Where do I begin? How about last summer?

I told my two sons, ages 6 and 8, that they could have a dog. I explained that we could go out and buy a dog from a breeder, but there are many dogs out there that need a home. We agreed to adopt, and the search began. After several weeks of finding dogs that were too big, too small, too old, or not quite right, we found "Corey" at the Massachusetts Humane Society. He’s a Rhodesian Ridgeback.

Corey was seven months old when we found him in August, now he’s almost one. We don’t know his whole story, but he is very timid until he gets to know you. When we first saw him he was huddled in the back of the pen and shook when we approached him. He’s come a long way, but is still very apprehensive of strangers. We have a feeling that his first seven months of life weren’t the easiest, but now he’s enjoying a royal life. He’s a great friend and playmate for us all. To learn about Rhodesian Ridgebacks:

http://www.ridgebackrescue.org/what_is_an_rr.html

We are all Disney fans. We wanted to go to Disney World last summer, but I was busy with graduate school and short on cash. It’s where we’re going when I finish the program. To learn more about Walt Disney and the theme parks, visit:

http://www.comptons.com/encyclopedia/ARTICLES/0050/00545792_A.html

Instead of going to Florida, we opted for Cape Cod. It’s a great place to visit. There’s lots to see and do and something that fits everyone’s interest. Visit Cape Cod at:

http://www.capecodusa.com/tourstart.asp

http://www.nps.gov/caco/

Lighthouses are a favorite of mine. To visit one of the lighthouses of Cape Cod, see:

http://www.capecod.net/~gbenoit/capecod.htm

In my spare time, I like to paint. I use acrylics and paint in a style that one may choose to call "folk art." One of my favorite contemporary artists is Charles Wysocki. Have you heard of him? If not, or if you would like to know more, go to:

http://christcenteredmall.com/stores/art/wysocki/wysockibiography.htm

http://www.world-wide-art.com/art/C /index.html

When I had to create lesson plans for this course, a requirement was to use my educational software reviews. I should have planned ahead. I came up with a good idea when I was having a bout of insomnia last night. I’d like to share it with you. Maybe it’s something that you’d like to use in your classroom one day. It’s a way to get students familiar with surfing the web. Based on their ability and grade level, you can incorporate word processing, electronic links, and the like. Here it is:

1. Choose a poem.
2. Choose a search engine. I decided to use Yahooligans, which is a good search engine for students.
3. Pick out key words in the poem and search them on the internet.
4. View the sites and bookmark the best one or two links per word.
5. Set up a web document.
6. Share the results.

http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/poetwit/index.htm

Instead, I opted for one about the seashore, based on last summer’s vacation. Here it is:

Here’s what I came up with:

Shell: http://www.seashells.org/ http://www.discovery.com/area/skinnyon/skinnyon971226/skinnyon.html Sea… brought me to ocean: http://seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ocean_planet.html http://www.abc.net.au/science/ocean/ Donkey: http://wildwnc.org/af/siciliandonkey.html http://www.qis.net/~minidonk/what.htm Boats: http://www.thirteen.org/savageseas/captain-main.html

http://www.ernestina.org/

http://www.mariner.org/

Gulls: http://www.hhmi.org/alaska/three/index.html Tide: http://www.advance.com.ar/usuarios/raff/eddys.html http://library.thinkquest.org/J001418/