NO MORE TECH CLASS
Tech class has come to an end, but my journey of incorporating instructional and assistive technology into my classroom has not!
I cannot believe how much I have grown as an educator through taking this Tech class. At the beginning of the year I was intimidated by this course, as technology is not something that I have ever felt a strong passion or connection with. Before this course, I tended to avoid creating lesson plans that involved the use of educational technology programs, trying to adhere more to the paper and pencil, traditional style of teaching resources.
Now, after these few weeks, I find myself increasingly creating plans that involve different apps on the iPad, and using web 2.0 tools that I learned about in this class. Even though at times this class did seem slightly overwhelming as I was learning to use a program and create something at the same time, I am glad that I went through the struggle of learning how to use programs and websites so that I will know what my students might struggle with as well.
Nevertheless, I have changed my perspective from being scared and shying away from using technology in the classroom, to knowing what websites are effective for different tasks, and to being able to see how technology can truly enhance the classroom experience. I am very glad I took this class, and am excited to start using some of the resources I used in this course in my teaching block!!
Tuesday 8 November 2016
Game Over!
GENIUS HOUR COMPLETE
I cannot believe my Genius Hour project has come to a close!
This experience flew by, and I am feeling quite confident about what I have learned about the sport of football. I can now hold a conversation with friends and family who adore the sport and feel comfortable discussing rules and regulations of the game, along with hashing out how the Buffalo Bills are doing!
This being said, I definitely still have a bit of work to go in my journey to get all of the rules and fundamentals down pat, but I am very content with what I have learned over these few weeks. This project gave me the opportunity to dig deeper into something that I have always wanted to learn more about, and gave me the structure to persevere through the task.
When I started this project, I figured that the more knowledge I gathered about football, and the more of an understanding I built about the game, that my level of interest in the sport would increase. While I enjoyed physically attending football games, this was not the case! I found out fairly early on in my journey that football is definitely not my favourite sport for a reason. I cannot say that I really enjoyed watching the football games, but I am glad that I watched them anyways and continued on through this project. Had it not been for my Genius Hour project, I would probably not have the football knowledge that I do today as I would not have made myself sit down and research rules and regulations, or follow the Buffalo Bills to learn more about the players and the team.
I am pleased this project gave me the opportunity to learn more about football, and I definitely loved attending a CFL game and watching football in real life. Football will definitely be in my life for a while because of my boyfriend and his family's love of the game, so this knowledge will definitely come in handy!
Nevertheless, I will stick to watching hockey and cheering on the best team in the world, the Montreal Canadiens!
I cannot believe my Genius Hour project has come to a close!
This experience flew by, and I am feeling quite confident about what I have learned about the sport of football. I can now hold a conversation with friends and family who adore the sport and feel comfortable discussing rules and regulations of the game, along with hashing out how the Buffalo Bills are doing!
This being said, I definitely still have a bit of work to go in my journey to get all of the rules and fundamentals down pat, but I am very content with what I have learned over these few weeks. This project gave me the opportunity to dig deeper into something that I have always wanted to learn more about, and gave me the structure to persevere through the task.
When I started this project, I figured that the more knowledge I gathered about football, and the more of an understanding I built about the game, that my level of interest in the sport would increase. While I enjoyed physically attending football games, this was not the case! I found out fairly early on in my journey that football is definitely not my favourite sport for a reason. I cannot say that I really enjoyed watching the football games, but I am glad that I watched them anyways and continued on through this project. Had it not been for my Genius Hour project, I would probably not have the football knowledge that I do today as I would not have made myself sit down and research rules and regulations, or follow the Buffalo Bills to learn more about the players and the team.
I am pleased this project gave me the opportunity to learn more about football, and I definitely loved attending a CFL game and watching football in real life. Football will definitely be in my life for a while because of my boyfriend and his family's love of the game, so this knowledge will definitely come in handy!
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| Retrieved from: http://bit.ly/2ediUTQ |
Nevertheless, I will stick to watching hockey and cheering on the best team in the world, the Montreal Canadiens!
Monday 24 October 2016
Nearing the End!!
BUFFALO BILLS TAKE ANOTHER WIN
Buffalo Bills walked away big winners after playing the San Fransisco 49ers this Sunday! The score was 45-16 and they played at home at the New Era field, making this their first four game winning streak since 2008! LeSean McCoy was the all-star of the game as he rushed three touchdowns and got 140 yards for the team. This was impressive as LeSean McCoy was injured in a play in the first half, and returned in the third quarter...thank goodness he did or who knows what the score would have been!
For one of my last blog posts, I am going to outline a little bit more about the scoring system in the NFL as I have found it slightly confusing while watching it because I cannot say that until this point I have a clear grasp! While I do know that the team who scores the most points is the winning team, I do not have a full comprehension of which plays count for which number of points.
First and foremost, and something that makes sense to me, is that scoring a touchdown gives your team the greatest number of points, which is SIX. A touchdown is when the ball is either caught or carried into the opposing team's end zone and it does not have to touch the ground. Right after a touchdown, the ball is then placed on the opponent's two-yard line and the offense has an option to either kick the ball through the field goal posts or to run it into the end zone again. Most teams choose to kick the ball, but some will choose to run the ball because it will give your team two points, rather than one. This play is called the Extra Point or the Two Point Conversion.
A field goal, which is a basic component of the game of football, usually happens on the fourth down when a team can kick for a field goal instead of trying to make it to the next down or for a touchdown. A field goal is worth 3 points and they can be kicked from anywhere on the field, usually taking place within the 45 yard line. The ball must be kicked through the goal-post uprights and over the crossbar, and the defense usually tries to block the ball from being kicked or from reaching the goal post.
The last way to score points in football is called a Safety, which rewards 2 points to the team. A safety is when the offensive ball carrier gets tackled behind their own goal line.
Now all I have to do is remember how many points are rewarded to which plays and I will hopefully be ready to watch a football game without asking any questions! This will also hopefully help me in discussions regarding football as at least I have been following one team, so I know how well they are doing in their division!
Buffalo Bills walked away big winners after playing the San Fransisco 49ers this Sunday! The score was 45-16 and they played at home at the New Era field, making this their first four game winning streak since 2008! LeSean McCoy was the all-star of the game as he rushed three touchdowns and got 140 yards for the team. This was impressive as LeSean McCoy was injured in a play in the first half, and returned in the third quarter...thank goodness he did or who knows what the score would have been!
For one of my last blog posts, I am going to outline a little bit more about the scoring system in the NFL as I have found it slightly confusing while watching it because I cannot say that until this point I have a clear grasp! While I do know that the team who scores the most points is the winning team, I do not have a full comprehension of which plays count for which number of points.
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| Retrieved From: http://bit.ly/2dFQCMV |
First and foremost, and something that makes sense to me, is that scoring a touchdown gives your team the greatest number of points, which is SIX. A touchdown is when the ball is either caught or carried into the opposing team's end zone and it does not have to touch the ground. Right after a touchdown, the ball is then placed on the opponent's two-yard line and the offense has an option to either kick the ball through the field goal posts or to run it into the end zone again. Most teams choose to kick the ball, but some will choose to run the ball because it will give your team two points, rather than one. This play is called the Extra Point or the Two Point Conversion.
A field goal, which is a basic component of the game of football, usually happens on the fourth down when a team can kick for a field goal instead of trying to make it to the next down or for a touchdown. A field goal is worth 3 points and they can be kicked from anywhere on the field, usually taking place within the 45 yard line. The ball must be kicked through the goal-post uprights and over the crossbar, and the defense usually tries to block the ball from being kicked or from reaching the goal post.
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| Retrieved From: http://bit.ly/2eramKP |
Now all I have to do is remember how many points are rewarded to which plays and I will hopefully be ready to watch a football game without asking any questions! This will also hopefully help me in discussions regarding football as at least I have been following one team, so I know how well they are doing in their division!
Tuesday 4 October 2016
BILLS WIN AT GILLETTE STADIUM 16-0
This week the Buffalo Bills won against the New England Patriots, making their season 2-2 by defeating a team they were not forecasted to win against! Even better, until this Sunday, the Patriots had only ever been defeated on their home field two times since the stadium opened in 2002, and was the first time they had ever been shutout at home. After this Sunday, the Bills have now defeated two preseason Super Bowl favourites in two weeks!! They are definitely on a roll that I hope just continues!
Now time to dive into the Defensive positions:
The defensive team is the team that is not in possession of the ball, their job is to prevent the other team from scoring by forcing the other team to turn the ball over or by preventing them from achieving a first down. What is interesting about the defensive team as opposed to the offensive is that rules do not restrict the defensive team into certain positions as they can line up anywhere on the line of scrimmage and do any action. There is the defensive line, linebackers, and defensive backs who make up the defensive team on the field.
The Defensive Line is composed of Defensive Tackles and Defensive Ends, who line up directly on the line of scrimmage. The Defensive Tackle rushes the passer and stops running plays directed at the middle of the line of scrimmage. Most defensive sets have one or two defensive tackles.
The Defensive Ends play next to the Defensive Tackles on either side as there are two of them. They also attack the passer or stop offensive runs but more towards the outer edges of the line of scrimmage. The faster of them is usually on the right side of the defensive line because that is a right-handed quarterback's blind side.
Linebackers play behind the defensive line and perform different duties like rushing the passer, covering receivers, and defending against the run. There are two kinds of Linebackers; Middle Linebackers and Outside Linebackers. Middle Linebackers are usually the primary defensive play callers and must be versatile to react to a wide variety of situations. Middle linebackers must be able to stop running backs that make it past the defensive line, cover plays over the middle, and rushing the quarterback.
Outside Linebackers are on the outside of the linebackers on the left and right side. They usually line up on the same side as the offensive tight end and is responsible to cover them and running back on pass plays.
Defensive Backs are also known as the 'secondary' play behind the linebackers or near the sidelines, primarily used to defend against pass plays by trying to intercept or prevent passing the ball. The Defensive Backs are composed of Cornerbacks, Safety, and the Nickleback and Dimeback. There are typically two players that are Cornerbacks whose job is to prevent successful quarterback passes. When the play is rushed, their job is to contain the runner.
The Safeties are the last line of Defense (probably why they're called that!) and they usually help the corners with deep pass coverage. The Strong Safety is usually the larger of the two and provides the extra protection, whereas the Free Safety is usually the smaller and fastest.
The Nickleback or Dimeback is for when the defense want to remove a linebacker or defensive lineman to bring in extra pass coverage for extra protection. Maybe this is where Nickleback gets their name from!!!
Nevertheless, these are the defensive positions in football, and who we are all talking about when we yell DE-FENSE at the Ralph Wilson Stadium!!
This week the Buffalo Bills won against the New England Patriots, making their season 2-2 by defeating a team they were not forecasted to win against! Even better, until this Sunday, the Patriots had only ever been defeated on their home field two times since the stadium opened in 2002, and was the first time they had ever been shutout at home. After this Sunday, the Bills have now defeated two preseason Super Bowl favourites in two weeks!! They are definitely on a roll that I hope just continues!
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| Retrieved From: http://bit.ly/2f4OhB5 |
Now time to dive into the Defensive positions:
The defensive team is the team that is not in possession of the ball, their job is to prevent the other team from scoring by forcing the other team to turn the ball over or by preventing them from achieving a first down. What is interesting about the defensive team as opposed to the offensive is that rules do not restrict the defensive team into certain positions as they can line up anywhere on the line of scrimmage and do any action. There is the defensive line, linebackers, and defensive backs who make up the defensive team on the field.
The Defensive Line is composed of Defensive Tackles and Defensive Ends, who line up directly on the line of scrimmage. The Defensive Tackle rushes the passer and stops running plays directed at the middle of the line of scrimmage. Most defensive sets have one or two defensive tackles.
The Defensive Ends play next to the Defensive Tackles on either side as there are two of them. They also attack the passer or stop offensive runs but more towards the outer edges of the line of scrimmage. The faster of them is usually on the right side of the defensive line because that is a right-handed quarterback's blind side.
Linebackers play behind the defensive line and perform different duties like rushing the passer, covering receivers, and defending against the run. There are two kinds of Linebackers; Middle Linebackers and Outside Linebackers. Middle Linebackers are usually the primary defensive play callers and must be versatile to react to a wide variety of situations. Middle linebackers must be able to stop running backs that make it past the defensive line, cover plays over the middle, and rushing the quarterback.
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| Retrieved From: http://bit.ly/2eraKbZ |
Outside Linebackers are on the outside of the linebackers on the left and right side. They usually line up on the same side as the offensive tight end and is responsible to cover them and running back on pass plays.
Defensive Backs are also known as the 'secondary' play behind the linebackers or near the sidelines, primarily used to defend against pass plays by trying to intercept or prevent passing the ball. The Defensive Backs are composed of Cornerbacks, Safety, and the Nickleback and Dimeback. There are typically two players that are Cornerbacks whose job is to prevent successful quarterback passes. When the play is rushed, their job is to contain the runner.
The Safeties are the last line of Defense (probably why they're called that!) and they usually help the corners with deep pass coverage. The Strong Safety is usually the larger of the two and provides the extra protection, whereas the Free Safety is usually the smaller and fastest.
The Nickleback or Dimeback is for when the defense want to remove a linebacker or defensive lineman to bring in extra pass coverage for extra protection. Maybe this is where Nickleback gets their name from!!!
Nevertheless, these are the defensive positions in football, and who we are all talking about when we yell DE-FENSE at the Ralph Wilson Stadium!!
Tuesday 27 September 2016
BUFFALO BILLS WIN THEIR FIRST GAME
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| Retrieved From: http://bit.ly/2eCQK1v |
Ready for your update? Well here it is!
The Buffalo Bills played their third season game this week, and they walked away winners after they crushed the Arizona Cardinals 33-18 this Sunday. The fans went wild after this game as the Bills were not expected to win at all. LaSean McCoy, Tyrod Taylor, and Aaron Williams led the Buffalo Bills to the win by scoring the 33 points with touchdowns and field goals after fans were starting to get worried since the team had lost their first two games.
While this is all very exciting stuff, I realized this week that watching football is just not as fun when you're not physically at the stadium. Maybe because it's not as obvious when you're supposed to cheer for the home team, but while this game was certainly exciting, I did not find myself loving it while watching. Growing up playing hockey, I have certainly noticed a difference in terms of enjoyment levels between watching and actually playing the sport, as playing the sport is way more fun than watching it, so I am hoping there is a little bit of that kind of notion happening with my levels of engagement in football.
I think for my genius hour movie trailer I will try throwing a football around to work on my spiral and aim when throwing the football, and hopefully this will be more enjoyable than watching the game on television! Nevertheless, I will continue to follow the Buffalo Bills, and to build my understanding of positions, plays, and fundamentals.
This week I am also going to look into the various offensive positions in NFL football and discuss certain plays that work at certain times!
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| Retrieved From: http://bit.ly/2dFx7c3 |
The offensive line generally consists of one center, two offensive guards, and two offensive tackles. The center's job is to snap the ball back to the quarterback (who is part of the backs and receivers category), and they usually set up smack dab in the middle of the offensive line. On the Bills, the Center's are Eric Wood and Lewis Patrick, and they have the responsibility to block defensive players and calling out blocking assignments.
The offensive guards line up directly on either side of the center and their job is to block both running and passing plays, and they can also sometimes be referred to as a 'pulling guard'. The offensive guards on the Bills are Ryan Groy, Gabe Ikard, Richie Incognito, and John Miller.
The two offensive tackles play on either side of the offensive guards and they are to also block both running and passing plays, and to protect the quarterback and is usually the most skilled player on the offensive line. These players need to have quick footwork skills, and on the Bills they are Cordy Glenn, Cyrus Kouandijio, and Jordan Mills.
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| Retrieved From: http://bit.ly/2eC1P7r |
The backs and receivers are the players that line up outside or behind the offensive line, and there is a quarterback, running backs, wide receivers, and tight ends. The quarterback is the player that receives the ball from the center and is the most important position on the offensive side because they are responsible for setting up the play, and communicating it with the team from the coach's orders. They can be lined up in 3 positions which are 'under centre' (a hand-to-hand pass from the center), 'shotgun' (a distance back from the center), or 'pistol formation' which is in between those two. The quarterback can either run or pass the ball once they get it, and on the Bills he is Tyrod Taylor, EJ Manuel, or Cardale Jones.
The wide receivers are the pass-catching people who are to get open for a pass from the quarterback. On the Bills they are Robert Woods, Sammy Watkins, Brandon Tate, Greg Salas, Walter Powell, and Marquise Goodwin.
Tuesday 20 September 2016
Genius Hour Reflection #1
OSKEE WEE WEE
I really dove into my Genius Hour project this week head on and went to a Hamilton Tiger-Cats game with my brother and my boyfriend! After watching a few NFL games now that it is back on, it was super interesting to see the differences in the rules between the two different leagues. While my knowledge of the rules of both leagues is still a bit rusty, and definitely still needs some work, I thought going to a Tiger-Cat game would be a great opportunity to dive into this project!
The first thing I noticed about the differences between the CFL and the NFL is that in the CFL, the goal posts are at the front of the end zone instead of on the very edge of the field. Here is a photo of the end zone, this was the most obvious difference that I first noticed! The end zones are also deeper by about 10 yards!
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| Personal Collection |
One of the other major differences my boyfriend especially noticed as he is a huge NFL fan (of course, because he is American!) was that backs and receivers can move around the field wherever they want before the ball is snapped to the quarterback. In American football, only one player can go in motion at a time and only backwards or laterally. This means that in the CFL the receivers can get a running start well behind the line of scrimmage and cross the line when the ball is snapped, which can make it very difficult to defend!
I have also added a few photos of the field and one of myself at the game, this was definitely an awesome and engaging way to get a head start on learning some of the basic rules of football and to experience Canadian football culture! I wish I started this project earlier in life!!!
Tuesday 13 September 2016
SUNDAY FOOTBALL BEGINS
SUNDAY FOOTBALL BEGINS
Sunday, September 11, 2016 was a big day across America for many reasons, as it marked the 15th anniversary of the attacks of the Twin Towers, along with the season kickoff for the NFL. I was at my boyfriend's house in Buffalo for the kickoff, and the only comparison I could make regarding the level of excitement surrounding this sporting event was when Canada makes it to the Olympic finals in hockey during the Olympics. To say the least, I quickly discovered how much many Americans love football, and in particular, how much Buffalonians love Buffalo. Nevertheless, this made for a very exciting kickoff of my Genius Hour Project.
My Genius Hour project will surround the fundamentals, rules, positions and the meanings of stats in American football, and in particular the NFL. Football is a sport that I have gained more exposure to in the last year than ever before in my life, and I think it would be beneficial to start to try and understand the basics and some common knowledge surrounding the sport so that I can at least try to look like I know what I'm talking about when I am talking to other football fans.
I am going to do my best to watch all of the Buffalo Bills games this season, and follow a select handful of players on a fantasy league to gain more of an understanding on player roles and stat meanings. I think I may also try to learn and execute some fundamental concepts of football such as passing, running, and possibly some basic plays with my peers. I may also attend a Buffalo Bills game or a Hamilton Tiger Cats game to further my understanding of both the culture surrounding football, and to see the differences of rules between CFL football and NFL football.
I am going to dedicate at least one hour a week for this project, sometimes including game-watching time, sometimes for other research into positioning and rules. I am extremely excited about where this project will take me, and even more excited to be able to have knowledge and understanding of a new sport under my belt!
Sunday, September 11, 2016 was a big day across America for many reasons, as it marked the 15th anniversary of the attacks of the Twin Towers, along with the season kickoff for the NFL. I was at my boyfriend's house in Buffalo for the kickoff, and the only comparison I could make regarding the level of excitement surrounding this sporting event was when Canada makes it to the Olympic finals in hockey during the Olympics. To say the least, I quickly discovered how much many Americans love football, and in particular, how much Buffalonians love Buffalo. Nevertheless, this made for a very exciting kickoff of my Genius Hour Project.
My Genius Hour project will surround the fundamentals, rules, positions and the meanings of stats in American football, and in particular the NFL. Football is a sport that I have gained more exposure to in the last year than ever before in my life, and I think it would be beneficial to start to try and understand the basics and some common knowledge surrounding the sport so that I can at least try to look like I know what I'm talking about when I am talking to other football fans.
I am going to do my best to watch all of the Buffalo Bills games this season, and follow a select handful of players on a fantasy league to gain more of an understanding on player roles and stat meanings. I think I may also try to learn and execute some fundamental concepts of football such as passing, running, and possibly some basic plays with my peers. I may also attend a Buffalo Bills game or a Hamilton Tiger Cats game to further my understanding of both the culture surrounding football, and to see the differences of rules between CFL football and NFL football.
I am going to dedicate at least one hour a week for this project, sometimes including game-watching time, sometimes for other research into positioning and rules. I am extremely excited about where this project will take me, and even more excited to be able to have knowledge and understanding of a new sport under my belt!
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