ECI 834 - Post 1 - Introduction and Thr3e Goals

     Hello my name is Dylan Johns and I live just outside Lumsden, with my wife, son, daughter, 2 dogs and 3 cats in a straw bale house that I built on an acreage on my family's farmland (as you can see in the photo).  When not enjoying building or outdoor pursuits, I am quite interested in technology, especially to do with teaching.  I have played with many online platforms and flipped classroom methods over the years and am excited to learn more. 

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     I also really enjoy canoeing, camping, snowboarding, cross-country skiing, woodworking and guitar.  I have taught for 14 years, 13 of those years in Regina Public Schools, in Construction, Math and Social Studies.  I have been a Core Leader for 4 years now.
     I have recently embraced Screen-Castify and it is one of my goals to use this service more effectively to give students instructions and get feedback from students using Submit.  So in terms of a goal related to ECI 834, I am hoping to learn how best to engage students using pre-recorded webcam and screenshare lessons and interaction.   Another goal I have for the semester is to try and teach live math lessons during the hybrid model, where students are receiving the lesson both in class and online simultaneously; a special type of blended learning.  I hope this will be more lively than the pre-recorded flipped lessons I have tried in the past.  My last goal is to embrace and try at least one new platform in my classes to expand what I know (Flipgrid seemed really neat!).  As a current Core Leader for Grade 9 teachers, many colleagues look to me for inspiration, and advice.  So familiarity with many different sites, methods and platforms serves me well in this regard!  This is not necessarily a goal, but I am also excited to learn from all of my classmates and Mr. Couros, in terms of what everyone uses, and what works best for your students for online and blended learning.
     The one link I will share is my favorite podcast, which is not related to education but has changed my life in terms of financial education (even though much of the information is from the US):  https://www.choosefi.com/.  I would recommend trying episode 038-the-why-of-fi if you would like to give it a listen, you can also find it on any podcast platform!  This is what I do on my commute to and from work.
     I am excited to be taking this course with you all as it could not be more timely!  Thanks for reading.