Head East Young Man!

I'll be going to Lake Benton, MN today, to work on their technology issues.

Can't wait until next summer, since we are all moved in now, when I can load up the kids and go visit Lake Benton for recreation!

Have a good day everyone.

Friday, Oct. 12: Weekend Update

Congratulations to Justin and Heidi, as they qualified for the State CC meet yesterday.  It was windy and cold conditions in Flandreau yesterday.... proud of all the CC runners.

Good Luck to the Elk football team tonight as they host the Estelline Redmen.

I have the library's computers loaded, and should be putting them in today.  Will be able to start loading the computers for Roland colony soon.

I am planning on installing the projectors next week in Grades K-3.  Hopefully this goes smoothly.

Boys BB Coach Steve Erickson and I have been in discussions about 3rd and 4th grade boys basketball.  Keep your eyes peeled.

This weekend the South Dakota State Jackrabbits host the Western Illinois Leathernecks.  I am hoping to be in attendance.  Go Big.  Go Blue.  Go Jacks.

The Chargers actually play on Monday Night this week, so they won't be active until Monday.

The Harmings will be hanging around Elkton this weekend... doing some more stuff, getting the house in order.  Things are coming together pretty nicely.

Hope everyone has a great weekend.

For the Friday Video, I thought I'd play a little Spoon.

Enjoy, "The Underdog"

Tuesday Teacher Tidbits: Websites

Did you know that this Friday is World Teachers' Day?

Inspiring Video below on the use of Google Drive - using forms to connect with students.

I really enjoyed that.

Just a quick note:  Tomorrow, October 3rd I will be working in Lake Benton, and then I will be leaving work at 12:30 pm to attend the Dakota Valley Conference Cross Country Meet held in DeSmet.

Instead of looking at tools and/or giving technology tips today, I thought it might be fun to share some interesting websites that you can possibly utilize in your classroom, or in research, or just in day to day work.

1.  http://www.google.com/edu/

-Google in Education website, just a good "portal" to access all of Google's education resources.
I really like this page - a showcase of student work using Google tools.  Great place to just get some ideas of things you can do.

2.  http://yesiknowthat.com/

-Interesting website with a lot of little know facts in all sorts of subject areas.
Good Example:  Article on Glaciers - could be useful in Science or Geography classes.

3.  http://mashable.com/

-Website dedicated to Social Media news and Web tips.
It's mostly Tech stuff, but there is a ton of information on here, like this article on Fake Apple Discount Cards.

4.  http://lifehacker.com/

-Website that focuses on technology, but also life in general, work, and just getting things done.
Example:  Enjoyed this article on why work stresses us out.

5.  http://tinybuddha.com/

-Just a neat little website with sayings and quotes to "find inner peace".  Great website to go to when you're feeling stressed out, anxious, nervous, etc.  Read a couple quotes, take a couple deep breaths, and go about your day.
Example:  Really liked this quote.  So much so, I printed it and hung it on my door yesterday.
(I actually discovered this website by following "Tiny Buddha" on Google+)

tiny buddha can help you relax.

6.  http://tvfury.wordpress.com/

-This is not really a classroom resource like the other websites, but still one I recommend.  TV Fury is the "pet writing project" of Terry Vandrovec (the Argus Leader SDSU beat writer) and Shawn Fury ( a writer in New York City).
-The neat thing about tvfury is that it's not just about sports, even though both of the writers are basically sports writers.  They cover all sorts of topics from movies, to the "big soda" ban in New York City, to just about everything under the sun.
-Both Shawn and Terry are both accomplished writers, so usually the articles are pretty darn good, and they post something new every single work day.
-The reason I include TVFury on this list, is not as an educational tool, but an example of the power of writing.  How can we include writing and the expression of our ideas in our classes?  TVFury shows that the number of topics, is basically...unlimited.
-Plus they also let the occasional "doofus" do a guest column for them, every once in a while.
.

Friday, September 28th

Weekend Update for Mr. Harming's Blog

Saying "Weekend Update" makes me think of Seth Meyers.

As the week pulls to a close, I have completed the software installations for the Elementary School Touchscreen computers! (applause)

The electricians were able to get outlets installed for the projectors early this week, and so we will begin installing those...one room at a time.

Homecoming week seemed to be a rousing success to me.  It would have been nice to have won the game, but it was close, and entertaining.

The South Dakota State University Jackrabbits will be hosting the Missouri State Bears this weekend, in The Beef Bowl.  The Jacks played well last week in knocking out a very good Indiana State team.

The San Diego Chargers will travel to Kansas City to play the Chiefs this weekend.  Two teams with vastly different approaches this year...the Chiefs kinda stunk the first two weeks, and won last week.  The Chargers won the first two weeks, and stunk last week.  Be a big win for the Lightning Bolts if they pull this one out.

The Harming family will be making a trip out west to Chamberlain this weekend.  It will be our last trip to the "River City" for quite a while.  I hope to get a run in this weekend.  With all the moving and packing and unpacking, and the installation of services, and figuring out all the new stuff... I just haven't been able to run.  I really miss it.

Have a great weekend Everyone!  It's supposed to be beautiful, so get outside and enjoy it!

For your weekend video let's go with a little... R.E.M.

Enjoy "Pretty Persuasion"

Tuesday...Teacher Technology Tidbits

Been a very busy week in the tech office.  Between getting the touchscreen computers loaded with software, dealing with technology issues with student computers, and a few other things that have popped up, I've barely had a minute to catch my breathe.

But I think I'm starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel.

Today's Technology Tool is a Voki.

http://www.voki.com/

A Voki is a speaking avatar that you can put into your webpage.  Kind of a neat thing to play around with, and I believe you can have students use them too.

I haven't done much with them, although this is something I do want to add to my webpage.
http://mh176.k12.sd.us/

Today is Camo Day for Homecoming week, and I normally like to dress up for Homecoming days, but I do not own a single item of camouflage... So probably the best I can do with that is an old song from Stan Ridgeway in the 80's.

Good Luck to the Cross Country Team as they travel to Dell Rapids Tomorrow!
Good Luck to the Girls Volleyball Team on Thursday as they travel to Estelline!
Good Luck to the Football Team as they host the Homecoming game this Friday against Arlington.

Tomorrow - Wednesday, I will be meeting with a few JH classes in the morning on internet safety, and then traveling to Lake Benton.

I will also be leaving school around 2:30 pm on Wednesday to attend the CC meet!

Have a great Homecoming week everyone!

Tuesday Teacher Tidbits: Windows updates

Just a real, real, short "Tidbits" for today.

One thing that happens to computers, especially when they have not been used for a while, is that they haven't been "updated".  Microsoft Windows run frequent "updates" to their programs, and typically try to install them in your computer about once a week or so.  (It can vary)

You may have seen something like this pop up on your computer from time to time:

While you don't have to run the updates immediately, it is good practice to do them when you have time, or at least when you shut down for the day.

The reasons for the updates are multiple, but without going into too much detail...they help your computer run better and faster.

If you haven't run your computers for awhile, you may have several updates that need to be installed on your machine.  This can take as little as 10 minutes, or as long as several hours.

Sometimes you might see a little yellow exclamation point when you go to shutdown your computer.

This means that updates need to be installed, before the computer shuts down.  When you see this, it is important that you do NOT close the screen until the updates are complete.  It is not necessary to close the lid anyway, as the machine will shut down when finished.

So...things to remember:

1.  Run your windows updates (as often as you can)

2.  Restart your computer when you can..when you see the warning box.

3.  When you see an "update warning" when you shut down... DO NOT close the lid until the updates are complete.

Have a great school year everyone!

Monday, August 13th

Back at work this morning.  Taylor and Cameron came with me this trip, to start Cross Country practice today.

Hopefully Dad can convince them to come and help with getting some of the computers ready.

Continuing to place orders for toner, and other things.

Computer bags for the HS netbooks are in!

I'll be busy imaging some nettop computers this afternoon.  And doing a few other things.

Busy week ahead of me.  Probably a few late nights.

Headed to Lake Benton

I'm leaving to work at Lake Benton School in about 15 minutes or so.

If you need to get in touch with me, just send an e-mail to my state e-mail account:  mark.harming@k12.sd.us

I should be back in Elkton some time this afternoon.

Back to the grind.

I got back to the school today a little after noon.

Busy, busy, busy, in the technology office.  Lots of equipment coming in, and lots of work for me to do.

Got a few more things ordered today, and continue to work towards getting everything ready for the new school year.

Monday at work

Hope everyone had a great weekend.

I am putting in a few more hours this week.

Getting lots of tech equipment in the mail, and working toward completing all the orders and getting everything up and functional by the start of the school year.


I'm sure I am going to be very busy in the coming weeks, installing programs, and putting in hardware.  Hopefully things turn out for the best.  I am going to try my best to be ready for the "Open House" on August 16th.


Have a good one! 

Wednesday.

Well, today I'm logging some new equipment in the technology inventory and ordering some more new equipment.

It's been a productive week, and I'm slowly but surely getting the hang of things.

Yesterday, I added my first teacher to the school network.  Starting to feel like a real tech guy.