Taking Advantage of Online Tools

This week in our Edtech 300 class we were challenged to find a new online tool or app that we have never used before and incorporate it into our learning projects. Since I use videos off of YouTube as my main resources for learning I thought it would be a good idea to try and incorporate some videos. I found a website called Edpuzzle and I decided to use it to share my learning project progress this week.that allows you to take videos of YouTube and other websites and personalize them for your own class plan.

Brief Overview

This tool allows you to take videos off of YouTube, Crash Course, Khan Academy and many more trusted and reliable websites. Then once you have selected a video that you want to incorporate into your lesson plan you are able to add breaks to the video or just show certain clips so that you do not waste class time on information that is not important to your certain lesson. You can also embed questions at certain point throughout the video so that your students have an opportunity to be more interactive and engaged. My favourite feature that I found unique to this tool is that you can add your own voice overs to videos.

Pros

• Easy to use
• First 20 videos are free
• Lots of resources to pull videos from
• Suggestions are tailored to your subject and age level
• Can have multiple subject and age level preferences

Cons

• Log in using google account (not very secure)
• Have to pay for a subscription after 20 videos

This is what the home page looks like. It is very easy to follow and allows you to customize your. search. On the left hard side bar they have lots of good resources such to choose from. As a math teacher my favourite is Khan Academy.

Learning Project Video

I used this tool to make an interactive video that I followed this week on Vinyasa Yoga Strength and Flexibility. The video I used was 20 minutes long but it started with a lot of talking so I cut the clip so that my viewers only see the important content. I also added some questions along the way and some notes to focus on. Below I have added the image of my video and the link so you guys can go follow along with what I learned this week!

https://youtu.be/uC2Q6KynZi8

What online tools and apps have you used? Comment your favourite one below!!

Is Twitter a Good Classroom Tool?

At the beginning of my EDTC 300 course I was asked to download Twitter and create a professional account. I have never used Twitter and the only time I every heard about Twitter was on the social media when they were talking about what celebrities were posting. Before I got my own account I never knew Twitter could be used to find helpful resources and allow you to become part of a community with people who share the same interests as you.

My first real experience with Twitter was last week when my EDTC 300 class was asked to join Saskedchat. This was an account that is ran on Twitter that tweets questions for teachers all over to answer. The questions are directed to share teaching resources and help teachers find tools to implement onto their classes. I thought that Saskedchat was a great professional development experience. Especially for new teachers entering the work field looking for connections with other teachers.

Now that I have become more familiar with Twitter I believe that it is a great online tool for teachers to use in the classroom.

If you would like to create your own Twitter account and going a community of leachers and educators click here

Week 3: First Vinyasa Yoga Session

Now that I have a basic understanding of different breathing methods and the importance of them. And I am able to guide myself through both Sun Salute A and Sun Salute B. I thought it was time for my to take part in my first full Vinyasa Yoga session. I spend lots of time on YouTube trying to find a good class to start off with and I decided use a video by Floating Yoga School. I wanted to start with a full hour long class instead of short classes to get a good base line for what a normal class would look like.

The class was hard and I found my self having to take a few breaks but I was able to pause the video and take it at my own pace which I highly recommend for anyone who is trying these classes for the first time.

Not only are these sessions straining on your body but they are also straining on your mind. It was hard to sit in these poses for an hour and keep myself fully engaged in what I was doing. However, I found that the breathing exercised from my Week 1: The Fundamentals of Pranayama post helped me regain focus.

This is the video that I used:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZRvdbG54H4&t=625s

Feedly Finds

Our EDTC 300 class had the opportunity to get an RSS reader. I chose to use Feedly. It was a cool new platform that allows you to find your personal interests and follow people who know more about the topic. I found this site an easy way to navigate many profiles and find the ones that stood out to me. Starting off I focused on finding a variety of different platforms that interested me and that fit in with my personal goals and the goals that I have moving forward as a teacher.

My favourite pages so far

Smart Classroom Management

dy/dan

These two stood out to me the most because with my personal experience in a classroom it is very important to have the tools to manage a class. When teachers can create a fun yet professional classroom environment it is beneficial for them and their students. I also like dy/dan because it sheds light on ways to make math more interactive online. Especially with lots of classes being taught remotely students often lose interest in class so being able to find ways engage kids is very important.

I am still trying to find more educational pages especially math ones. If you have any suggestions on good pages please let me know!

Week 2: Sun Salutations

This week I completed my first yoga practice using poses! I started with a practice called Sun Salutations. These are quick and easy flows that you can either do as a great way to start your day or at the beginning of your Vinyasa Yoga practice. They take about 3 minutes to complete. Some yogis do these as much as 5 times before they practice yoga because it is a great way to prepare your mind body and breathing to work as one.

The Sun Salutes are broken up into 2 different flows. The first flow is called Sun Salute A and the second one is called Sun Salute B. Throughout the week I made it my goal to do each of these sun salutes before I started my day.

Personal Benefits

• More productive in the morning
• entered my breathing as I woke up
• made me more focused on tasks I had to complete in the day

Below are some of the poses that I performed during the sun salutes!

I used videos by two of my favourite yoga creators on YouTube The first video was Sun Salutation Flow For Beginners by YogiApproved. This video covered Sun Salute A in great detail and was extremely easy to follow and participate in.

I also used How To: Sun Salutation B by Caitlin Turner. This video Shows the basic movements of sun salute B with all of the timing of your breath.

I hope you enjoyed the Sun Salute videos and can take a few minutes each day to incorporate them into your daily practice!

Week 1: The Fundamentals of Pranayama

The first week of my learning project I focused on some of the basic breathing strategies used in yoga. In yoga breathing techniques are called Pranayama’s. This word consists of two root words; “Prana” which means life force and “ayam” which means to extend control. So the root words help understand the meaning of pranayama which is to take control of breathing and draw out life forces.

I learned about 2 types of breathing techniques. I used YouTube videos to help guide me through the breathing exercises. The first technique was Jala Neti which is a type of breathing that focuses on balance through the nostrils. Jala Neti is also called alternating nostril breathing and it is just that. You use your fingers to block one nostril and inhale and exhale while switching which nostril you cover. This type of breathing is used by yogis daily to ensure that both the left and right hemisphere of the brain are getting air.

Fun Fact: Your nostrils alternately clog every 2-3 hours

Jala Neti Benefits:

-irrigates mucus

-maintains healthy secretory drainage of the ear, nose, and throat

-wards of colds, coughs, and tonsillitis

The second type of breathing I learned about was Ujjayi Breathing. This style of breathing is used after you perform Jala Neti. Ujjayi breathing is used throughout the duration of a yoga session, it is used to hold a rhythm and help guide the session. It is a great tool to help reduce distractions while in a session and help you focus on your body and the movements. When I performed this exercise I felt like I was more mindful of how my muscles were feeling and I was able to be more purposeful with all of my movements.

Ujjayi Benefits:

-develop respiratory stamina

-calm brain and body

-increase concentration and mental focus

Join me next week as I learn about Vinyasa Yoga and complete my first yoga class!!

About Me

Hi everyone! I am a student at the University of Regina. I am studying secondary education and majoring in math. I have a passion for math and my goal as a teacher is to help students find math more bearable and less of a burden.

Along with my studies I am very active and enjoy taking part in many sports and activities. I play hockey at a collegiate level for the University of Regina. I believe in the importance of balance and mindfulness and as I grow as a teacher I want to find ways to help my students be more mindful.

I am new to blogging but I believe that it can be a very beneficial way to interact with other educators. Blogging is also a great way of learning from other peoples experiences and finding resources tasks that other people have tried.

If you are new to my page and want to know more about me and my education journey I encourage you to check out my twitter page! https://twitter.com/Megan89940534

Learning Project

This page is going to be sharing my journey while I learn the practice of yoga and meditation. I am going to be focusing on the benefits of breathing exercises and exploring how they can be used in my life. I am also going to get a foundation into the practice of Vinyasa Yoga, Yin Yoga, and Tia Chi. I have taken a few beginner classes before but I am hoping to become more aware of the benefits and the different styles of yoga and meditation. I am hoping to become more mindful and centred with these practices.

My Goals:

1. Be able to cater my breaths and learn different techniques to have controlled breathing.
2. Grasp some of the common patterns in the practice and learn some basic poses in each of the three forms of yoga.
3. My final goal is to be able to instruct my own class for everyone who follows my page!!

Join me as I learn the many benefits of yoga, meditation, and mindfulness!