Author: kathleen

We have expanded, and now have a group of supervisors.  Since I've never had a supervisory role, I'm still "just" an instructor.  But I am the person they use when they need to replace an instructor.  Partly because I teach so many courses, and partly I am so flexible.  That means I will get all the students from an instructor who leaves us (happened twice), or I get students who have issues with another instructor.

By the way, I occasionally have to give up a student because we don't get along.  Hasn't happened in a few years now, but no everyone meshes well.

I don't get a lot of Advanced Scratch these days, I don't think we get as many students for that course as we used to.

I do get a lot of Python students.  We start that in third grade.  We have two courses, one for third to fifth graders, one for six grade to ninth.  

I am now teaching the entire Web Design series — Introduction to Web Design, Advanced Web Design, which is more CSS than not, and Interactive Web Design with JavaScript.

I still REALLY enjoy it, though the last two years has been very intense.  

When I took the job, it was supposed to be part time, and I was supposed to be training other trainers.

A couple of weeks in, we got a new person in charge of instructors and that didn’t fit with him plans.

He pushed at me to be a regular instructor and be full time, but at the end of each day, I couldn’t see out of my right eye and my weight loss stalled.

There is a reason to have junior college and college programs to teach technology.

Learning technology for the first time takes a lot of time of reflection.  5 1/2 months – 40 hours a week is too intense both for students and for instructors.

It doesn’t allow enough time for homework or reflection.  It also doesn’t allow instructors enough reflection and adaption time.

I don’t recommend boot camps for either the instructor or for the student.  Especially after living it for a few months.

 I'm currently in the process of scrubbing my social media — just unpublished all the related blog posts and already removed everything from LinkedIn.

It was an interesting little side journey and it made me realize just how good I have it.  A part-time job I love and can do anywhere.   My family. My dogs.

I'm returning to retirement and won't try anywhere else again.

If the job had been what had been promised — working remotely and teaching both students and instructors I would still be there.  I wasn't supposed to work in the office.  I was working with a junior instructor and was supposed to be teaching him.  Would have been nice if he had been told that — but I'm guessing that he hadn't been told that.    We were all told we were going back to the office last Monday — and we were to return that week.

I wish them all good luck.  They need it.

I really like it.

It’s very small, a bit bigger than a tennis ball and very light.  I was hoping for that, as I want to take it with me on trips.  We’ll see how that works out this weekend.

It has a USB-C plug and came with a wall wart, something that the iPhone Pro Max didn’t have, which is fine, I have plenty.

Here it is next to the original Home Pod.

I think I’m happy but ….

I ordered the new iPhone 12 Pro Max and the Apple Store App showed that I was scheduled to pick it up, turn in the old phone, and get the new phone set up —> just like before Covid.

I got there a few minutes before my appointment time, and there were no lines.  I wanted until just before, which was fine, since I got waited on exactly at my appointment time.

First problem, they weren’t prepared for me to do the trade in.  Now, I have had bad problems with the third party Apple uses, but no issues with trading in at the store, so I insisted.  Also, didn’t want to get stuck with both phones.

They got me a specialist but they wouldn’t help me set up the phone.  Didn’t even want me to open the box.  I should have stayed at the mall, but I doubt I would have gotten back in BUT the phone wasn’t activated.

I tried Apple support first, and the specialist was completely clueless.  Didn’t even have a proper script.

It had a SIM, but it wouldn’t connect to AT&T.  Worse yet, it took two technical support sessions to get it connected.  

Now, it’s not showing I have Apple Care Plus though the invoice clearly shows I do.

ARGH!  Waiting for an Apple Specialist again.

See Dallas ISD.
In the years before I retired, the computer science teachers at Dallas ISD, put courses on Moodle. I did a computer science course based on Visual Basic.
I updated a course on web design. I think they may have a Game Design course, I can’t remember how much of that got online. A group of teachers put up a PreAP Computer Science.
Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth also has courses, and does some school based. You’ll have to reach them directly to see what they have you can use, but we do teach Java/AP Computer Science and a sequence of Web Design courses that ends with JavaScript.
We also have Python for Elementary and Python for Middle School.
CTY also teaches just about every other course you can think of, but I don’t hav a lot of knowledge about them.

It takes two things to put a website on the internet.

The first, is a domain name.  I have kweaver.org and I have it hosted at GoDaddy.com.  I briefly recommended them, when they were supporting non-profits.  Unfortunately the non-profits bit the hand that fed them and they quit.

Most web hosts will help you with that.  

The second, is a place to put your web files.  I really like http://www.interserver.net right now.  They have been hosting non-profit  websites for free and they have a really good special.  Almost good enough for me to use them, myself.

Customer service is great.

They will give you a login: username and password.  

I had zero confidence in Go Fund Me.  I went out to their website in the early days and had no confidence.

I’ve had a recent experience where a third party had set up a go fund me for someone else.  With further investigation I determined that the third party didn’t have all the facts and the first party was not completely candid.

I am getting my donation back and GoFundMe is investigating the matter, so they say.

It will be very interesting to see how this pans out.

Years ago, I ordered something from Walmart and chose order pickup.  Horrible experience, couldn’t find the order pickup, the employees couldn’t find the items for the longest time, just a mess.  Didn’t do it again.

I needed a large item and didn’t really wanted it delivered to the house, especially if they sent the wrong thing.  So I did the order pickup thing.

This time, it was heads above different.  This time, I got a text message inviting me to check in, in advance.  I did.  I got to the start on Friday morning, expecting it to be quiet and the parking lot was full.  There were three people in line in front of me.  I stood there maybe 30 seconds when a smiling employee came out and ask me if I was there for order pickup (the other three were men).  They even asked if I wanted help out!!!!

I asked if they would open the box for me as I wanted to check I got what I ordered — I did.  I asked if they would keep the packing materials.  They did, and it was a win win for all.

Love the use of technology.