Genius Hour Post #5

Hey everyone,

Today I learned a little bit about Timetoast. Timetoast is a web site that allows you to create attractive timelines on the Internet for free! As you can see in the image below, if you have a free account there will be an advertisement that accompanies your timeline. Regards, the tool is quite useful you want to create a timeline quickly that also looks good. Take a look at the one that I just made!

French on the Web (Online image). Timetoast.com. Retrieved from.

I used to think that timelines were only really useful in application to history class. Boy was I wrong! Timelines are a great organizational tool that you can implement in the classroom to get your students on task. The way I used my timeline allow me to create a linear calendar in a new and fun way. All of the needed information is right where I need it to be and it doesn't necessarily relate to history class!

Learning about useful tools such as the one found on Timetoast is a very important part of being a teacher. Whether or not you find this resource useful is besides the point. Teachers have to be constantly learning and exploring the resources out there. These tools may help us in the classroom to create a different or more efficient workplace. We are also bringing these resources to our students so that they may learn how to use them and apply them throughout their years in school and even to their everyday life! 

Thanks for reading

Genius Hour Post #4

Hi people!

Today I am going to reflect on what I have learned about my Genius Hour topic so far. I discovered that my goal was a little too specific and hard to monitor. Improving my spoken French is quite difficult to monitor if you aren't that comfortable speaking with others online via Skype or Discord. So I had to change my goal to just improving my French overall. I like this goal better because I have written, spoken, and comprehension that I can monitor instead of just my spoken French. The apps that I am using are phenomenal. I learned that it is a little too much to handle if I wanted to branch out into more than two applications and still maintain using them fully. I decided to limit my Genius Hour to using only Duolingo and Ayni.

France Flag Map (Online image). Retrieved from.

I've managed to learn a little bit about myself. Apparently I have a "French" accent, as opposed to an "Ontarian" or "Quebecois" accent. This was nice to learn as it is close to the way that people pronunciate in France! I also learned that I am not that comfortable speaking to people that I don't know online through different apps. It may have been because I was to speak in French, but I just wasn't very comfortable. I'd like to think that I am a fairly social person but I just couldn't do it. Additionally, I learned that my French grammar isn't as great as I thought it was. This is mostly because I don't have any French speakers around that I can converse with. I learned though Ayni that the French (much like us) have particular ways that they say things and when you deviate from that they will understand what you mean but it will sound.. funny.

That's all for today!

Genius Hour Post #3

Oh hey there,

Checking back in with my wonderful audience to give you an update on my progress to improve my French speaking abilities. Using Duolingo has been a blast! I took a placement test, got pretty far down the list and am nearly done the French language lessons! I can honestly say that Duolingo is a great program for teaching vocabulary. It is effective at teaching grammar but it lacks a little if you aren't taking proper notes during your play time. Also, if you haven't studied a language in a formal setting before then Duolingo may not be as profitable. I say this because in a formal learning setting you learn how to learn a language; that's not weird is it? You learn what different words are called, that a sentence typically has a subject, what nouns and pronouns are, the definite, indefinite articles and how words like adjectives and adverbs interact. Using this acquired knowledge with a program like Duolingo is incredibly beneficial. Luckily, you can find this information all over the web in places like about.french and use great tools like Word Reference. The tools you need to learn another language are all over the Internet; you just have to find them!

WordReference (Online image). Retrieved from.

Knowing English is surprisingly helpful if you want to learn French. I've discovered this through various Fren-ami's or French friends. These are words in French and English that look alike, sound alike and share a similar meaning. This helps a great deal with remembering vocabulary; and learning aids are always welcome! In addition to this benefit, having English as your native tongue helps because an overwhelming amount of people want to learn it! There are so many French speakers that want to either learn or improve their English and their are willing to exchange their French knowledge for your English knowledge. On my last post I mentioned the web site Ayni and what it does for language learners. Since then I have connected with several French men and women and just talked. In our conversations we let each other know what is right or wrong, what sounds good or awkward, or how to say things differently or more commonly. One of my pen pals on Ayni explained that she lives with her boyfriend and two cats. She said that, "All of them three are lovely". I really liked her choice in the descriptive word "lovely". However, the sentence is incorrect but still conveys its intended meaning. I correct her sentence and complimented her choice of words and she proceeded to correct the message that I sent to her. If I wanted to say "It will benefit you", I normally would say "Il vous bénéficiera" but my pen pal noted that while it makes sense "Il sera bénéfique" or "It will be beneficial" sounds more natural in French. This is a different type of learning that you often don't receive in a classroom because the teachers are focused on what they have to teacher and not always on what your questions are.

Genius Hour Blog Post #2

Hello hello,

So I've been doing some research on how to improve my French language proficiency and a significant amount of people are using technology to learn new languages! One of the most prominent apps out there is called Duolingo. Duolingo allows you to learn a wide variety of languages absolutely free! I've been using it and I think it's a phenomenal application. Here's a screenshot of what the interface looks like.

Duolingo Interface (Screenshot).

The application has different sets of vocabulary for you to learn in short and fun bursts. You earn experiences points, level up, and get hot streak bonuses! All of these factors make the learning experience fun and competitive. This also ties into what we've been learning in class about the Gamification of coursework which is pretty cool. With the in-app currency earned by progressing in the game, you can unlock special vocabulary and outfits for Duolingo's mascot "Duo". I'm hoping that by next week I'll unlock the formal wear outfit for Duo.

Another application that I have found is the web site Ayni. Ayni is a pen pal web site that connects you with people all over the globe. The motivation for using this web site is to learn a different language and also to teach a language that you know. So, if I wanted to learn French I would sign up and be paired with a French speaker that wants to learn English. You can both message each other via text or you can video chat with your pen pal if you would like! Using Ayni is completely free which is pretty awesome. You can book time with professional educators on the web site if you would like, but professionals cost money. Here's a screenshot of the Ayni interface.

Ayni Interface (Screenshot).

So far I've only received one pen pal but every day you can come back and try and find an additional one! From here I can access my profile and say a little bit about myself and I can go to my message dashboard which will allow me to view my conversations. If you want to learn a second language, or even a third or fourth, I think that you should give this web site a try. I'll keep you updated on my conversations and Duolingo progress in future posts!

Thanks for reading,

Talk to you soon!

The Kissing Hand Quiz

Hey everyone!

Check out my little quiz that I made about The Kissing Hand as narrated by Barbara Bain. It's a bit of a silly quiz. Please watch the video I've embedded in the quiz! It's a very cute story about leaving home, the importance of family and love.

Creative Commons

Oh hey there,

Today I learned some stuff about copyright laws and the Creative Commons. In regards to the classroom a teacher is not allowed to show a video without getting the proper "public performance rights". This means that if you'd like to show a YouTube video or something similar, you have to be sure that is has a Creative Commons license, or a CC, that allows that type of distribution; the standard YouTube license will not do. The six licenses that the Creative Commons outline allows content producers to declare how their products are used by others. The four licenses I learned about are: attribution, non-commercial use, share alike, and no derivatives.

Here is an example of a piece of content that requires "attribution" in order to be used.

Ash, Crestfelt. (July 20, 2009). Science (Online Image). Retrieved from. 

And here is an example of an image that does not require attribution as it is licensed under the "public domain".

Retrieved from.

If you have questions about licensing and copyright laws click here!

See you next time.

Genius Hour: Post #1

Hello!

Hallo!

Bonjour!
Ciao!

My last post talked about Genius Hour; spending an hour a day on a passion project. Today I would like to share with you my Genius Hour project proposal! I'm currently at Brock U in the Teacher Education program and my teachable is French as a Second Language. So, why not kill two birds with one stone here and look into ways of improving my spoken French? Sounds like a good idea, yeah? It wasn't my idea, but I'm taking it. The project will span over five weeks and I have certain weekly goals. Here they are:

Week 1: Research useful strategies, books, and applications. Record a spontaneous sample video or audio clip of my spoken French

Week 2: Begin using these resources to develop my spoken French

Week 3: Continue using resources, find a practice partner

Week 4: Continue practicing and using resources

Week 5: Record a spontaneous sample video or audio clip of my spoken French on a random topic and compare to Week 1

So, my goals are to research various tools and strategies that'll help me on my journey. Next, practice, practice, practice. Did I mention practice? On week one I plan to record myself speaking French on a random topic. I want it to be as spontaneous as possible. On week five I will do the same thing and compare the results. I am hoping the my ability to convert my ideas into speech will quicken in pace. Additionally, I am hoping that my accent will improve.

Kevin Olden. 19/08/2015. Calling All French Speaking Candidates. Image. Retrieved from.

What do you think? What should I change, add, or remove? Do you speak French (fluently or not) and want to help me on my journey? Or do you speak French and want to improve your English? Feel free to respond to this post and maybe you can be my week 3!

Bye for now

Auf Wiedersehen
Au revoir
Ciao