Improvements

I really like the idea of adding more recordings to the class. There were some stories that I really struggled through. I think that having a recording so I could hear it first, would have been beneficial. I also think having the recordings as an extra credit assignment is a great idea. That way students can hear different voices, as well as the students recording can have some fun putting pizzazz in the stories.

The video tutorials might also be beneficial to students. I know there were a lot of things that I messed up on throughout my stories and some happened in almost every one (comma splices, etc). I also never completely understood the active and passive verbs, so maybe a video explaining those might be helpful as well.

Since you have mentioned videos, maybe having a video that sort of explains what the semester is going to entail would be something students might like. I know at the beginning of the semester trying to navigate through what seemed to be a million different pages, trying to make sure I set everything up properly or didn't miss something, was a little overwhelming. There were a lot of words on a lot of different pages and that was something that worried me. Once I got the hang out the class, it wasn't too bad. My thoughts are doing the screencast, as you mentioned, and showing students how to navigate through the online course as well as showing how to set up the blogs and whatnot. It might be a lot of extra work, but for me, having it showed to me would have been easier than figuring it out on my own.

Week 14 - Learning Challenge: Attention Meme

Odysseus and Facebook

I can relate to this meme so much. I have such a hard with procrastinating when I have a bunch to do. Facebook is the worst form of distraction. When I was a freshman in college, I had an app on my phone that wouldn't allow me to use my phone for an amount of time that I chose. I wish I had something like that for my computer, but unfortunately I don't have a macbook. Now, I do about thirty minutes of work, then I browse Facebook or Reddit for a few minutes before getting back into my work. If I don't distract myself with Facebook for a few minutes, I will just sit there panicking about how much I have to do or I just stare blankly at my computer screen. Sometime distractions are good. It's when you get distracted for too long, that becomes a problem.  

Week 14 - Growth Mindset: Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone

What will happen?

After looking at this image, one can realize that there are only positives that come from stepping out of your comfort zone. We all have a really hard time actually doing it though, but sometimes you have to take a risk to get where you want to go in life. It helps to build you up instead of keeping you sheltered. I unfortunately have not been able to step out of my comfort zone yet, but one major step I hope to take one day is moving to Colorado. It's something I've wanted to do since I was a kid, and I hope to follow through with it one day. Moving to Norman was a big step for me and it was hard enough. I learned to love it and I am so happy that I did so. I'm nervous about making an even bigger move so far away from home, but I am looking forward to it. 

Reading Notes B - The Three Goslings

Little Ducks

I think for this story, I would like to try something new. I kind of want to try to make this into a poem. Even though that will prove to be extremely difficult. I want to try it once before the end of the semester. Since this is such a familiar story, I don't think it will be as difficult as an unfamiliar one. 

Italian Popular Tales by Thomas Frederick Cane: The Three Goslings

Reading Notes A - The Fair Angiola

Wolfenglish - Rapunzel

I really am interested in trying to rewrite this story completely. I'd like to give it something different than the usual prince climbing up her hair plot that is most commonly known. Maybe Angiola can be knitting a blanket to escape or something and that is how the prince climbs up. I'm unsure of the details, but I know I would like to try something new. 

Italian Popular Tales by Thomas Frederick Crane: The Fair Angiola

Reading Notes B - The Little Mermaid Part 2

Little Mermaid Statue

I think in order to create something different than most people are familiar with, I want to write a story about all of the sisters going to the surface together. The mermaids have to be fifteen in order to go to the surface and the youngest is 5 years younger than the others, so I think creating a story with all of them going to the surface together would be something people won't already know. 

Fairy Tales and Stories by Hans Christian Andersen: The Little Mermaid Part 2

Reading Notes A - The Princess and the Pea

the Princess and the Pea

I think I would like to add more to this story to make it longer. I think I might want to add more about the Prince and Princess after they are married and make things not as great as they thought they might be. Maybe I could change the way the Prince discovers she is a true Princess. As far as specifics, I'm not completely sure what I would like to do yet.

Fairy Tales and Stories by Hans Chrisitian Andersen: The Princess and the Pea