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Kids and Computers

Posted on March 22, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Times have changed a lot since I was a child. Back when I was in elementary school, we were lucky to have one of the old apple computers in a classroom. There were no computer labs for classes to go to as a group. There were no Smart Boards, class iPads, or other technology related resources for teachers to use like we have now. My boys will never understand how lucky they are. They not only get to go with their class to learn how to use computer, but there are educational games that really teach and help them to master skills for multiple subject areas.

Of course, as lucky as they are, it made me wonder if our children are really getting the technology education at school that they need to compete in the world today. Young children need these experiences so they can excel and do more when they get into middle and high school level classes. This is a post that I wrote last year for another project that really got me thinking.

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Technology education for kids is extremely important. The reality is that many schools (public and private) do not have formal technology curriculum for the elementary age level. Schools that used to have a full time Technology Education teacher, now may only have them part time or not at all. When budget cuts are made, this is an area that seems to suffer. This is not only true in the Capital District, but across the United States.

If we want our children to be able to compete with people from around the world, we need them to be able to use computers. This does not mean that they should simply be good with applications, games, educational software and websites. No, our children need to learn the basics of keyboarding, word processing, utilizing spreadsheets, and presentation programs like PowerPoint.

Classroom teachers now need to juggle even more during the academic year. They must incorporate technology into their curriculum and in most cases teach it themselves. During this time, kids need to be shown how to use the internet. They must be taught about internet safety, how to do effective research, what reliable sources are on the world wide web, and more.

Thanks to the ever increasing role of social media, even elementary aged children know about Twitter, Facebook, instant message, blogs, and more. Protecting our children is key. My plan is to expand on this topic in future blog posts and/or magazine articles. First, I would like to hear back from you about your experience with kids and computers.

Are computers in your child’s classroom, or within a lab at school? How are they utilized?
Does your school/district have a formal technology education curriculum? If you answer yes, is there a specific technology check list of skills that students need to accomplish by certain grade levels?
Is there a teacher that is certified in Technology Education or does the classroom teacher doing this when they use a computer lab?
Is technology/computer class listed on your child’s report card?
If you have anything else to share about your current or past experience with Technology Education classes within the elementary school grades, please share.

Feel free to answer in the comments below, or reach me via my contact form above if you have more to share that you are not comfortable with leaving in this manner. Thanks in advance, I look forward to hearing your experiences.

Disclosure: This post was previously published on a project I worked on. The text is mostly the same, but I placed a new introduction based on current thoughts.

Categories:
Educational PSA real world news school

A Week of Awareness for the Heart

Posted on February 10, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

With Valentine’s Day next week, it only seems fitting that February 7 – 14 are CHD Awareness Week. Prior to three years ago, I had very little understand and/or knowledge of CHD. Now, thanks to my friend, Kristine Brite McCormick, and her angel baby Cora, I know much more.

Yesterday, Kristine had a guest post on my blog that explained how she learned about CHD. Her story is a hard one to read about, but by doing so – many babies and others have had CHD identified and saved their lives. If you do not know about CHD, I ask you to take some time to familiarize yourself with it. If you are expecting a baby, please check and see if your hospital does pulse oximetery testing on newborns to try to catch these heart defects that are often not caught otherwise.

My question to you this week is inspired by all of the CHD warriors and their families:

Did you know that it was CHD awareness week? Also curious to know what you plan on doing for Valentine’s Day on Tuesday.

Please also think about spreading the word about CHD awareness. The more that people know, the better informed they can be to watch for these items in their lives.

It's Me

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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.

Aloha #190

Categories:
Aloha Friday bloggy friends health awareness PSA

CHD Awareness Week 2012

Posted on February 9, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

This is the third year that I’m aware of congenital heart defects (CHD)—and my third year marking CHD Awareness Week (February 7 to 14). Some of you might remember because Beth has kindly opened up her blog to me each year.

My daughter, Cora, was only five days old when she passed away suddenly and unexpectedly as I fed her in December 2009. We thought she was healthy. She wasn’t. She had a congenital heart defect.

I’d never even heard the term. Now I make it my mission to make sure that every pregnant woman and mother has at least heard the phrase.

I know it’s scary. Luckily, Cora’s story is only one. And, it’s at the worst side of the spectrum. Some of these so called “CHD babies” live to be old men and women. Some of them are even athletes, movie stars and politicians.

The face of CHD is so varied. And, because the scars are hidden, often the faces of CHD are blurred and hidden too.

About one percent of the population has a heart defect, which doesn’t sound like a big deal until you compare it to other conditions, like autism (which I’ve seen various numbers for but often tapped at 1 in 110), Down’s Syndrome (1 in 800), and pediatric cancers (CHD kills more children than all forms of pediatric cancer combined). That’s not to say that those conditions need less awareness. I wish they’d get more, and I firmly believe there’s enough compassion around to advocate for them all, but I think somehow CHD has been overlooked. That’s changing. I thank Beth, and all of you, for being part of that change for standing up and speaking out for these babies and adults with hidden scars.

If you’d like to read more about Cora, visit http://www.corasstory.org

Kristine Brite McCormick writes about Cora (almost) daily on her blog http://www.corasstory.org. If not on her blog, she can be found on Twitter, @kristinebrite or Cora’s Facebook Fan page, telling Cora’s Story. Follow Kristine for more information about congenital heart disease or to learn more about the acts of compassion and kindness Cora has inspired.

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Note From Me: Three years ago, I met an amazing woman. A women who lost her baby girl Cora to CHD at five days old. Her strength, grace, and fight to save other children has inspired me. Today I am honored to call Kristine Brite McCormick a friend. I am so proud with how her work to get pulse ox for new born babies is taking place in more and more locations. Here is a segment that was on CNN last Friday about how Kristine and other mothers fighting for CHD awareness were wearing red for baby heart health.

Categories:
bloggy friends Guest post health awareness PSA

The Big Think Pink Stink

Posted on February 3, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Awareness about a cause is not found with a Facebook status message, nor placing a colored ribbon on your car, or even buying products that support them. Awareness is knowing someone that has battled something, realizing how it changes their life, and trying to help them. A post by my friend Ellen, Confessions of an IT Girl, titled On Awareness hit a nerve with me. Prior to this, Ellen also wrote about the recent coverage on the Susan G. Komen Foundation discontinuing their support to Planned Parenthood.

As I have been trying to take everything in, TechyDad sent me a link to he video below. It is about the new documentary called Pink Ribbons, Inc. that will be released in Canada today.

Over the years, I have supported the Think Pink movement, especially when my amazing friend A Frugal Friend has her month long event in honor of her mother. I have watched my aunt bravely battle cancer. She has been a survivor for almost nine years now. As others have noted, I have also seen the focus of the moment stray from helping people who are fighting for their life against breast cancer to a more commercial message. I am not a fan of this. I must say, I think it’s a bit odd that funding was cut this week, perhaps to take focus away from this new documentary that would also paint a not so pretty picture. Conspiracy theorist I am not, but it just is odd.

This makes me more focused to see what I can do to help others. Ellen’s post made me realize that I can call local oncology groups to see if they need knitted items for patients. Perhaps a lap blanket while sitting and receiving chemo, a pretty hat to make them less upset about their hair loss, or some cloths to help them pamper themselves. I also hope to see the film and work more with my family and community to make a difference. If anyone has seen a preview, I would also love to know your thoughts.

So my question to you this week is to help me brainstorm:

What would you do to help an organization or cause? Think of a way to bring awareness to the real people involved.

It's Me

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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.

Aloha #189

Categories:
Aloha Friday health awareness me moments PSA

Say No to Censorship

Posted on January 20, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Wednesday, I likely confused some members of my family if they stopped by my website. First, they would have seen this:

This was a widget for WordPress that TechyDad and I placed on our blogs to show support against the new bills that the US Congress and Senate are trying to put on the books. We really liked that this would help to inform people about what these bills will do to the average American – including bloggers like us. If you continued to my blog, this was at the top over my header/logo:

I did not blackout my website like Wikipedia, Reddit, and others. Instead, I did not post new content during the blackout period and had this information to educate people about the cause. If you look up in the right corner, I now have a Stop SOPA ribbon.

As someone who has had her content copied and used without my permission, I get that piracy is not ok. The problem is that SOPA and PIPA go far above and beyond that. Oh and IF you have seen the commercials promoting these bills – they are horrid. Scare tactics against citizens without all of the information is unacceptable. Here check it out (commercial begins at :29 mark):

For more information, please head over to read TechyDad’s post about the legislation.

So my question to you this week:

Did you blackout your website on Wednesday? I would also like to know why you opted with your choice. Please remember to make some noise and contact your representatives in Congress and Senate to let them know that censorship is NOT acceptable. We need to kill these bills and revamp to properly stop piracy.

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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.

Aloha #187