2 teach is 2 touch lives 4 ever

An Image a Week Project

2012-02-17T21:12:00.005-02:00

Ana Maria Menezes a friend and former co-worker in Brazil started this amazing project with the objective of having teachers and students around the world share a picture a week with a paragraph to go with the picture. So we can all learn more about other countries' cultures and customs while students have the chance to learn from each other and improve their language skills. Our school is very happy to participate in this project. Our English Language Learners ELL students, teachers and Spanish class are thrilled to be part of this project.

Please access the project and leave us some comments. We cannot wait to hear from you :-))

http://an-image-a-week.posterous.com/

Petition

2011-12-02T00:37:00.002-02:00

Hello everybody,

If you agree with me, please sign (online) my petition! Thank you in advance for your conscientiousness and don't forget to spread the word, I mean the link. I need 25,000 signatures so my petition can be seen by the White House administration.

Please, click here to sign http://wh.gov/jhR

My Petition:

WE PETITION THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION TO:

Save energy by inverting daylight savings time during winter.

As we now live in the 21st Century, we also need to think as 21st Century citizens and leave the preconceptions and misconceptions of the past behind. We need immediate attention to this petition! Benjamin Franklin in the 18th Century suggested at that time that it would make more sense for farmers to have more daylight in the morning so they could save on candles by rising earlier to use morning sunlight. But this is no longer part of our reality, with the invention of modern farming equipment this is obsolete today. We need to concentrate in saving the planet by economizing energy. If we had longer daylight in the evenings during winter, we would save an enormous amount of money and energy. Doesn't it make more sense to have longer evenings during winter in this era?

Created: Dec 01, 2011

Issues: Energy

Presentation about Brazil

2011-10-14T15:55:00.002-03:00

Jill Litwin a 4th Grade Teacher at Rutledge Hall kindly invited me to her classroom so her students could ask me some questions about Brazil. I put together a presentation about Brazilian food, currency, and other curiosities. See the ppt presentation below and also watch the video of the presentation. Have fun!

Brazil

More PowerPoint presentations from Camila Sousa

Untitled from Camila Sousa on Vimeo.

Great ppt presentation - Teachers' Day

2011-10-13T19:56:00.001-03:00

teachers day

More PowerPoint presentations from anamaria menezes

Institute Day Presentations

2011-09-26T19:44:00.001-03:00

Watch the Institute Day Presentations Here!

Watch the presentation with Ana Maria Menezes - Global Connections: Homework Assignments using web 2.0

Global Connections: Homework Assignments using Web 2.0 from Camila Sousa on Vimeo.

Watch the presentation about Google Sites

Google Sites from Camila Sousa on Vimeo.

Global Connections: Homework Assignments using Web 2.0

2011-09-24T12:04:00.002-03:00

The district I work at is very diverse. There are students and parents from all over the world so the school values global connections and thinks it is important for the community. We are a community who understands the importance of differentiation and we know that every individual learns differently from others.

I really like the picture below because it shows exactly what teachers used to do in the past by not considering the differences.

On our institute day on September 23rd I had to present two sessions of two hours each so for one of the sessions I invited my friend and former co-worker from Brazil, Ana Maria Menezes.

BIO: Ana Maria Menezes
EFL teacher and teacher trainer in Brazil. Head of the EDtech department at Cultura Inglesa Uberlândia. Helps teachers integrate technology with their classes by facilitating two online courses: “Cultura EDtech” and “Moving Beyond”. Writer of two books dedicated to language teachers: “Webtools applied to teaching” and “Developing the 4 Skills using Webtools”.

Ana Maria presented about Global Connections: Homework Assignments using Web 2.0. We had decided that for a lot of reasons we would be using WiZiQ to present but were prepared to use Skype as a backup in case things went wrong with the platform!

The presentation went very smoothly and the teachers in my school really enjoyed it. It was the first time that they had experienced an online presentation in this format. I had my computer set up facing them so Ana Maria could see the teachers and I had her presentation and her video projected to a big screen in the room.

Every time teachers wanted to talk to each other they would do it quietly, I think that they thought that Ana Maria could hear them, but the microfone was muted for most of the time that she was presenting and was given to us when we had group discussions or questions to ask.

I saw a lot of teacher with their iPads taking pictures of the screen that was projecting the presentation because they wanted to "save the slides" even though I told them that I would share the recording with them later. I also experienced a lot of shy teachers when they saw themselves on the camera.

The feedback of the presentation was very positive and I already have some teachers e-mailing me to send them the link to the recording, even though it is not available yet.

Let's put our hands together one more time to Ana Maria on the great job she did presenting to us! Thank you again Aninha.

QR Codes

2011-09-21T11:41:00.006-03:00

How have we been using QR Codes in our school?

We are piloting an iPad project for 6th graders in our district and they get to take home their iPads. I know right? Awesome...

We used QR Codes for the first week of school where they had to go in a scavanger hunt around the building to get to know it and also use their apps along the way. So the clues were:

LOCATION = Office
CLUE = We are here to help. Who are we?
DOCUMENTATION = "This is the Office - use your camera app to take a picture of yourselves outside"
App 2 Use = Camera

We have been using the i-nigma QR Code reader by 3GVision:

And also, QR Code reader and scanner by shopSavvy, Inc.

We used the QR Code Generators:

http://www.qrstuff.com/

http://qrcode.kaywa.com/

Here is my QR Code - Have fun creating yours!

Finding "APPiness"

2011-08-06T15:00:00.001-03:00

Thank you to Ana Maria at LifeFeast who invited me to write a guest post for her blog. I am very happy to be sharing with you all. Those who know me understand that my philosophy and motto is - Sharing is caring! :-)

I have been researching apps because the school district I work at is implementing a program that provides iPads for all 6th grade students and, believe it or not, they get to take their devices home!! I know, right?? These kids are so lucky!! I wish I was studying there. LOL I am the Technology Facilitator so I get to help them learn to use their iPads. It has been great hopping from site to site and finding some amazing educators' blogs, wikis and social media pages that review apps or just list them.

These are the free educational apps I have been collecting and sharing with the district staff I work with. I am very "APPy" to be sharing them with you all. My suggestions are based on schools I am currently working with.

Free Educational Apps

You can also find a list of educators' blogs with their app recommendation on my online bookmarking website.

The Reform Symposium

2011-07-27T20:19:00.002-03:00

Are you attending?

You really shouldn't miss out on this opportunity of attending a free online conference with teachers from all over the world!

Get your own badge at: The Reform Symposium Website!

Online Bookmarking Tools

2011-07-07T18:52:00.000-03:00

Online Bookmarking Tools

More PowerPoint presentations from Camila Sousa

Famous?

2011-07-06T20:32:00.000-03:00

I am on Between the Lines' post!

Am I famous? Nooooo.... Its just my picture my wonderful sister-in-law added on her blog along with her post. Check out her post!

I love SOCIAL MEDIA!!

2011-06-27T22:49:00.000-03:00

I was checking my social media network on twitter and facebook and came across this information:

"US friends beware: creepiest website ever: Spokeo.com . New online "USA" phone book w/personal information: pics you've posted on FB or web, your approx credit score, home value, income, age, etc. You can remove yourself by searching for yourself on their site, copying the URL of your page, then go to the bottom of the page and click on Privacy button to remove yourself. Copy & repost so your US FB friends are aware."

Within seconds a lot of friends and followers read this information and "spread the word" for their network friends. That's the power of social media and I love it.

Reaching APPiness!!

2011-06-26T21:05:00.000-03:00

Free apps based on subject areas

More PowerPoint presentations from Camila Sousa

Amazing App

2011-06-26T20:18:00.000-03:00

This is an amazing app that I came across and it is free but don't know if it will become paid so go ahead and get yours!

ShowMe app

Take a look at my demo:

http://www.showmeapp.com/

Apple Tune-in Series: Technology Seminars for Educations and IT Leaders 5.2 - 7.29

2011-06-19T19:03:00.000-03:00

The Tune-in Series is a collection of free webinars focused on introducing educators and IT leaders to the capabilities of Apple technology in education.

How to register:

Register for the whole series or just for a single topic. Join any day from May 2 to July 29, 2011.

•Monday http://edseminars.apple.com/event/4298
•Tuesday http://edseminars.apple.com/event/4299
•Wednesday http://edseminars.apple.com/event/4300
•Thursday http://edseminars.apple.com/event/4301
•Friday http://edseminars.apple.com/event/4303

Answergarden: Hey there! Who are you visiting my blog?...

2011-05-26T17:53:00.001-03:00

Hey there! Who are you visiting my blog?... at AnswerGarden.ch.

Digital Storytelling

2011-05-25T22:14:00.000-03:00

Useful apps and web 2.0 tools to use with our students.

digital storytelling

More PowerPoint presentations from Camila Sousa

Coincidence?

2011-05-20T15:14:00.000-03:00

A friend sent me an e-mail with these pictures. What do you think?

HeyWire

2011-05-19T15:45:00.002-03:00

HeyWire - Text for free around the world via kwout

Diigo - My Online Bookmarking

2011-05-17T12:21:00.000-03:00

My Online Bookmarking

My online portfolio

2011-05-13T15:32:00.007-03:00

Learn it in 5

2011-05-09T18:28:00.003-03:00

Learn It In 5 - Home via kwout

What is Web 2.0? Learn it in 5 minutes or less

At Learn it in 5, you'll learn what is Web 2.0, and strategies for using Web 2.0 technology in the digital classroom - all in 5 minutes or less.

Learn it in 5 is a powerful library of how-to videos, produced by technology teachers, for the purpose of helping teachers and students create classroom strategies for today's 21st century's digital classroom. These step-by-step how-to videos walk teachers through Web 2.0 technology, demonstrating how to use Web 2.0 applications like blogs, social networks, podcasts, interactive videos, wikis, slide sharing and much more.

Happy Mother's day!!

2011-05-08T21:50:00.002-03:00

Prezi

2011-05-08T13:59:00.005-03:00

Prezi - The Zooming Presentation Editor via kwout

Saint Patrick's Day!!

2011-03-15T23:09:00.000-03:00

Before we came to Chicago the only thing people told us not to miss was the Chicago river dyed green during the Saint Patrick's Day Celebration. Here it is so you all won't miss seeing it too. LOL!!

Blizzard of 2011

2011-02-01T22:43:00.001-02:00

Chicago February, 01st 2011

Chicago February, 02nd 2011

Orglamix

2011-01-28T00:50:00.000-02:00

My sister-in-law does the PR for Orglamix so I decided to try their organic make-up. I am a make-up lover and do not like everything; I am very picky. I got it in the mail today and absolutely loved the colors I got. The website even suggested the best colors of eye shadows for the color of my eyes, I thought it was awesome!! The company is very professional and I really enjoyed the fact the owner answered some questions I had. I love the package it came in which was very girlie and fun! I have to say that it arrived pretty quick as well.

Here are the pictures of the products I got in the mail today. Hope you all enjoy it as I did :-))

Culture is a funny thing!!

2011-01-25T00:02:00.000-02:00

Growing up in Brazil I always remember going to parties or birthdays parties and eating hot dog sausages, my mom would chop them up and put on the table and we would get them with toothpicks it was awesome eating those. The way I have seen them in parties in Brazil, the hot dog sausages are taken right out of the package, chopped up and sometimes we would see them in a plate with chopped cheese and sometimes with olives or even both. Fun memories :-))

Last week I was happily in the kitchen keeping my husband company while he was cooking some hot dog sausages for himself while I was waiting for my soup to be ready then he chopped the hot dog sausages and I just grabbed one and put in my mouth as I would do in Brazil!! He was disgusted by it.... He shouted Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo...... It's uncooked DO NOT EAT THOSE!!!! and I kept eating them and I even grabbed another one.... He was soooooo worried about me, he advised I was going to be sick for doing it and I explained that if I did not die until today it is not going to be now that I would because I have been doing that since childhood....LOL!! But he kept his concern to himself and did not want to kiss me afraid of the "uncooked" hot dog sausage.... Then he read the package and it attested that those were cooked indeed so he gave up on preventing me from eating them but he would not try!!

Culture is indeed a funny thing :-))

New Year's fireworks in Chicago!!

2011-01-01T15:40:00.002-02:00

Navy Pier's fireworks.

Chicago

Wearing white to bring a lot of peace in 2011!!

Happy New Year!!

2010-12-31T16:42:00.001-02:00

This is Talking Tom from the app Store! Enjoy the message.

We've gotta love technology!!

2010-12-26T19:35:00.001-02:00

Even though we could not be with family this Christmas "we were there"!!

Before

After

We used Paint.net to include ourselves in the picture!! Isn't technology great??

Merry Christmas!!

2010-12-25T18:15:00.000-02:00

Merry Christmas from the Leaning Tower, from us to you :-)))

Camila

Ryan

Twitterfeed

2010-11-30T21:52:00.000-02:00

A great way to synchronize your blog with twitter or Facebook. Twitterfeed is simple and easy to use, all you have to do is to create your free account and your feed then you will be ready to share anything you want with your friends and family.

Twilk

2010-11-30T21:29:00.002-02:00

With Twilk you can have the pictures of your twitter followers in your background. Check it out!

Bit.ly

2010-11-30T20:53:00.003-02:00

bit.ly is a utility that allows users to shorten a long URL, share it, and then track the resulting usage. It is a great web tool to use for twitter posts because of the 140 characters limits.

Kwout

2010-11-30T20:32:00.003-02:00

"kwout" is a way you quote a part of a web page as an image with an image map.

Check it out!

2 teach is 2 touch lives 4 ever via kwout

Youblisher.com

2010-11-30T20:19:00.001-02:00

Youblisher makes your PDF documents flippable. It is free and easy to use, the only thing you have to do is to create your account.

It is a wonderful web tool, check it out.

Fun, fun, fun!! Family time

2010-11-29T23:18:00.000-02:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving time with our family :-))

Check it out!!

Visiting Cunhadinha (She lives in such a wonderful place, glad to visit her)

:-)

Enjoying the beautiful view in Richmond with Cunhadinha!

Beautiful family :-))

Wonderful breakfast by sogro and sogra...

...Pluto came to our breakfast!

Jurassic Dinosaur came as well!

Mickey was there!

A yummy vulcano erupted in the morning!!

Gingerbread man SLASH snowman came to our feast :-)

Pretending to know how to play pool

And we've got some presents!! Early Xmas as we will be in Brazil at that time.

Wait a minute!! That's our pose...LOL

This is the most wonderful time of the year, when we get to see our family

:-)

Thanksgiving!!

2010-11-23T13:37:00.002-02:00

Glitter Graphics

English 2.0 - English Attack

2010-11-19T19:26:00.001-02:00

A fun way to learn English! Access English Attack and start playing and learning. It will only take you 5 seconds to create your FREE account! Have fun.

Sticky Notes

2010-11-18T14:38:00.001-02:00

Another useful tool that I aways use is the Sticky Notes from Windows 7!

Already as necessary as pencils and paper clips, Sticky Notes just got more useful. In Windows 7, you can format a note’s text, change its color with a right click, and flip through notes.

Use Snipping Tool to capture screen shots

2010-11-16T17:39:00.000-02:00

This is a very useful tool and I use it all the time to capture images online or from my computer. It is a tool that comes with windows 7! You can use Snipping Tool to capture a screen shot, or snip, of any object on your screen, and then annotate, save, or share the image.

What a neat number!

2010-11-16T17:21:00.000-02:00

Today I came to my blog and checked the counter and realized that 14444 visitors have come to read my blog since it was created. Thank you all for visiting, dropping by and leaving comments.

:-))

Recipe

2010-11-15T18:38:00.000-02:00

Porcupine Balls

Recipe by Paula Deen - yummy!!

Using Track Changes

2010-11-10T17:54:00.003-02:00

Recipe

2010-11-10T16:44:00.000-02:00

Sandra Lee's recipe = BEEF NEGIMAKI

This one my husband loved.... or at least he told me so...LOL!!

Recipe

2010-11-09T17:12:00.000-02:00

Mingau de Milho Verde or Brazilian Style Creamed Corn (with cinnamon) also called Curau in the northeast.

I decided to surprise my husband with this Brazilian dessert recipe that I love, I hope he likes it too, he has never tried it before so let's hope for the best!! :-)

The book I am reading

2010-11-04T19:33:00.000-02:00

This is the book I am reading. To know more about the author click here.

Christmas time!!

2010-11-02T19:15:00.003-02:00

I love Christmas time, the houses are so beautiful decorated, I love driving around the city with my husband just to see people's yard and creativity!

Now that Halloween is gone I asked my husband to help me decorate our apartment with Chistmas decoration he said it was very early for that so I had to twist his arms and beg for it but a kiss did it (LOL)!

As we will be travelling during Thanksgiving and Christmas we want to enjoy the decoration earlier for ourselves. Hope you all enjoy it too.

Jack is trying to help Santa because he got stuck coming down our "chimney". LOL

Jack is guarding Santa and his bag of presents!

If you get a magnifing glass you will see on the top left corner our Yoda Santa (bobble head)!

Our beautiful Christmas tree!

Happy Halloween!!

2010-10-31T16:27:00.001-02:00

Glitter Graphics

Befunky

2010-10-29T15:27:00.000-02:00

Love the photo effects that befunky has!! Check it out :-))

OUR STORY... Love this video!

2010-10-25T19:40:00.000-02:00

What's the Capital of Illinois?

2010-10-22T19:24:00.000-02:00

Do you know?

What is the capital of Illinois?

A) Chicago
B) Aurora
C) Madison
D) None of the above

Answer:

D) None of the above

The capital of Illinois is Springfield

Cute Video!

2010-10-10T19:26:00.002-03:00

This is a cute video that I came across, hope you all like it.

My name is a lot of times MISPRONOUNCED!

2010-09-26T21:34:00.000-03:00

My name is not a common American name, it is an ordinary Brazilian name, I wish I could say it was a special one, but oh well!

For those who think it is difficult to say it because the vowels in Portuguese have different sounds than the ones in English, so here it is a simple way to say my name!

How to pronounce it phonetically :-)

K - A - M - E - E - L - A

What a lovely surprise!

2010-09-02T21:59:00.000-03:00

I came home today and got a very nice surprise! A pretty necklace and earrings came in the mail today. And these wonderful B'day cards with drawings made by lovely Emma and Hailey, our nieces.

THANK YOU FOR THE WONDERFUL SURPRISE!

Online Course

2010-08-08T17:35:00.001-03:00

I was invited to take an online course to give my input and feedback on the activities. I have been trying some amazing online webtools that I really recommend giving a try!

The task of week number 11 was to use Voxopop. Want to participate on my thread? Join the discussion:

http://www.voxopop.com/topic/f5ab7ea9-90b3-4aad-8015-908c19182847

Hope to hear from you there!

Tutorial on how to sign up for Diigo

2010-07-28T22:37:00.002-03:00

Tutorial on how to sign up for Diigo - an online bookmarking tool

Our first guests in Chicago

2010-07-14T22:16:00.002-03:00

World Cup

2010-06-28T14:48:00.000-03:00

As our tv is in a box and we only have an air mattress and our computers in the apartment. My mother-in-law gave me the website so I can watch the game on the computer!

Brazil vs. Chile - Click to watch the game online and live

Chicago

2010-06-20T18:23:00.002-03:00

Dear fellow readers,

It will be a while until I start writing and posting on my blog again because we are on the process of packing! We are moving to:

Glitter Graphics

We do not know a whole lot about the city so if you do know and have some input to give us, please write and let us know of any cool places to go, things to see and things we cannot miss while living there.

Thank you for your help,

Between the Lines

2010-06-14T17:00:00.002-03:00

Kel at BetweenTheLines-Kel has asked me to write a guest post for her blog about an online course I am taking that I really recommend. I have been learning about a "new" blogging platform Posterous. Kel, thanks for the opportunity!

To read more access Between The Lines:

How to post a banner on your blog

2010-06-12T20:52:00.003-03:00

I found these two websites that are great to create banners and insert them in your website. Take a look at the possibilities.

Using My banner maker:

Copy this code to your website to display this banner!

There are numerous possibiliteis using my banner maker. You have the option of uploading a picture, chose the picture for the backgroud and so on and so forth.

I have recorded how to insert your banner using Posterous. Watch:

Using Free banner maker:

Tools to add effects to your pictures!

2010-06-09T20:34:00.004-03:00

Hello there,

Today I am going to talk about some fun websites available to add effects to your pictures.

The first one that I love is FaceinHole. You can do pretty much anything to your face, you can turn yourself into a princess, you can be a piece of art among others. Give it a try, I recommend it.

Another great fun one is Zwinky but instead of inserting your picture you can create characters that look like yourself.

There is also Dumpr that adds some very funny features to your pictures. I recommend checking it out. There is no need to become a member or to sign up. This was my first attempt at exploring this website.

Dumpr - Photo Fun

You can add some effects with your pictures at Photofunia. Take a look at my attempt at adding some motion to my picture.

You can use Loogix to create some fun pictures. You can even use some animation in your picture. I created a gif. using my picture.

Fotoline does not offer a lot of things but the water effect that it brings is very cool. Check it out:

Add this effect to your own photos

Befunky has some great features to add to your pictures. There are many options to share your picture, you can upload to your computer, get the embed code for certain websites but blogger is not on their list! I saved on my desktop and then pasted it here. Have fun trying out all of these fun tools.

Love this website that I just found through another teacher's website - Funny Pho.To it has the same effects as the aboves but with some different video, movement picture effects as well. Feel free to explore it.

Online Course

2010-05-31T20:50:00.000-03:00

I am taking an online course called EdTech and everything I have been learning I will be posting there so if you want to take a look click on my personal page - Camila Sousa at Posterous!

Shelfari Online Bookshelf

2010-05-23T12:49:00.001-03:00

Shelfari:

Welcome to Shelfari! Read, Share, Explore! - Shelfari via kwout

Shelfari: Book reviews on your book blog

My online bookshelf:

Shelfari: Book reviews on your book blog

Mixbook

2010-05-23T11:53:00.002-03:00

Trying out Mixbook:

Photo Books, Online Scrapbooking, School Yearbooks via kwout

Mixbook

This is my first attempt using mixbook. Take a look at our wonderful classroom and quality students!

View Sample Photo Books
Create your own Photo Book

Free Online Radios and Song Stations

2010-05-20T20:28:00.001-03:00

Live 365 is the first option you have for radio and you can also choose your station by genre. You do not need a subscription to listen to the stations but you also have the option of subscribing which is the VIP membership area.

Another option to listen to some more free online songs is the Pandora radio station. It is pretty cool because it is a personalized kind of radio where you can choose your favorite songs or artists you are interested in and it will remember your settings so every time you log in you can just click on the stations you like listening to although you have to sign up for it.

StereoMood is another option that the conception of listening to songs that has to do with your mood is pretty interesting! Their motto is "behind every song there's always an emotion". You have the option to subscribe but you don't have to you are able to listen to their music selection without it.

Blip.fm gives you the option of inviting your friends to listen to the songs you like listening to. You need a subscription to be a member although it is totally free.

MixPod is a great way of adding song to your blog and the most facinating thing is that you can customize your own by chosing the skin, color and the songs you enjoy. You will have to create an account in order to get the code to embed your cool song station in your blog.

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

Tandem Language Learning

2010-05-19T18:57:00.001-03:00

A couple weeks ago a friend of mine Sara, who is from Colombia and is here in the U.S.A because her husband is a VIF (Visiting International) teacher, proposed that I teach English to her as I wanted to learn Spanish, so we could trade and teach each other. I thought that the idea was amazing as we did not have to drive far distances to meet as she lives 30 minutes away from me so we will be doing tandem!!

Tandem language learning is a method of language learning based on mutual language exchange between tandem partners.

We decided to use Skype and I created an online learning platform using wetpaint

Favorite APPs!!

2010-05-10T22:17:00.006-03:00

One of my favorite applications are Face in Hole and Online Banner Maker neither of them need a registration and are pretty simple to use. The first app. all you have to do is to choose a frame to put your face in the hole and then you have the options of downloading, use the webcam to take a picture or use one from facebook. It is pretty simple and the results are very funny!! The second one you can pick a theme, background, style of the letter and "voila" just click preview banner and you will have an amazing "piece of art".

These are my attempts at trying the web tools:

Happy Mother's Day!

2010-05-05T16:50:00.003-03:00

Mother's Day is celebrated on various days in many parts of the world, Brazil and United States celebrate this date on the same day!

Occurrence: Second Sunday of May

Dates: May 10, 2009 - May 9, 2010 - May 8, 2011

ImageChef.com Poetry Blender

Teacher's Appreciation Week!

2010-05-05T16:26:00.006-03:00

To teachers:

Video: Don't do this to your students

2010-05-01T20:25:00.002-03:00

This video which I've learned about via Carla Arena, shows exactly what is disconnection, lack of a motivating environment, feeling of isolation, not a teacher presence to guide, facilitate the learning process. Don't Do This to your Students!

AWARD

2010-04-25T19:12:00.017-03:00

Thank you to Ana Maria Menezes that gave my blog an award and considered that "It's worth keeping an eye on this blog"

The chosen blog has to copy the picture, with a link to the blog from which it has received the award . Then write ten more links to the blogs which are well worth a visit.

Spread the wealth and share the websites that you think are worth paying a visit:

http://www.lostintechnology.com/ = I really like to follow this blog because Kyle Judkins has interesting and useful posts.
http://2mgems.blogspot.com/ = Great classroom website. Definitely worth a visit.
http://loftonclass.edublogs.org/ = Mrs. Lofton's classroom blog. Full of great ideas check it out.
http://www.betweenthelines-kel.com/ = Very cute blog and Kelly Malinowski has just got her own domain.
http://mysite.verizon.net/vze128k04/index.htm = Mr. Lind is a great teacher that wrote wonderful books to help children decoding/ read.
http://culturainglesaudi.blogspot.com/ = I love to follow Ana Maria's creativity.
http://therangels07.blogspot.com/ = I like to follow Katelyn Rangel's cute blog.
My Classroom Website = Cheesy but worth taking a look :-)
http://learning-with-computers.blogspot.com/ = I always check this website for ideas. Learning With Computer group is busy so the website has older posts but it's worth checking.
http://scrapoa.blogspot.com/ = If you like scrapbooking you will find great ideas here.

Interview

2010-04-20T22:08:00.008-03:00

A teacher from Brazil and I had an idea of integrating technology to connect our students so my students asked some questions to her students... We can't wait for the answers!! :-))

Take a listen!

Here are their answers. Thank you for the answers! Great job. Special thanks to Ana Maria Menezes :-)

Trying out Scrapblog

2010-04-20T21:12:00.010-03:00

This is an amazing web tool that I came across. It is easy and very simple to use! I decided to give it a shot and try it out. There are many features that we are able to incorporate in our presentation but I did not have the creativity to add at this time. Tools such as the ability to make use of different frames, add videos or voice, among others.

Check out my second attempt of the scrapblog tool:

If you can't see the scrapblog above Click Here.

Trying Tagxedo

2010-04-18T11:49:00.002-03:00

TAGXEDO This is a great web tool. Thanks to Ana Maria Menezes again for showing us this amazing tool with loads of possibilities!

Check Mark with words from my classroom blog (Sudley E.S.) The only down side I have noticed is that when you create the word cloud the words move and as you put your cursor on them they get bigger. However when you save your work this feature is lost so the possibility of movement is not shown! :-(
It does not mean it is not neat though!

Best of the Web Nominee!

2010-04-14T21:25:00.001-03:00

Thank you everyone for your support and votes :-) We are in... Our classroom website has a chance to win in one of the three categories below:

■Top 21st Century Community

Highlights teachers using the Classroom Page as a true, centralized communication hub. Judges will look at Student Participation Reports and effective and consistent use of all available FusionTools including: Multimedia Blogs, Message Center, Homework Drop Box, etc.

■Most Creative Integration with Other Teaching Tools

The winners of this award will show mastery and successful integration of external media into class projects, discussions, etc. External media includes Smart Boards, iPods, video cameras, Kindles, eReaders, etc.

■Most Innovative Use of Web 2.0

Who is using SchoolFusion in ways we haven’t imagined? The winners of this award will show the most innovative usage of our Web 2.0 tools as a teaching method.

Click here to see our Classroom Poster!

The Phantom of the Opera

2010-04-13T20:42:00.000-03:00

My husband and I love going to plays and we enjoy doing something special for our b'days. Last year for my birthday we went to New York to watch the Lion King at Broadway. It was an amazing play and it was extra special because it was my husband's first time in NY. We are always working so hard that when we have the oportunity we like to treat ourselves to theaters, plays, shows, circus, etc.
This year for my husband's birthday we are going to Baltimore to watch The Phantom of the Opera. Have you ever gone to a theater to watch this play? What do you think of it?

The Crazy Professor Reading Game!

2010-04-09T17:22:00.003-03:00

A friend of mine Ana Maria Menezes sent me this video by e-mail. The title is "The Crazy Profesor Reading Game." It is a great video showing how to engage your students in reading activities! Enjoy watching it :-)

If you haven't already NOMINATE our classroom now!

2010-04-03T08:47:00.008-03:00

Dear fellow readers of 2 teach is 2 touch lives 4 ever,

The SchoolFusion of Prince William County webpage is giving all the teachers the oportunity to win a prize for their Classroom Page.

Anyone can nominate a Classroom Page by simply clicking on the Best of the Web icon found at the top of every Classroom Page. Nominations are open from April 1-9, 2010. You can help my school webpage and our classroom to win the prize by simply clicking on the word NOMINATE and giving us your help! :-)

It is very easy! Just by clicking on the word nominate bellow you will access our school webpage (the picture shows our webpage and on the top right where you can see an arrow it is where you should click if you would like to give us your vote). Thank you for all your help and support!

Nominate our Classrom Page Now!

NOMINATE

Check out the Prizes if our classroom webpage wins :-)

The owner of each winning Classroom Page will receive the following:

Flip Mino Camera ($150 value!)
Plaque with your name and winning category for you to keep!
$20 gift card to Barnes & Noble!
A free webinar for your school!

The 39 Steps

2010-03-30T00:02:00.001-03:00

This is a play that my husband and I recommend! It was very funny and entertaining. We went to the Warner theater to watch it in Washington D.C. If you don't have plans for your spring break we really recommend going.

What I miss the most about EASTER!!

2010-03-26T20:08:00.000-03:00

What I miss the most about EASTER in Brazil are the chocolate eggs hanging from the ceiling in the supermarkets!!

Yummy!! My favorite one is... humm it is a tough one I LOVE chocolate and like them all but this one is my favorite.

2010-03-22T17:45:00.000-03:00

2 teach + 2 touch lives = 4 ever

We are "popular" 13.000 visitors! Wow... Thanks everyone for dropping by :-)

Creativity!

2010-03-18T18:08:00.002-03:00

People are so creative with their car licence plates. My husband and I are always reading them and commenting about them while waiting for green in the traffic lights. We have seen some crazy ones and some cute ones as well! No, we do not have any sentences in our licence plates.We have the boring regular ones. :-(
Have you ever seen any good ones that you would like to share?

Friendship!

2010-03-18T17:58:00.000-03:00

"Friendship isn't about who you have known the longest

It's about those who came and never left your side ...."

Countdown!

2010-03-14T17:26:00.017-03:00

Countdown = March 15th, 2010

To read more about it click below.

The question that we are dying to know the answer to!!

Is the Permanent residency card really GREEN??

Well in three weeks we will know and the mystery will be solved (LOL)

:-)

Funny Joke!

2010-03-10T17:57:00.004-03:00

I love jokes. Nothing against blonds (hey I am blond) but this one is really funny!

I received an e-mail from a co-worker Lora Doll and she sent me this funny joke. Enjoy!

Title of the joke: Password

During a recent password audit, it was found that a blonde was using the following password:

"MickeyMinniePlutoHueyLouieDeweyDonaldGoofySacramento"

When asked why she had such a long password, she said:

She was told that it had to be at least 8 characters long and include at least one capital.

LOL.... hahhaha... Very Funny! Thanks Lora.

Award!

2010-03-02T18:59:00.003-03:00

I am speechless... I found out that my blog was nominated by Kelly at Between the Lines to win two awards!
Beautiful blogger and Sunshine Award! I never thought that my blog was worth anything mainly because I do not spend the time I wanted to post and keep it updated! Thank you, thank you, thank you!! I am flabbergasted or should I say that my flabber is very gasted? LOL... I am thrilled!

Here are the rules:

1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award and insert a link to their blog.

2. Pass on the award to 5-10 other bloggers who you recently discovered and think are great!

3. Contact the other bloggers and let them know they have been chosen for this award.

4. Say 7 things about yourself.

Here they are, 7 things about me...

1. I am an ESOL Teacher.

2. I love technology! Specially the Web 2.0

3. I love travelling, knowing cultures and speaking languages.

4. I got married twice (with the same wonderful man) once in Brazil and the other in the U.S.A!

5. I have a Masters in Linguistics.

6. Believe it or not - I have two cats.

7. I LOVE chocolate.

To keep the award going, I’ve picked 6 wonderful blogs that I have recently discovered. Good job ladies! Keep up the good work!

* Cultura Inglesa Online news
* Scrap.poa
* Rita's Posterous
* Karen's Posterous
* Mala Cheia
* Words and Ideas

I hope you all enjoy reading these blogs as much as I did! :-)

Scrapbooking = Scrap.poa

2010-03-01T18:57:00.003-03:00

My Friend Marina is an artist :-)

She gave me some scrapbooking lessons and I made some wonderful things! I had never heard about scrapbooking before her! Thanks for introducing me Marina!

Here are some of the things I have learned with her. She also made us our wedding signature scrapbook that is so cute!

Valentine's Day in the U.S.A = February 14th

2010-02-13T14:05:00.000-02:00

February, 14th 2010
Happy Valentine's Day!

How romantic are you? Are you the type that send flowers to her or surprise him?

Great Recipe

2010-02-10T16:58:00.001-02:00

Brigadeiro
A well known Brazilian candy!

Are you interested about the topic? Read more!

My sister-in-law has posted a recipe on her blog that I love!
Those who know me understand that my "fuel" is chocolate. LOL! This is one of my favorite candies.

Click here and enjoy the mouthwatering recipe that she has posted! Thank you Kelly :-)

Online Course that I recommend!

2010-02-08T14:12:00.009-02:00

If you are into technology like me and enjoy the web 2.0 you would not like to miss this oportunity!

Ana Maria Menezes is a great friend of mine and also an EFL teacher in Brazil with great ideas in how to use internet and all the technologies available to teach. She is the second runner up to the Best Educational tech and support blog!

Here is her glogster advertising her course. I strongly recommend if you have time to do it!

I participated in her online training this weekend and we learned a lot with her expertise in the use of EDMODO.
You can watch the video of the two sessions we participated in.
* Session 1
* Session 2

Movie

2010-02-03T22:13:00.005-02:00

Movie - Staring Ryan and Camila! LOL...
We wish we had a garage specially on these snow days so we don't have to shovel all the snow off our cars!
:-(

I found the link to this website thrugh Ana Maria Menezes' work website. Ana Maria is a good friend of mine that has wonderful ideas to use technology in class! I decided to give it a try and create my very first "movie". Thanks for the tip Aninha.

Photo Booth Pictures

2010-01-31T22:18:00.003-02:00

"La Photo Cabine" is really cute! Even though it is in French it is easy to use. When you access the site just click on the curtains to enter the Booth and then allow your camera to work with their website and then click on the red button on the right corner.

Have fun! :-))

Disney!

2010-01-24T22:51:00.001-02:00

Elmo

2010-01-16T01:13:00.004-02:00

When I heard that my school was about to by some Elmos for the teachers I was wondering if they would buy those "dolls" from sesame street so we could use as props for reading theaters as well as realia. LOL! But all they were talking about was this amazing tool for teaching.

Teachers tool = Digital Visual Presenter "document camera"

With Elmo you can simply put your book or any paper on this pad shown above and it will project it to the wall or to your screen. Isn't it AMAZING?

I use it for:

Word Sort
Read-Alouds
Present new vocabulary
Sight Words

A cute video

2010-01-12T22:47:00.004-02:00

This video is a lot of fun and we can use with our students for descriptions and ask questions such as what is she doing? What is happening in the video? We can also pause and ask for predictions.
It's worth watching!

Interview with Ana Maria Menezes

2010-01-10T17:34:00.007-02:00

Breast Cancer Awarness

It was a pleasure to interview Ana Maria Menezes.

She clarified a lot of things about cancer for us. Enjoy watching her positive outlook on life.

Thank you Popi for your generosity!

2010-01-05T22:19:00.009-02:00

I used glogster for educators for this presentation because in my school the glogster page in blocked. If in your school is the same case here is an option.