Getting Started in 2008

I have updated this Child and Family Blog as one of my new year's (2008) resolutions. I plan to use it as a resource for my teaching and as a place to reflect on my own learning as an educator and a professional social worker as well as in my role as a relative care provider for my neice. This is a technology that I have wanted to integrate into my teaching and my life for a long time! I can't wait to see how it works!

I really like the new Blogger 'page elements' that now lets me add VIDEO and NEWS feeds, POLLs, and RECOMMENDED LINKs/RESOURCES. Do you have a favorite link? resource? video? news source? Let me know.

DISCLAIMER AND VIEWER WARNING: I used the 'add key words to randomly search for and select Youtube videos' function, so I am not sure how accurate, how useful, and, most importantly, how 'respectful' this 'key word' feature will be at selecting videos. I cannot guarantee that the 'key word search' function will not select videos that are offensive, even stupid. It is my hope that the 'select random videos by key word' function will provide you with a wider variety of videos, some of which may be more challenging, entertaining, and, hopefully, educational than my spending hours searching for the exact right video would produce. Occassionally, I will attach a specific video to a post. ALSO, please be forewarned that the content of the videos may be discomforting and that some of the images will be extremely graphic!

See, also, the new POLL page element and tell me what you think of this BLOG! I plan to add RSS feeds later. Anything else you want to see on this Blog?

debra:)

One of my child welfare students this past Spring (2007) took these pictures on her way into Wisconsin. The 'whirleygigs' were placed in a very high traffic area by a local Child Abuse Prevention group. Each whirleygig, as I understoodd it, represented a child who was abused and neglected in this county.

I thought this was a very unique way to draw attention to the issue. How can you not think about all the children whose childhood memories will not be filled with playing with their 'whirleygigs'; but whose childhood memories will include anger, pain, fear, sadness, loss, etc.

Child Abuse in the United Kingdom

The link I referred to in the above post.

This is very serious issue, and one we will address later this semester.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/crime/article/0,,2008879,00.html

Getting started

I am not sure exactly how I intend to use this BLOG, but I often find news items or child and family related issues that I want to share with you. I think I want it to be a place to post new info, summaries/reactions to course discussions, thoughtful comments, questions that were raised in classes or during the week, lessons learned, stories, and random notes from the field, etc. I started with link to a website that a student sent me from the UK in 2007-2008.

If you know how to join a blog and want to add a comment, ask a question, share a link, etc. feel free to do. I will keep this open for now (hopefully not too much spam will be posted on this blog). Let's remember to keep our comments professional, considerate, and courteous at ALL times. Lets keep our information legal, by not using names/specific identifying information unless it is published already in a public/legal forum (newspaper/television website, etc) or we have permission from that person to share the information. Let's remember to always cite the web or text source and date accessed!

debra:)