read a lot more. Then as I read, of course I feel the urge to write.

Probably the most helpful resource I have ever used to actually write my own stories is Google Docs. Google Docs has always been so easy to just pull up, and write a bit. Google Docs helps me grow my passion to write each and every day! I especially like that it saves so often in case my computer crashes.

Without the internet, I may not have become this passionate about writing…

My little brother, Brandon (like so many boys his age), loves video games. He loves to play on our Wii, on his iPod, and our computer. He began to get VERY interested in gaming around the age of 7. He liked playing them, then. But now, he’s 10, and he’s more interested in MAKING his own video games!! He watches videos on Youtube, reads about them, and finds new apps. Without the internet, Brandon may not have found his passion! Thank you, internet and technology!

My two other younger brothers, Brighton and Briston (8 and 5 years old) love internet and technology as much as Brandon and I do, but in a different way… They love building all sorts of worlds and playing around in Minecraft. We all know the game, and we have to admit, we’ve played it now and then. My brother, Briston, at the age of 5, has made amazing creations on Minecraft! So has Brighton! Just today, Briston showed me a Minecraft swimming pool that he had built all by himself.

Brighton loves getting onto Minecraft with my dad, my brother, or even me, to build together. Briston does, too. You know how this type of gaming inspires you? In all sorts of ways! In fact, it has inspired Brighton to consider being a carpenter when he grows up.

The Internet has inspired many of us in unique ways. I’m glad to have so many options to learn and grow!

Podcasts And Digital Storytelling

In this week of Digital Literacy, we learned a lot about Podcasts and Digital Storytelling. Earlier this semester, we learned about DS106, which is about Digital Storytelling. That’s one way I knew the word Digital Storytelling — and just about the only way, until this week.

I also know a little bit about podcasts. My dad is a podcasts kind of guy… Walking home from work, driving on long trips, and just about anywhere else, I’ll find him with his earbuds in, listening to whatever kind of podcast interests him. Seeing my dad that happy and that entertained made me feel a quick spark of wonder about podcasts…

And so then, another astounding week made its way to me and my classmates!

Digital Storytelling really made an impact on me this week — especially when I watched this amazing Ted Talk, with Emily Bailin:

This video really made me realize how powerful Digital Storytelling is! You digitally tell a story. I also watched Dear Sophie and really liked it. It was a good digital story, and made me of course want to make my own!!

I, lately, have been so excited about what I’m going to do next after the semester ends–I want to start my own blog, I want to share and express passions and interests, and I want to make more online and in-real-life friends!! But now, of course, I think I might just have to first try Digital Storytelling.

I might try what Emily Bailin and her class did. I’ll ask myself, “Where are you from?” Then I’d slowly, step by step, answer that question. I’d tell my story along with it, too, like Emily did. I know that I’d have a lot of fun with that! 😀

I also had a lot of fun learning about podcasts this week. I now know why my dad likes them so much!! They’re very addicting and can be quite educational!

I then ended up deciding to listen to the Brains On! What Makes Paint Stick podcast!

I think that the podcasts that Brains On! makes are just perfect in every way. They are interesting, easy to understand, creative, and funny! You can learn so much from just 20 minutes of one and they will capture children’s attention! I may have to start listening to one of their podcasts daily! I think it is just so cool that they interview the kids and answer the questions that everybody has. It’s a simple and educational format!

This week has been great. I really enjoyed it!!

 

 

Practice And Progress Leads To Success!

This week, I was completely ready and knew what I was going to do and learn about. As you might have read previously in my last blog post about my independent learning project, I decided to work more on the song Amazing Grace, and work on guitar chords. But not only that, but with the help of my parents I discovered some more resources.

I ended up finding an old guitar chords book! It was very handy. It has an amazing list of many, many chords that I enjoyed trying to play. Some of them were actually really difficult, but not TOO difficult… 😉

Also, my dad introduced me to this iPod/iPhone app, that has a list of chords, some guitar video lessons, a recorder to record your own songs, and then even a tuner! It’s really handy, and I’m glad I can begin using it, this week. It’s something that you can easily look at to check real quick, or something you can play with for hours! It’s called ChordBank, and so far I’m very pleased with it as I’m sure you can tell.

This week, besides the new book and app, I realized that really, there was nothing really new. I really just had to practice, practice, practice! It may be boring at times, but the benefits are… PROGRESS! So do the math: Practice + Progress = Success!

This week I especially focused on switching chords. I would slowly switch faster, and continue to correct any mistakes I’d make. It began to sound really good, like I’ve always wanted it to sound! It was hard, because I have a big guitar, and still tiny hands, but good effort made it work! 🙂

Amazing Grace has been sounding so much more beautiful and professional the more I’ve worked on it. It’s so cool when you hear a song, and you love it, and then YOU play the song and realize that you are the one creating the beautiful sound in the air!

This next week, I plan to really work hard and focus on starting to play chords even faster, and sing along, too. (Sing more, that is.) And of course, continue more on switching chords.

Now, it’s really just the same. I need to stay motivated, not get frustrated, and learn more and practice more. I can’t believe how much I’ve learned so far, and how much I’ve enjoyed it! Thanks for reading, and I hope you’re enjoying your independent learning project as well!

The Internet, The Distraction

The internet can be good. It can truly be good, if you use it the right way. But these days, the internet has few limits. The internet has anything and just about everything! The internet has friends, entertainment, places to shop, games, etc.

Internet, technology, entertainment, distractions, whatever you call it, is now life. When you first wake up, the first thing that comes to mind is to check your email, Twitter, FaceBook, Wishbone, or some other distraction! I already know this from experience…

I love the internet! I really do. When I was around the age of 1 or 2, Dora the Explorer, my favorite show, was life. It was sweet, I have to admit! But the more I grew, I became even more attached to technology and the internet. I depended on the internet for fun, for social activities, and for learning! Just the other day, I happened to be learning about fossil fuels during my Science lesson. You know, we’re going to run out soon. In a few hundred years, that will possibly be it. No more electricity, no more TV, no more iPods, no more phones if humankind doesn’t figure out a different long term form of energy! We’ll be history, literally. Anyway, this began a serious conversation in my household all because I had been playing around on the internet. This seems to happen more and more, these days.

I’ve always loved the idea of unplugging all my electronic devices. Even just for a day or two would be fun! I would be free to do anything I’d want to! These days, texts, emails, and videogames, take up so much of my time. That’s probably why I never got to unplugging my devices–because they wouldn’t let me. I kept getting distracted! That probably sounds like something an 8 year old would say if he didn’t do his chores, but it’s true. The internet can distract us from important parts of our life, many times. We have so many opportunities in life to connect with others completely without a screen in front of our faces, and we just keep missing them!!

If I ever got to unplugging every single device I’ve ever owned, I’d probably go outside, first. I’d probably take my brothers and sister to the park. Maybe have a picnic… I’d read books by myself, or to my brothers and sister! I’d play more guitar, and I’d probably even take daily naps! I’d study about some more things I’m interested in, like writing, poetry, music, and I’d probably want to play more sports.

Seeing all those open opportunities, I can’t help but just want to shut my devices off, and say no more! No more distractions from this lovely life we have…

After unplugging, after I then got back onto the internet, I’d use it definitely more mindfully. I already have the Moment app now, and I’m glad. I need to really see, and comprehend, just how much of my life is focused on my device. Much of my attentiveness has been focused on the internet. I’ve given up so much time and energy constantly…

This week was probably the best yet. I’ve learned so much this week, and I’m glad I did! This time, I didn’t use the internet to mess around, but to learn how and WHY I shouldn’t just mess around online — what types of activities I’m missing that help me to enjoy life. The TED talks, the articles, the experiments we found on the internet this week, they’ve all helped me see more clearly now. I need to ignore the distractions, and enjoy life, my family, and those priceless moments that we have! 😀

 

 

Amazing Grace, Chords, And Finger picking

This week, as you probably saw in the title, was pretty busy. I really didn’t realize how much I’ve learned this week until I just typed the title of this blog post!

The first thing I focused on this week was Amazing Grace. I was learning to play it and my mom helped me out with learning the chords. (Thanks mom! 😉 ) Amazing Grace really is just so beautiful. I loved the sound of the chords, and not only that, but I love singing along! I’m having a little trouble with switching chords, I must admit. However, besides that I’m doing great!

When I took a few classes on guitar, we didn’t talk much about chords. Then, before I knew it, the class ended and I barely knew what a chord was. There is so much to learn about guitar, that we couldn’t get to chords after a few weeks. My class and I (that was only about 5 or 6 other people) learned about playing songs without chords, but just the basic notes and how to play a few simple songs like Yankee Doodle and Mary Had A Little Lamb. We focused a lot on that, and that’s good. It’s better than focusing on several things. But now I am happy to be working on chords. And let me just say, it’s not as easy as professional guitarists make it look!! You have to move your fingers fast. And unfortunately I have small fingers, and a big guitar, so I will have to work extra harder and adjust. But then, not only do you have to move your fingers fast, but you have to remember WHERE to put them! That’s really hard, too…

At the very end of this week, I got kind of interested in different kinds of finger picking techniques. At first, I really wasn’t all that interested. I pictured it just as extra work, and like it wouldn’t make a difference… BOY, was I WRONG! I got on YouTube and watched a few people doing different finger picking techniques, and it just makes all the difference! It sounds like a whole different instrument…

I then tried one of them and not to brag, but I was pretty good at it!! I loved the whole new feeling, rather than just strumming the guitar. And to think that there are MANY different finger picking techniques excites me!

This next week, I’m really going to focus on chords, finger picking, and of course, Amazing Grace! This week was a lot of fun making this huge jump from single notes to whole chords!! 🙂

Surveys, Spams, Scams–Pretty Much The Same Thing

Surveys are often seen as an opportunity to make some quick cash in a minute or two. It’s easy! You just answer a few quick questions, and voila! Some quick cash! Except, YOU are the real loser in the end!

Surveys are taken by almost everyone who has a laptop, iPod, or some sort of device where such Wi-Fi and internet are possible. Everyone loves the fun of answering a few weird questions, and the excitement bubbling up inside of you knowing that you’re about to get a 500 dollar gift card to Walmart, or an iPhone 6, or a new iPad mini, and so on.

But then you wait. Then you wait even longer, and longer, and even more so! You keep waiting for this stupid survey to be over so that you can get the money, and be DONE!

A few people can actually do that, though. Take one of those surveys that is called the “1 Minute Survey,” and then end up spending an hour answering stupid questions, that will do nothing but help that company try to sell products to you, and your family!

This one person tried to do surveys for some extra pocket money, and did it for a week, and made 0.37 every hour. Press on me to read about it!

After wasting your time for hours, clicking buttons, when you could be doing something so much better, you might end up with 0.37. Yay. Imagine doing that for a week, an hour a day! You’d make it out with 2.59. You can now go buy a candy bar, before you start the next survey…

I used to love taking those surveys when I was younger… On Sims, for my iPod, I once spent an hour answering all of these weird questions so that I could get a few coins or something, and eventually quit. I had been lying around for an hour answering these stupid questions for a few points, and ended up getting nothing. There goes 60 minutes of my life I’ll never get back…

I also used to desperately want an iPhone, so when I was younger as well, I signed up for about a million iPhone contests, and every single one, I had to enter my email. Woopsies. So I got spammed after that. My email has been given out all over, and that’s why I had to start a whole new email. Great.

Surveys, Spams, Scams, are usually the same thing! Tricks, fools, and lies! I learned that the hard way. The internet can be great like we’ve been learning all about, but it can also be cruel.

We need to be more careful…