Connecting to Students in a New Way

This week I wanted to focus on Chapter 8 A Literacy Pedagogy for Multimodal Composing by McVee.  There was one section that I mainly wanted to focus on, in the section of Why Multimodal Inquiry, all the information I found to be very helpful in how they want to make the shift from a traditional classroom to the 21st century classroom.  I found that this section of the chapter provides us as future teachers insight into what our classrooms may be like when we become teachers.  In my opinion traditional classrooms do not hold interests in students to learn, and it does not give them a chance to practice with new tools that they will probably use in higher education.  As McVee explains traditional schooling is what is causing "student disengagement in classrooms," and she is exactly right.  Students are not able to express themselves freely if they are not given even the slightest chance too (McVee 116).  Since most of students outside lives are engulfed by technology, why not bring it into the classroom somehow.  It will keep the students engaged and they will be more willing to learn something new and will be excited to experience a new way to learn it.  Students at times may not seem like they care and I am sure some of us were like that in some point in our educational journey, but in all reality they do care.  They want to get out of it as much as they can.  So why not as a teacher put the time in to make there educational experience the best it can be.  "We believe many students desperately want to see school as connected to who they are and are becoming...," and this is especially because technology is a major part of the new generation, it is what they use in their daily lives (McVee 116).  So why not connect technology, multimodality somehow to the classroom, give the students a feeling that we listen to them and give them the feeling of importance.  I mean isn't that why we are all becoming teachers? To change the lives of students and to see them become successful.  I think making the change from traditional classrooms to the use of multimodality in the classroom is something that we will see more and more teachers switch over to in the next few years.  It may take some teachers who use the traditional way of teaching to switch over, mainly because they are not willing to take the time out to learn it, but eventually I think we will get there.  As teachers we should not be afraid to learn new things, after all we are teaching students new things.  So why not learn together, in the end it will benefit both the teacher and student. 

And this week....a Digital Movie

In my Production and Utilization of Instructional Technology class this past week we learned how to make a digital movie.  I chose to write about this because I saw it to be similar to the 20 shot story we did a couple weeks ago.  We used Windows Media Player and PowerPoint to complete the digital movie.  When she mentioned that we where going to use Windows Media Player, I was not as nervous because I was able to get familiar with it with the 20 shot story project.  Although we did not finish our digital movie yet, we spent the whole class period to learn all the ins and outs of how to make a successful digital movie.  Learning how to make a digital movie or 20 shot story at first maybe kind of scary and intimidating, at least my first experience was especially because I am the worst at speaking in front of people,  but once you get the hang of it, it becomes second nature.  I find a lot of similiarities between these two classes, in that pedagogy is first and technology is then incorporated into the learning process.  I am glad I am getting the chance to learn some of these multimodal tools twice, it is giving me the chance to really practice with them, so one day when I have students of my own I am able to clearly explain it to them.  Just like anything else, the more you practice, the easier it becomes. 

Success: The 20 Shot Story

I absolutely loved doing this 20 shot story, I had to best time doing it and my teams story turned out great, it will definitely bring some laughs to the class on Monday.  I had my doubts about doing the 20 shot story because I am far from an actress and really never had to do something like this before.  I never thought that I would be one of the main characters in front of the camera.  After we started filming my nerves calmed down, and I just had to realize to just have fun with it.  My group and I had the best time filming the 20 shot story which made it a lot easier to be able to play one of the main actors in our story The Necklace.  I learned so much from doing the 20 shot story, especially the camera angles, which we had a variety of throughout our 20 frames. I was able to grasp the concept of how important camera angles are in a movie and how they are able to capture each moment from a specific angle.  Doing this project made me step out of my comfort zone and really opened my eyes to a whole new multimodal tool that I have never worked with before.    

A New Way to Get EXCITED About Reading

One thing I highly enjoyed in the article Using Graphic Texts in Secondary Classrooms: A Tale of Endurance by Mary Rice is that it focuses primarily on secondary education which is what grade I want to pursue as a teacher.  So I was really pleased that this article focused on multimedia uses in upper level classrooms.  Graphic novels are something that you have to read slowly and really focus on what you are reading in order to fully grasp what is going on.  I think this is a great idea to use in a classroom, it gives students the time to slow down, take there time, and really get the chance to fully comprehend the story without having to be rushed.  Although graphic novels are something new to me, I am willing to try to incorporate them into my classroom one day and I know I will have to spend my own time studying them and fully grasping the concept of graphic novels.  As Mary described it "I knew I was going to have to put just as much or more effort to use them in class," which means as a teacher in order for you to use them in your classroom, you have to have a full understanding in order to teach it to your students properly so they can get as much out of it as possible (Rice 38).  I also really liked how Rice mentioned that graphic novels or comics were recommended for "slow-learners" (Rice 38).  So graphic novels not only help express students creativity which we all know is something that I like to focus on, it also helps students who read at a slower pace.  Graphic novels seem to be beneficial in many ways,  and "teachers have been heavily advised to teach using graphic texts," which I think they should (Rice 38).  I think it is important as a teacher to open up students to as many multimedia tools as you can, it gives them a chance to be able to work with new material and use it later on in life.  Something I would do as teacher with using graphic novels is have the students pick their favorite graphic novel and then create their own putting themselves into the novel, and by doing this the students not only will learn how relate the words with graphics, it gives them a chance to express themselves through pictures, a different media.  Using graphic novels in a classroom gives the students a chance to experience something new and experience a new way of learning and expressing themselves.  I think students should be able to get excited about reading, and I think using graphic novels in the classroom is a great way to do that.   

Image Retrieved from:  http://www.ntlibrary.org/2012/04/graphic-novel-collection/grahpic-2/

Movie Inspiration

Finally got the chance to watch Life of Pi, I am so glad I did, it was such amazing movie with a great story and the visual effects were unbelievable.  I recommend everyone to watch this movie.  When watching this movie, I was thinking to myself what a great idea it would be to have students pick a movie of their choosing, of course being school appropriate, write a short summary on the movie and then make a 20 shot story board on what they thought the most important scenes of the movie were.  It would be interesting to see what each student would come up with, the different perspectives from each student.  I know it is not very content based but movies are such good inspiration, I might only be saying that because I absolutely love movies.  It would get the students to look at something from a different angle, a different perspective and be able to understand the importance of a movie and the purpose of why it was made.  To end the project have each student share their thoughts on the movie and show the class the story board they made to summarize what they thought the most important parts of the movie were.  This would give the students a different way of learning and how to understand movies, and of course how it relates to the importance of writing.  It would also allow the students to express their creativity, and we all know that creativity is very important, at least to me when it comes to teaching.  Allowing students to express themselves, gives them the sense of confidence and pride in their work, it allows their creativity to show through.  


I certainly did not think when I sat down to watch Life of Pi, that this idea would come out of it.  I guess my love of movies paid off, who knew?

 Let me know what you think?  What are your opinions on this spur of the moment idea?

You Learn Something New Each Day

In my Production Utilization and Technology class last week our class met at the Technology Learning Center in the library to learn more about the Smart board and what it all has to offer.  I have only  used a Smart board a total of probably three times in my life so I was interested to see what it could really do.  While we were there, one of the helpers showed us all the activities you can do on the Smart board, from things such as disecting a frog which could come in handy for a Biology class, locating cities on a map which could be helpful for a History class, and a crossoword puzzle which could be used as a study guide pretty much for any class.  I never thought that the Smart board had all of those activities included with it.  It gives students the chance to be able to interact in different ways with their peers, and I think it is a different way to show students how to learn about new things no matter the subject.  I am so glad we go to learn more about the Smart board, and I hope that I will be able to practice with it a little more in my future classes, and be able to explore all that it has to offer.  I think it is a useful tool that should be placed in every classroom, of course if the school is able to afford one. 

I am really enjoying learning all of these new tools that I hope to one day use in my classroom.  As a teacher giving the students a chance to experience something new that they may have not experienced before and something that they can take with them, and that they will hopefull enjoy enough to use in other classes and to share with their peers. 

More on Podcasting

I have decided to blog a little more on podcasting, since I enjoyed it so much for the book review project we had to do in class.  I am going to be honest I was a little hesitant on podcasting since I have never heard of it or used it.  I went in optimistic to say the least because it was a chance for me to learn something new, and the gain knowledge on a new tool that may be useful when I become a teacher.  I think it is an amazing idea to use podcasting for a book review, I feel like instead of the traditional book report with paper and a pencil, this give the students a chance to express their creativity and be able to set it up how they want.  What I mean when I say set up, I mean in the different ways they can go about scripting and recording the podcast, such as an interview, or talk show which I think is one of the better ways to go about podcasting a book report.  It not only gets the point of the book across and incorporates things learned in the classroom it also does it in a way that will have the podcast stick in the students minds since they can put their own spin on it, and gives them a chance to also have a little fun with it.  Which as we all know in most traditional assessments there is usually no room for creativity.  When I become a teacher that is one thing I am going to stress, to not shun students creativity because I think it is very important for a student to be able to express themselves, especially in their work.  Podcasting is one way I will try to incorporate creativity in my students whil still using classroom work.  My goal is to keep a happy balance among myself and my students by incorporating new tools into the classroom, which my hope is to bring multimodality into their world. 

Best of Both Worlds

This week I wanted to focus on the article by Donna Joan Lund, Video Production in the English Language Arts Classroom.  The reason I chose to focus on this article was because I wanted to learn more about video production use in the classroom.  Before reading this article I really had no idea or ever experienced using this in the classroom.  The section that caught  my attention was the oral communication activities, especially because I am probably the worst public speaker and turn beat red in front of any audience.  Incorporating oral communication into video production allows the student to experience both tools and to become confident when speaking in front of the audience, which is a common fear among most people.  Having students produce a video and present it to the audience will prepare them for when they have to go to college and speak in front of hundreds of their peers, and it will also prepare them for their future careers when they have to speak in front of managers, CEO's or a higher up position in a company.  In this section one part that I thought was of great importance was that, "self-awareness that dawns on students when they see and hear themselves revealed on camera," which gives the students the chance to see themselves on camera and be able to perfect their speeches, so that when they  present their work they will be confident that they did their best job, and that will project to the teacher and students that they came prepared. 

As a teacher I hope I have the resources to be able to allow my students to do this, I think it is would be a great experience and it would give the students knowledge both in communication and the use of technology, the best of both worlds. 

Searching, Searching, Found It!

After reading Chapter 3 What are Blogs, Wikis, and Digital Stories by D.J. Wilber I was truly inspired to have an all out internet search to get more information on all of the links he cited in this chapter.  Although all of them were highly interesting I found two to be more helpful and engaging than the others.  Journeys which is the title of Diane's blog who uses inspiration to drive her blog and also Links to School Bloggers which gives a detailed list of hundreds of blog websites that are for education majors or just for someone who has an interest in education.  I know we are only suppose to talk about one this week so I had to weigh the pros and cons of each and decide on one to delve into more.

The one I chose to learn even more about was Diane's blog, her inspirational and helpful words that kept me interesting in wanting to read more.  It shows that she is truly passionate about what she is doing and it comes through when she is blogging about certain events or as her blog is titled journeys she has taken.  This blog really engaged me and I actually was thinking about following her blog to see what else she has to say because her journeys are what many of us have to go through to get where we want to be, so seeing someone elses story helps to ease it a little more.  One quotation she uses in her blog that I found to be highly important, that stuck with me was, "Sometimes learning means taking chances," which is so true (Diane's blog).  When I saw that quotation I automatically applied it to what we are learning in class.  All the new tools we are learning how to use and how to incorporate multimodality into the classroom is all about learning and not being afraid to step outside of our comfort zone and try something that in the end can have great benefits.  I am sure I will be writing more on my blog about what Diane has to say, I think  her inspirational words will keep me motivated in moving on in my career because I am very passionate about becoming a teacher and getting kids to become successful and take that next step in their lives. 

I encourage all of my classmates to take a look at this blog and I hope you find it just as inspirational and helpful as I did.  Also how some of her blogs relate to what we are doing or reading about in class.  Just remember in some point of our lives we all have a journey of our own that we will take and learn from and who knows maybe one day I will write a blog about my educational journery as well. 

Introducing Yourself Becomes Easier

Glogster, a new tool that I have been using this year among many others in my classes.  I have been using this in my Production and Utilization of Instructional Technology, for two projects my professor has assigned us.  I am also presenting this next week in class, and I am excited to show my classmates who have never experienced this before how beneficial it can be to a classroom.  I think this is a great way to have students introduce themselves instead of standing in a group of people turning pale in front of there eyes and being nervous.  Most of the time people can tell you are nervous which makes it much more difficult because public speaking is one of the greatest fears among people, so finding any way to make it easier, such as Glogster makes it easier for students to tell the class a little about themselves without that fear.  Glogster is a website were you can add videos, sounds, graphics and pictures to tell your story.  It also gives you templates to choose from that fit any personality.  Not only are you including technology into the classroom, it gives the students a chance to open up and try something new.  I think it is something middle and high school level teachers should think about when wanting to come up with new and clever ways to get to know the students, it not only gives the students a chance to gain new knowledge, it eases the nerves for the first day of school, which pretty much all of us can remember that feeling.  It also can be tool for future projects they do in there middle school, high school, and college career.  I know where I went to high school I was rarely introduced to new technology and I wish one of my teachers would of introduced these tools to the classroom.  To be honest, most of the things we talk about in class I have never heard of because I was not fortunate enough to be introduced to these tools in high school.  I am so glad we are learning about all these new tools, technology and multimodality, it has opened me up to so many new ideas that I would have never thought about using, and I cannot wait to use them in my classroom.  To be able to open up new opportunites for my students that I never got the chance to experience until I got to college will be so rewarding. 

Practice Makes Perfect

When reading over The Nuts and Bolts of Creating and Using Blogs, Wikis, and Digital Stories in Your Classroom, I was very pleased in to how in depth each section went.  They explained how to set them up and then how to incorporate into a classroom setting.  I just wish the section on blogs was something I had read before we created one for class because I honestly had no idea how to use one and this would of been tremendous help.  Something that I did like about the blogs section was that Wilber gave you three different ways in which to set up a blog for your classroom, which was very useful to see the different aspects.  One blog that caught my eye was the ability to create a collaborative class blog, so that both the teacher and student can make original posts to the blog, which I think is very important because it takes both student and teacher to make a classroom work, especially when introducing something new, it lets the students know that you are willing to put in the time to learn just as much as they are.  Something that I think in a classroom would work well is "repsonding to reading a novel or short story," not only are you being introduced into new technology but are able to incorporate classroom terms and skills as well, so you are learning literacy in two ways (Wilber 68).  I love the idea that authors can look up blogs to see the comments that students have made, like Sue Monk Kidd did with the students who blogged about her book The Secret Life of Bees, she took the time out to answer questions that the students posted, just like the students took the time out to write comments about her book, which she was delighted about.  Not only does blogging about a book give the students the ability to connect with the author, it gives them the opportunity to "publish their ideas and make them available to the world at large, including the authors of the books they read"(Wilber 69).  By putting the blogs out there for everyone to see, it gives the students the feeling of importance, that there is someone out there that cares about what they have to say, which in the end will make them confident about there work.  I really enjoyed reading this, I mainly focused on blogs because it is something still new to me that I want to learn more about.  Not that I am not interested in wikis or digital stories, I want to perfect blogging before I take the next step into the others. 

Prezi or PowerPoint? Up to You to Choose

 The topic I am going to focus on today comes from something I just learned in my Production and Utilization of Instructional Technology course.  We just got done recently making a digital safety poster for students of the middle grade level.  The objective of this was to add technology into this lesson by using PowerPoint.  The purpose of this project was to make a poster promoting safety for a subject that we chose.  On the PowerPoint it needed to contain a catchy title, a graphic, three important facts to promote safety, and it had to be readable and show some creativity.  By doing this poster it shows that technology can be incorporated into any project or lesson, but remembering that content and pedagogy always come first, technology should be the last thing added into a lesson.  I chose to discuss this because in our last classroom discussion we all talked about the difference of PowerPoint and Prezi and which one we thought was better, and it was fifty-fifty.  I only know of PowerPoint, I have never heard of Prezi but I am excited to learn about it and how it helpful and applies to the classroom.  I know PowerPoint can be helpful to a classroom from my experience in using it in many times throughout my school career, and I am sure Prezi provides the same yet different qualities that it can bring to the classroom.  It mainly comes down to personal opinion and which one fits your style of teaching better, or simply just one you like better or are more comfortable with using.  I am anxious to see how this works, hopefully it is something else I can add on my list to take with me when I become a teacher.

               

VS.            

                                     

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Prezi_logo.jpg
http://denverlibrary.org/content/presenting-panache

Creativity is Key

Before reading this article I knew what podcasting was, but what I did not know was that it could be used/incorporated in such a way in a classroom.  It gives students the ability to express there creativity while still including things they learned from writing traditional book reports, such as, "attention to mood, form, selection of key quotes, perspective, and audience" (Rozema 32).  Being able to express yourself, is what will make more students confident in there work and be proud to show there work off to there classmates.  Opening them up to things other than a paper and pencil, it will INSPIRE them to use things that may be different and non-traditional, that could be used in other classrooms or when they move onto higher education.  Everything we have learned in this class so far really excites me, showing that there is more than one way to learn something, and not to be afraid to express yourself, your creativity, not to be afraid to step outside of the box.  I cannot wait to be able to include these elements into my classroom, the use of multimodality is still new to me but as I progress I am sure it will become second nature.  Podcasting is something I will consider when I have my own classroom, it is something that no one would expect to come out of a high school classroom, which is why I would want to do it.  To open up students to a whole new world and experiences, by just using multimodality.  Even though it will take me a while to get the gist of it, I will just have to learn and practice just like all of us have to do in some point in our lives, to learn anything. 

Something I really enjoyed from this article is when Rozema said he publishes the best students work or "podcasts to iTunes, "which he puts out for the world to see.  That the students are able to see there work being showcased, showing them that creativity and trying new things isn't so bad after all.  That he is willling to take time out of his day to do better for his students, to show them hard work and focus really does pay off.  You never know that something like podcasting could lead to a future career or will be included somewhere throughout your life.  As a teacher I will try my hardest to make the classroom memorable and be able to see my students become successful and knowing that I was part of what got them there. 

"Listening to digital audio content won’t replace reading, listening to live presentations, or the multitude of other ways learners take in information, but it can augment those methods."-Eva Kaplan-Leiserson is associate editor of Learning Circuits 

http://hear2cast.blogspot.com/2006/04/more-podcast-quotes.html

Who Would of Thought???

Very hesitant to connect with the world again, I caved in and recently joined Twitter.  I have only had it for a few days and I am still trying to get the hang of it, so hopefully I will master it soon.  While on this social media website a couple things came to mind on how I could incorporate this into my classroom one day.  I was thinking that all the students could make a twitter account and follow eachother for things that are happening in the classroom, to get them familiar with multimodality, and the use of a new technology, even though I think most will already have one.  Each week have the students post one quotation or excerpt from the book we are reading at that time, and explain why they chose it.  I know Twitter only gives you a certain amount of words you can tweet with, so it would have to be two separate tweets, one there quotation or excerpt and one explaining why.  This will hopefully get the students to interact with one another and also be able to connect the two literacies together, which will show them that today literacy is not only interpreted in text but through technology as well.  So maybe one day when I am finally able to teach, I hope that I am able to bring the term multimodality into the classroom, especially since the world is changing and becoming engulfed with new ideas and technologies. 

http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2009/03/50-twitter-comic-strips/

It Seems Like Learning Is Not Going to Be Easy

Switching gears for this blog, I focused more on Miller and McVee.  Wanted everyone to get my point of view out of each book we have to read.  I am not going to lie, reading the beginning of chapter 2 kind of made me scared, not to teach but to integrate multimodal tools in the classroom.  I am willing to learn how to use them, I am just afraid I learn, the first day I step into my classroom I will somewho become nervous and forget.  After getting deeper into the chapter, I realized learning is a process we all have to do throughout our lives or we will never be able to move on, whether it be the teacher or the students.  It is sad to say that, "students in 21st-century classrooms don't know a worl without the affordances of these digital technologies, " which is so true, which is why as teachers or students, you have to be willing to learn even if you make a mistake (Miller, McVee 13).  Learning anything new, in this case technology takes a group effort, and input and support from your students and yourself, makes the transition a little more calming, and takes you from stressed to at ease, which is where I will be my first day, I just know it, I will be the teacher who rips her hair out the first day, I am exaggerating a little too much.  I am the type of person who wants everything to be right, so for me that is going to be the most difficult; to have to accept the fact that I will make a mistake and I will just have to learn from it.  Gee states that "Learning," "should be both frustrating and life enhancing, "this quotation I think is the most important one throughout the whole chapter, the one that future teachers should carry along with them, throughout the teaching process.  It shows that no matter if you are the teacher or student, there is always room for learning, and you should not be afraid to take the next step and hesitate to do so because in the end you will show not only yourself but your students, that this is your PASSION, and you are willing to do whatever it takes to engage them and make them become better students, even if it means learning something that might take you by surprise.

I do apologize, sometimes I write so much I forget that it only has to be a paragraph long.  Teaching is something I am passionate about, it is something I could talk about forever.  I cannot wait until the day when I am able to help students achieve there goals in life, and open them up to new things such as multimodality.

Yayyy Literacy!!!

Talking about literacy in our first class, really got me thinking of what literacy honestly means, so I took it upon myself to use the dictionary (in case you wanted to look for yourselves) to find the proper term for what literacy means.  There is nothing in the term that says anything about multimodal tools, i just simply says that literacy is the quality of being literate; especially to read and write.  Even though the definition says the quality of being literate, it does not go into detail about the different ways in which an individual can be literate.  Although, this may be true and what we have all pretty must been taught since we were in school, now a days literacy has a whole new meaning.  To be literate just does not mean to be able to read and write, and do not get me wrong those are extremely IMPORTANT; in my opinion it is the ability to use media, voice, sounds, signs, etc. also known as multimodality (which I know is Professor Oldakowski's favorite term) and be able to include them in such places as the classroom.  Honestly, before this class I just thought being literate meant being able to read and write, such as the definition says.  I never in a million years thought it would include the use of multimodality  and the integration we are seeing in classrooms these days.  Literacy is of great importance when becoming a teacher and being able to learn and accept the new ways to be literate in todays world.   

“Who made you Queen of Literacy? Go sit in your car!”- Jackson Pearce

Through the Eyes of a Student

I am really enjoying reading Adolescents and Digital Literacies by Sara Kajder, it keeps me interested, and every chapter focuses on a different form of literacy.  I have never read a text such as this one before this class.  I like in the beginning how Kajder describes a scene about a student, she introduces the student, but also has a way of making the reader feel like they are along with that student.  In Chapter 2, although many things caught my attention, I want to mainly focus on a quotation that I thought was interesting when I came across it.  "The deal here isn't that I used a technology.  It is that I used a technology to be smarter in school," and this quotation really caught my attention; it not only shows a different literacy than text, it shows that not all technology is social and that it can be used for educational and learning purposes as well (Kajder 16).  As an aspiring teacher, this is something that I will think about when students are using different technologies in the classroom, and not to assume that they are using it in inappropriate ways.  The section where the quotation came out of is where I was most engaged because it came from the students point-of-view, and the two other stories in the chapter, and really made me think of what kind of student I was in high school, and if I incorporated enough multimodal tools in my school work,  even though my high school did not offer to many opportunities to do so.  Hopefully, when I become I teacher I will be able to take into consideration that the students have important things to say and opinions, have there own voice about including different technologies into the classroom, and to make them more accessible for all students because it is important these days to introduce multimodal tools into the classroom, at least in my opinion. 

Just an end quotation that I thought summed up the whole chapter, shown on the very first page.  "Digital youth can "always on," in constant contact with friends via texting, instant messaging, mobile phones, and Internet connections...."(Kajder 13). 

Hello Everyone =)

My name is Casey.  I am from Pittsburgh, I am a true city girl, and yes I am a Steelers fan.  I am a sophomore at Slippery Rock University and I am studying Secondary Education English.  The grade I want to especially teach are high school seniors, don't ask why I would put myself through that, it is just something I have always wanted to do.  A few interests and things about myself:

• Skiing
• Baking
• Watching movies, I am an avid movie-goer.
• Hanging out with friends and family, I have the most amazing family and friends and I do not know what I would do without them.
• Writing, when I have time.
• I am horrible at math, hence why I am becoming and English teacher.
• I love animals, especially dogs.
• If I could I would live near the beach, the beach can somehow relax me.
• If you know me I am very impatient.
• Without stress, I wouldn't have any energy at all. 
• One day I will learn how to relax and TAKE ONE DAY AT A TIME. 
• I was told that I was very personable and easy going/laid back. 
• I am not afraid to try anything once, including food.
• I would love to go white water rafting, swim with the dolphins, and go horseback riding.
• I am deathly afraid of airplanes, but a place I would love to go is Australia, I will get there somehow.  
• DON'T BE AFRAID TO TAKE CHANCES, AND DO SOMETHING THAT YOU MAY HAVE THOUGHT TO YOURSELF YOU WOULD NEVER DO, YOU NEVER KNOW YOU MAY LEARN A LOT ABOUT YOURSELF!!!

I really hope you enjoy my blogs, enough to hold your interest. 

"Keep smiling because life is a beautiful thing and there is so much to smile about" Marilyn Monroe