Master Tool List

 I'm not sure how I missed this last week, but there is now a master of all the tools we've experimented with during class. It was posted in week 7 module overview.  Make sure to take a look at it! I've already forgotten some of them and it was a nice reminder. 

Fourth of July and PTSD

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!! 

🎇🎇🎇🎇🎆🎆🎆🎆

           

Fourth of July is a celebration when all Americans feel pride in their country and celebrate with beautiful explosions in the sky. This year especially is a year for celebration. We have almost defeated (or at least tamed) Covid-19. We have taken time to open wounds and look at our history as well as our present way of existence. I've always loved watching fireworks and experiencing their beauty through all senses. 

But this year, things have gotten a little bit more complicated. I have been diagnosed with PTSD and a seizure disorder. I don't think I will be able to partake in a full firework display this year but I will still celebrate my country and  enjoy time with my family. 

People often think of veterans and pets when it comes to fear of fireworks, but PTSD can include so many more of the population. Trauma can manifest into PTSD in a variety of ways.

 PTSD symptoms can include:

https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd/

I do not expect people to not set off fireworks. That is their right and it is up to me to protect my well-being during the holiday. There are many ways that I can ease the tension during this time. Here is an example that talks about some strategies:

https://www.smore.com/hasdz-expressive-arts-therapy-e-news?epik=dj0yJnU9b1IyVnBPU1pTQy1GQl84d19VWnlMZ1ZBOVVzOURzOUwmcD0wJm49Z00wT3pOMWVJMzJNWUdhaUxLVmhHZyZ0PUFBQUFBR0Rjak1Z

However you choose to celebrate this year, Happy 4th of July!

Training a Service Dog-Apollo Learns to Like Brushes

Training a service dog is a life long process. It isn't a process where all of a sudden your dog is trained and he'll be perfect from then on. Training starts with basic obedience then progresses to learning tasks that help accommodate a person with a disability. All of these skills must also be practiced out in public in various situations. For example, Apollo was practicing looking at me in a grocery store instead of paying attention to all the food around him (VERY hard for a golden retriever). 

Public access for service dogs in training is allowed with no restrictions in the state of Florida. Some states restrict access for those dogs that are still learning. Apollo has been going to a variety of places since he was 3 months old. To be honest, his public behavior is much better than at home. He turns back into a 9 month old puppy when we get home 😆😆!

The video I will post on Apollo's FB page will show how I am working to desensitize him to being brushed. For whatever reason, he does not like it. I will also have a helper from my other dog Isla who is 4 years old and loves to get brushed. Apollo follows Isla's lead for a lot of things. By posting to his FB page, I also hop it will increase my traffic to his page. Homemade videos tend to draw more people. Most likely because they are attracted to Apollo's adorableness 😀😀💓

Here's the link to his training video...make sure to stop by his FB page too!

Apollo's Training

https://www.facebook.com/apollototherescue

Practice with Voice Thread

Today's blog focuses on practicing with VoiceThread for my upcoming assignment. Although nervous at first, I got in to the hang of it pretty quickly. The recording was simple and easy to edit. I also deleted slides as I went along. I used a previously created presentation from an old job about GED testing. I knew the material well, but setting it up in this format took a little more practice. 😎

Please feel free to take a look at it and leave comments! 

Nicole's Voice Thread Practice

Internet Safety-The good, the bad, and the heartbreaking

Internet Safety

I have a 5 year old so I have yet to deal with internet safety issues personally. I know I will need to start teaching him soon. How much control should I have over his access? Some believe that teens should have no monitoring by parents and to trust they will do what's best. 

https://time.com/5523239/parenting-behavior-technology-social-media/

On the other side of the argument are parents trying to keep kids safe by monitoring their social media. Take a look at this heart breaking story about a family that lost their son because he thought he was buying pharmaceutical drugs online. It turns out they were pure fentanyl. The parents aren't totally against social media, but want certain companies (Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat) to work with them on using monitoring software/apps.

https://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/video/family-pushes-social-media-apps-to-allow-access-for-parental-control-tools-115288133596

My heart goes out to these parents. May they find some peace in the advocacy that they have started to prevent what happened to their son to other children. 

So where do we start? When do we get involved? I think it's important to start talking about it early. Heck, I had to teach my four year old about not clicking on ads for online education games. Maybe we start simple, like starting with letter sounds for reading. I don't believe it's all about parental controls but it should be a combination of education, discussion, and monitoring. It will always be a hard job to keep our kids safe whether if it's in the virtual or physical world. 

Nicole Explains Networked Knowledge Activities-POWTOON

Look what I made! I used the tool PowToon to create a simple explanation of the 6 activities within NKA. The unlisted YouTube video link is below. Please look at it and give me feedback! I'm still learning how to edit video so excuse the weird parts of that. 

Nicole's PowToon

Google Drive meets Google Tools

My procrastination led me to take an insider look at Google Drive and all that it has to offer. I basically thought the drive was a place to cloud sharing work that Microsoft Office could not do. So, basically it could do a word doc, spreadsheets, and power points. Oh how I was wrong. After hitting the 'more' part of the 'new' button I came across 8 additional apps that could be used. I briefly looked at all of the options and was excited to see all the possibilities. 

Take a look at this list I pulled from the following website: 

https://www.practicalecommerce.com/37-Google-Drive-Apps

There are even more (FREE!) apps since this article was written. So cool! Take another spin around Google Drive when you get a chance. They have educational and corporate uses!

37 Google Drive Apps

FEBRUARY 4, 2013 • SIG UELAND

Google Drive, Google’s cloud-storage solution, lets you store and access your files anywhere. With the first 5 GB free, it’s a valuable resource for small and mid-sized businesses. However, Google Drive’s greatest feature is its integration with other Google and third-party applications.

Here is a list of productivity applications that work with Google Drive. You can find the complete list of apps at the Chrome Web Store. There are both free and paid apps to create your own productivity suite in the clouds.

37 Google Drive Apps

Google Docs. Access, create, and edit Google docs in Google Drive. Edit documents with collaborators, and see changes as they type. Price: Free.

Google Docs.

Google Slides. Create presentations with rich animations, drawings, transitions, themes, and more. Presentations are automatically saved and stored in Google Drive. Price: Free.

Google Sheets. Create and share spreadsheets. Then publish them publicly, share them with others, or keep them private. Price: Free.

Google Drawings. Build diagrams, and create flowcharts. Easily add them to other documents, or embed them on a website. Price: Free.

Google Forms. Create online forms and surveys, then check the results in a neatly organized spreadsheet. Share forms from a link, embed them on your website, or right inside an email. Price: Free.

Google Forms.

Google Apps Script. Google Apps Script is a JavaScript cloud scripting language that provides easy ways to automate tasks, across Google products and third-party services, and build web applications. Price: Free.

SlideRocket. Create stunning presentations. Save and share directly from Google Drive. Manage a library of presentations, slides and assets. Price: Lite is free; Pro is $24/month.

Pixlr Express. Pixlr Express is a photo editor with nearly 250 effects, including borders, overlays, color adjustments, crop and rotation editors. Price: Free.

PicMonkey. PicMonkey is a free photo editor with collage, touch-up, fonts, effects, filters, frames, and stickers. Price: Free.

PicMonkey.

draw.io. draw.io is a free diagramming application that enables you to draw flowcharts, network diagrams, wire-framing and mockups, and more. Price: Free.

Pixlr Editor. Pixlr Editor is a full-featured web-based photo editor. Tools include drawing, clone, sharpen and blur, filters and adjustments. Price: Free.

Floorplanner. Floorplanner gives you the tools to make floor plans fast. Recreate your home, garden or office with a library of objects to reshape, resize and rotate. Price: 1 project is free; 5 projects is $14.95/year.

HelloFax. HelloFax makes it easy to sign documents and send faxes online. Send and receive faxes. Sign documents and fill out forms. Price: Up to 5 fax pages per month free.

HelloFax.

Lucidchart. Lucidchart is an HTML5-based visual collaboration tool for drawing diagrams. Work together with an unlimited number of others to create and edit diagrams in real time. Changes merge and sync instantaneously. Price: Personal plan is free to $9.95/month.

Cacoo. Cacoo is a user-friendly online drawing tool that allows you to create a variety of diagrams such as site maps, wire frames, UML and network charts. Price: Up to 25 sheets free.

HelloSign. HelloSign is an easy app to sign documents and request signatures. Price: Free.

Hojoki. Make all your cloud apps work as one. Get push notifications and discuss your work as it happens. Works with Google Drive & Calendar, Dropbox, Evernote and many other productivity apps. Price: Free.

Hojoki.

Gantter. Gantter is an enterprise cloud-based project scheduling application. Easily import and open existing Microsoft Project files. Price: Free.

💓💓Marqueed. Marqueed is a collaboration tool to discuss and work on images and designs. Easily add collaborators. Get instant notification on activity. Price: Free.

PDF Mergy. PDF Mergy provides a simple way to merge PDF files. You can either select the files you want to merge from you computer or drop them on the app using drag and drop. Price: Free.