Happy New Year

It is the 31st December, 2009. I am living through the last hours of this year, and then... everything starts again?... or just goes on ... because nothing has stopped?
I love what Frost once said:

In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.
/Robert Frost/

Make a snowflake!

This is the right time to learn how to cut your own virtual snowflake.
You just need to go to the site which presents a tool for doing it.
Here are some examples of what you can make. 
Make a flake

A new tool KUBBU

I just found an amazing and extremely practical tool for making online activities, exercises, quizzes, puzzles etc called KUBBU - a strange name (meaning nothing) but don't be put off by it.
It is free, you only have to register. I tried it out and was delighted. Something new at last!

Follow this link to see what you can create with this tool - 
http://www.kubbu.com/a1/2498_jobs_and_professions

Web application WALLOVERS

I just discovered a new web application - online pattern painting Wallovers which are symmetrical designs painted on a virtual wall - and got carried away like a kid. It is a tool for drawing patterns in the frame.

One drawback is its very limited choice of colours. I played with the tool tonight and see what I got.

You will need Shockwave player.

Worksheet - Englishman in Japan

Reading task about an Englishman in Japan. Students have to put the events in order. It is good for teaching cultural differences and the topic of culture shock.
There is KEY at the bottom of the page, so if you give this task to your students, don't forget to remove the answers.

Another online task

Here is another task which I made for teaching Present Continuous. It contains a video (a popular song by Fool's Garden) so you will need loudspeakers. Enjoy!
TASK 2

Halloween

˙ƃuısınƃ oƃ llıʇs uǝɹplıɥɔ puɐlʇoɔs puɐ puɐlǝɹı ɟo sʇɹɐd ǝɯos uı ˙uǝʌıƃ sı ʇɐǝɹʇ ou ɟı ʎʇɹǝdoɹd ɹıǝɥʇ ɹo sɹǝuʍoǝɯoɥ ǝɥʇ uo ɟǝıɥɔsıɯ ɯɹoɟɹǝd oʇ ʇɐǝɹɥʇ (ǝlpı ʎlʇsoɯ) ɐ oʇ sɹǝɟǝɹ ,,ʞɔıɹʇ,, pɹoʍ ǝɥʇ ,,¿ʇɐǝɹʇ ɹo ʞɔıɹʇ,, 'uoıʇsǝnb ǝɥʇ ɥʇıʍ 'ʎǝuoɯ sǝɯıʇǝɯos ɹo ʎpuɐɔ sɐ ɥɔns sʇɐǝɹʇ ɹoɟ ƃuıʞsɐ 'ǝsnoɥ oʇ ǝsnoɥ ɯoɹɟ ǝɯnʇsoɔ uı oƃ uǝɹplıɥɔ ˙uǝǝʍollɐɥ uo uǝɹplıɥɔ ɹoɟ uoıʇɐɹqǝlǝɔ ʎɹɐɯoʇsnɔ ɐ sı ƃuıʇɐǝɹʇ-ɹo-ʞɔıɹʇ

Could you read this? Did you think it was Arabic?
Take a closer look. It is just a good-bye from Halloween!
Here is a 'normal' version of the text. (If you got interested in how I did it, here is the link to a very simple tool - Flip Text.)

Trick-or-treating is a customary celebration for children on Halloween. Children go in costumes from house to house, asking for treats such as candy or sometimes money, with the question, "Trick or treat?" The word "trick" refers to a (mostly idle) threat to perform mischief on the homeowners or their property if no treat is given. In some parts of Ireland and Scotland children still go guising. In this custom the child performs some sort of show, i.e. sings a song or tells a ghost story, in order to earn their treats.

On Halloween night I had some unexpected guests in disguise, I did not recognise anyone but they must have known where I lived. Luckily, I had prepared a bowl of sweets beforehand, so I treated them and was spared tricking but got thanks instead!

Netiquette in WORDLE

This is made with the WORDLE tool. I was studying netiquette for my e-moderation course and made this word cloud to summarize the key words.

If you want to try it out, go to http://www.wordle.net

An online task about the protection of environment

I have made quite a lot of online tasks.
You may use them in your lessons when you get access to the computers. All the tasks include online activities that engage students in class work and give some free time to the teacher.

TASK 1
The task on environmental problems (rainforests) with Prince Charles and other famous people on the video.

Back from Vilnius

After two fruitful days in Vilnius I am back to work, i.e. at my computer.
The first thing I am doing is making a scrapbook of the few photos I have from the seminar showing the lovely Latvian group, all the great ladies whom I met and befriended.
More reflections when I am in the right mood...

Seminar in Vilnius

On 22 October I am going to Vilnius to the seminar about the use of technologies in the classroom organised by the British Council.

European Day of Languages

A nice activity initiated by Lithuanian teacher Silvana ended with us having 9 postcards from 9 European countries.

As a result we could try reading messages in 9 languages, some of which were like an alien language to us, especially Greek. What a surprise! Serbian was soooooo easy, much alike Russian. It was a discovery to me!

I did this reading-of-postcards activity with my 11.c. I only hope they enjoyed it as much as I did myself.

A few days after the Day of Languages I received one more postard - from Turkey. That is why there is another picture with Turkish postcard added.

My new classes

 
First I met 7a and I liked them immediately because they are sweet and nice kids. Here is how they placed themselves on the knowledge ladder. They faced the task with responsibility...

 

Then I met 9a and 9b classes (all new students to me). Look at their self-evaluation. Hard to see because of the small picture but they must remember where they placed themselves. I guess, some were modest, some self-confident but I did not know anything about them at that time and I did not make any corrections. I will know how realistic they were in a few months...

My class on 1st September 2009

My students in the box

The Smilebox loads slowly and there are boring ads but it is still possible to see the lovely friendly funny tender faces of those who are "mine" this year.

First blogging

I am sitting at the seminar about blogging and writing my first blog ever! I am not sure that I will continue with this but you never know... So far I haven't felt the necessity. Though I like the new Web 2.0 features very very much!