Where to go from here?

As my technology course ends, I have to wonder about what to do with this blog. If I can get organized enough to stay current, I'll probably use this site as an info-sharing place for the Four Daughters, as initially designed. This might be particularly helpful over the holiday season as we coordinate schedules and share our separate experiences.

I think I'll also start a separate, early-reading blog, as suggested in my lesson plan template for the course. I have been collecting tons of info and need to sort it out. I also want to collaborate with a colleague who is doing lots of podcasting and see about coordinating our efforts. I find that I am constantly giving parents and teachers the same suggestions and resources, so it'd be more efficient for all if it were posted on the web. I just need a little more time in each day to get it all done!

A Return of Radio?

As a child of the television generation, I can't say I actually miss the radio show days, but I have always loved the idea of them and sort of yearned for them vicariously. So, as I've been listening to podcasts this week I've glimpsed a possibility of the return to the auditory age, where children actually listen to stories and dramatizations without (gasp!) pictures, television, video, or other animated images. The Bobby Bucket show is my favorite so far, but I've listened to lots of children's literature on the web and really am loving the whole idea of it. It cannot replace sitting on the porch swing with your dad reading to you, or mom tucking you into bed and reading that next chapter, but it is something, and something good. Not only can it expose children to great literature, and discussions and debates, and primary sources telling history in their own voices, but children can author their own podcasts and perhaps hear themselves in a whole new light. I love the idea of listening -- just listening. I love the idea of that child who may not be strong at other things being the kid who comes to life with the microphone.

So, podcasts have my vote, and I've barely scratched the surface. What older students can do, networking across the globe and across generations and across cultures, is mind-boggling. And my mind is still boggling as I continue to explore streaming videos. Talk about "seeing is believing" and "a picture if worth a thousand words." Wow. It's a new world.