Star Struck at NECC

I've just returned from The National Educational Computing Conference (NECC) in Atlanta. The most amazing part of the experience was the opportunity to speak in person with some of my Web 2.0 heroes. Starting with the edubloggercon unconference, and followed by discussions at the blogger cafe and the MassCUE reception, I personally spoke with Steve Hargadon, Will Richardson, Kathy Schrock, Joyce Valenza and Chris Lehmann. Joyce even mentioned my podcasting project in her presentation. I wish I had brought my autograph book.

It is interesting to me how starstruck I am by these people. I know they are teachers just like, but through their blogging and presentations I have found them to be inspiring educators. I guess I shouldn't be embarrassed by my awe of these people. It is just amazing to me that I've gotten the opportunity to shake their hands. I thank the edublogosphere for that!

Blogging with Grandma

My mother-in-law writes a family note every week and sends it out via e-mail. She lets us all know what she has been up to, sends us pictures and also updates us about each other. I recently suggested that she set up a blog as a better way to communicate with all of us. She can write her weekly notes as blog entries and post and share her pictures. We can comment on her blog and the whole family can see our comments. Finally, we can add her blog to our aggregator and read it along with the rest of the news we regularly read. There are many free blogging services, I'm using one of them right now, that are easy to set up and use. Check out this great wiki on blogging for lots of ideas and resources.

You may be asking your self "What is an aggregator?"An aggregator is a tool that uses RSS feeds to collect all of your news in one place. Still confused? Watch this great video to learn more. If you would like to set up your own aggregator, I've put together a series of screencasts to teach you how. If grandma can do it, so can you!