I am just winding down from a long day of homework and an outing to see the movie Angels & Demons with my kids. I honestly loved the movie. I didn't think it would be anything I would be interested in, boy was I pleasently suprised! I didn't believe there was anything sacreligious at all.

I took my kids, Allie, Art and Eric, Allie's boyfriend Andrew, Blake and Susan, a Chinese foreign exchange student. I always ask the kids what was the best part of the movie for them. The answers were great, but the best answer came from Eric, my 14 year old who I have had lots of trouble with behavior problems in the past. He said "mom, I really like thought provoking movies like that!" I was elated.

Today I realized that I could have enhanced my poker class by providing my instruction manual to a website and created a blog to offer tid bits of information. I am still getting used to the blog thing, and I actually kind of like it. I often think, though, with MySpace, Facebook, Blogs, Websites, Twitter, etc. wouldn't one spend the majority of the day updating everyone on the day? I don't get it. I don't have that much time to waste.

Until next time....

Good morning

Hello all... I know most of you are sleeping at this hour (4:10am) but I just got home from work. It has dawned on me the power of a blog in the last couple of days, because I never consider social insecurities like one of my classmates has mentioned. I think the blog is really good for just sitting down and writing... a lost skill in my opinion. Writers can be very open, honest and raw in their posts.

I also think it is a valuable tool for learning to open up. I feel somewhat exposed to having people read "feelings" but as a learning tool that could be kind of good. We try to teach tolerance to our children and students, but what better way than to have them read other's, who may be different, blogs?

I found an interesting blog from an Amish girl and read a few posts and was very interested in learning more about life on the farm. I think blogs can connect us with worlds far away or near that we may not have ever paid attention too. Like you all... you may have never realized there is a whole world that exists between 10pm and 6am!!!

Until next time..... Happy Sunday

jill

country and western dancing

Oh, yeah, I almost forgot- I used to compete Nationally in Country & Western and Cajun dancing. I also taught for the local parish (county) in Louisiana. It was lots of fun. I really seem to have a knack for teaching.

Ideally, I would love to have my teacher's certificate, but just think it would take too much time. I would love to teach at the university level. My aspirations are to go to law school, unless I can invent the most wonderful e-course on how to play Texas Hold'Em!!! lol

Until next time....

jill

Well, today I am stressing about finding learning technologies like my classmate Cassy.  Although I did some pretty good leg work yesterday with the learning styles and learning theories.  Half the battle I guess?  

Asked Allie, and her friends who stopped over for strawberry shortcake about learning technologies, and they said "Kendal"  supposed to be a download to a clipboard of sorts to read books, instead of printing them.  Their classrooms, I am now informed, have a generic "Smartboard" where the teacher has a separate screen for writing on rather than writing on the screen itself.  Clickers have made appearances sporadically, though. 

Ok, well now since I've watched a video on YouTube about Blogger help, I am going to attempt to post a large picture on my blog in the upper right hand corner.  I felt it necessary to update my image because in April I cut 11 inches of my hair and donated it to Locks of Love and now I have short hair!  

bye for now

Well, hello!  I am not sure what a blog is all about but the only thing I recently taught is Poker! 

I was asked to teach a non-credit course on How to Play Texas Hold'em at Indiana University Southeast.  What was incredible is that they paid me!!  I would have done it for free. (Shh!! don't tell them that) They have asked me to teach again in the fall, but my hectic life just doesn't allow me enough free time.  What I did love about teaching was that I got rave reviews on the end of course evaluation forms!  

Well, I will end for now, because I want to search the rest of the site.