Category: EDTC 300 (Page 1 of 2)

Last stitch!

December 11, 2024 / Lily Jacobs / 0 Comments

So, this is the last one, the final post of my crochet pattern-making journey. I am happy with how my learning project turned out, I pushed myself outside of my comfort zone to make adorable creations and it was absolutely worth it! I’ve learned some new techniques for crocheting, which opens a door of possibility for things to make. I had a lot of fun crocheting, it was nice to take a break from studying to crochet and even nicer that it was still for school.

Below is my outlined journey:

Week 1: Beginning of my Learning Project

I laid out my plan for the semester as well as my goals
Mentioned a few resources I would be using this semester

Week 2: A New Bloom

Getting back into the basics and getting a refresher while also making something new
learned how to make fluffy flower petals by making almost 5 stitches into 1

Week 3: A Big Yarn Sprout

Challenged myself with a much larger Halloween project
Made a few mistakes, I chose the pattern specifically for the bumps in the pumpkin without checking they weren’t sewed.
Used a pdf pattern! Just went slow to make sure I was reading the abbreviations right

Week 4: Visme and the SAMR Model

Used a new online tool: Visme, to document my process so far and set my goals for the future
Also finished the pumpkin from last week

Week 5: A Little Bunny

Decided to keep using pdf patterns, but increased the difficulty this time by making a full stuffy
I used a new resource for patterns called Apron Basket
Altered part of the pattern to see my beginning skills of pattern making

Week 6: Bunny Fashion

Used the same bunny pattern and stuffy to try creating a pattern
Made super cute little overalls for the little bunny and an awesome pattern!

Week 7: Bunny Fashion Pt 2

Free-styled a Christmas jacket for the same bunny
Was busy this week so a small update post

Week 8: The Grinch’s Ugly Cousin?

Used a new resource, Amigurumi Cat to find a pdf pattern
Tried making a grinch stuffy, I didn’t end up finishing him because I messed up on a few stitches and made him look all wonky. We all make mistakes though so that’s okay!

Week 9: Christmas Gnome

Learnt a new way to start
I used Instagram as a reference and made a pattern for a gnome that my mum requested
The gnome looks good but I needed to focus on stitch size because there were holes
Learned that I needed to fix my uneven increasing stitches on my patterns

Week 10: Christmas Gnome Part 2

Found the perfect video to help with stitch size
Learnt about tension and made a second gnome without looking at the pattern for the first gnome to look for improvement
I improved dramatically, I focused on my tension and even spread out my increasing stitches to make the hat look nice and straight

That brings us to now! I am incredibly happy with how much my skills improved as well as my work. Even from week 9-10 there was a major difference once I started to focus on my tension. There was even a point where I was teaching my mum how to make a little glasses holder for my dad for Christmas, and I made her the beginning of the pattern to get her started!! So I even taught my mum how to crochet!

I hope you all enjoyed my crochet projects this semester, and thank you for all the compliments (My bunny Blizz was a huge hit!) and support through this class. I hope you all have an amazing Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!!!

Here are resources I used over the semester for my learning project

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Summary of Learning

December 11, 2024 / Lily Jacobs / 0 Comments

Christmas Gnome Part 2

December 10, 2024 / Lily Jacobs / 2 Comments

So, like I did last week, I made a gnome this week! As I said last week, I wanted to work on keeping my increasing stitches consistent as well as keeping the stitch size consistent. So I started researching and came across the MOST helpful video, please if you crochet, watch this video.

This video is amazing! Even though I know how to crochet, this video still taught me a few neat tricks. She explained each tip/common mistake then showed examples of what it can look like, and how to use the correct technique. The video was clear, and perfectly explained everything.

The first thing she went over was tension. Tension is the amount of pull on the yarn while crocheting. If you look at the image the string that the red arrow is pointing at, that string is connected to your ball of yarn. The pull on the yarn, is how hard you tug on that string as you’re crocheting. If there is too much tension, then the piece will become firm and unmovable. If there is not enough tension, then there will be holes in your piece. When I was talking about stitch size, the tension is what I meant.

She also mentioned that a common mistake is going over instead of under. Looking at the yellow arrow is going under to grab the yarn, the green arrow shows how the hook goes over the yarn. I realized watching this video that I have been going over instead of under, which actually isn’t too much of an issue. It simply changes how your stitches look.

So after learning more about tension and understanding how it works, I focused on keeping a consistent tension on the yarn. I also focused on my increasing stitches as I said last week. So for this week I decided to make another gnome, without looking at the first pattern and making a new one to see my improvement!

Here is my pattern for my second gnome!

Body

R1: with red, chain 4, ss into 1st chain, chain 2, then hdc 10 into small circle

R2: inc x10 (20)

R3: BLO hdc x20 (20)

R4: (hdc x4, inc) x4 (24)

R5-R7: hdc x24 (24)

Fasten off

Arm X2

R1: with desired skin color, hdc 6 into magic circle

R2: 6 hdc, inc (7)

R3: switch to red, hdc x7 (7)

R4: hdc x7 (7), Fasten off leaving long tail to sew

Nose

R1: with desired skin color, chain 4, ss into 1st chain, chain 2, then hdc 10 into small circle

R2: hdc x10 (10), Fasten off leaving long tail to sew

Hat

R1: with green, chain 3, ss into 1st chain, chain 1, then hdc 6 into small circle (6)

R2: hdc x6 (6)

R3: switch to white, (2 hdc, inc) x2 (8)

R4: hdc x8 (8)

R5: switch to green, (3 hdc, inc) x 2 (10)

R6: hdc x10 (10)

R7: switch to white, (4 hdc, inc) x2 (12)

R8: hdc x12 (12)

R9: switch to green, (5hdc, inc) x2 (14)

R10: hdc x14 (14)

R11: switch to white, (6 hdc, inc) x2 (16)

R12: (7 hdc, inc) x2 (18)

R13: switch to green, (8 hdc, inc) x2 (20)

R14: (9 hdc, inc) x2 (22)

R15: switch to white, FLO inc x22 (44)

After comparing both patterns, I made the hat almost 4 rounds larger than the first. This is because I steadily increased the hat, instead of increasing and adding a ton of stitches right away, I slowly added stitches which made the hat a nice smooth shape. The tension on this gnome is amazing though, I feel like I did a great job to keep the tension consistent. Although I do not like the arms for this gnome, if I were going to make another one, I would have made the arms smaller and less bulky.

I think the second gnome turned out great… except for the arms, we can ignore those! The hat is amazing, I secured it down so it would look floppy and it’s super cute!

Gnome 2!!!

My Impact On Others Learning

December 10, 2024 / Lily Jacobs / 0 Comments

This class has gone by so fast, I can’t believe it’s already over! I was nervous about this class at the beginning; many online classes only give out assignments and that’s it. I’m glad I was wrong. Having a connected class has really enhanced my experience with this class. Everyone was very kind and I could always ask for help on Discord and even helped a few others out!

I think I contributed to others’ learning most in the breakout rooms during our Zoom calls. Being in a smaller group definitely made us more comfortable to share our opinions and discuss. Although I will be honest, I did slack off on some commenting on others’ posts during midterm seasons. I wish I had commented more so that I could see more of your opinions and learning projects! Anyway, thank you everyone for all of your comments on my posts and for sharing all of your opinions! I appreciate the honesty and sincerity from all of you this semester, I wish you all good luck with your future schooling!

Below are screenshots that I saved from Discord and comments from blog posts!

Christmas Gnome

December 9, 2024 / Lily Jacobs / 0 Comments

Since there are only a few weeks left, I want to focus on making patterns. So this week my mum asked me to make a few gnomes for presents. So, my goal this week was to make a gnome! My mum sent me an Instagram reel for what she wanted and told me I could do whatever I felt like.

Theresascrochetshop‘s gnome

So for this gnome, I wanted to try using a different stitch. This is because the gnome is going to be larger, so using a larger stitch will make the process faster! I used a half-double crochet stitch for the entire gnome and made it in 5 pieces, so it does need to get sewn together. Many crocheters like to make no sew patterns, where you don’t need to sew each arm, leg, etc. This is so that the finished product is more seamless. I like that technique but my issue is that if your stitches aren’t all the same size then the front of the piece could have big holes where the other side wouldn’t. Simply put, by not making it a no-sew pattern, I get to decide which side of the body, hat, or arm should be at the front.

Here is the pattern I made for the gnome,

Body

With red, Starting chain 4, slip stitch into the first chain and then chain 2 from that slip stitch.

R1: into small circle, hdc x10 (10)

R2: inc x10 (20)

R3: hdc x20 BLO (20)

R4: (hdc x4, inc) x4 (24)

R5-R6: hdc x24 (24)

Fasten off

Arms X2

R1: with desired skin color, sc 6 into magic circle

R2: (sc, inc) x3 (9)

R3: switch to red, sc x9 (9)

R4: sc, dec, sc 2, dec, sc (6)

R5: sc 6 (6)

R6: (sc, dec) x2

Fasten leaving tail to sew

Nose

R1: with skin color, start chain 3, slip stitch into the first chain and then chain 1 from that slip stitch, hdc 10 into small hole (10)

R2: hdc x 10 (10)

Fasten leaving tail to sew

Hat

R1: with white, Start chain 3, slip stitch into the first chain and then chain 1 from that slip stitch, hdc 6 into small hole (6)

R2: hdc x6 (6)

R3: switch to green, (hdc 2, inc) x2 (8)

R4: hdc x8 (8)

R5: switch to white, (hdc, inc) x4 (12)

R6: hdc x12 (12)

R7: switch to green, (hdc 2, inc) x4 (16)

R8: hdc x16

R9: switch to white, (hdc 3, inc) x4 (20)

R10: hdc x20 (20)

R11: switch to green, inc x20 (40)

Fasten leaving a long tail to sew.

Now I know that it looks confusing for those who don’t crochet, but that’s okay! These patterns I am making are not for beginner crocheters to use. I definitely recommend using a video for a pattern instead of a written pattern as a beginner.

So I think the gnome turned out very well, (my mum loved it so it got mom approved!) when I make the next one, I want to try something different with the hat, making it longer or curving it more maybe. My goal for the next gnome is to work on increasing, if you look closely at the hat, there are a few rows that look like they’re jutting out. This is either because my stitch sizes were off a little on those rows or the way I increased the gnome created those weird curves. My stitches could also be off because I used half-double crochet stitches which I’m not used to. Anyway I’m excited for the next gnome, I really hope you guys like this one!

My Gnome!!!

Images from Sentences

December 8, 2024 / Lily Jacobs / 0 Comments

For this week, we were instructed to choose an AI tool and try it. For me, I chose DALL-E 3; a generative AI that creates images for you based on your prompts. This tool is made by OpenAI so DALL-E 3 is used through Chat GPT on the premium version. Lucky for me, my roommate has the premium version so I could use hers.

DALL-E 3 is a useful tool, I believe if used correctly, it could enhance an educational setting. At first, when I started using DALL-E 3, it was fun, I asked the AI to make an image of a girl studying in the library, a tattoo idea, just fun things like that. Then I started asking it more educational questions. I asked it to make me a printable weekly schedule.

Image of a weekly schedule made by AI

I was given this image, which honestly is not the best, I wouldn’t be able to print it to make a clear weekly schedule. Although it does look aesthetic and cute, so I’ll give it that. But the schedule is not actually usable because it’s blurred in some areas. Then I asked the AI to make me a calculus cheat sheet of trig functions, which it could barely do, it was very messy and hard to read.

Image of a Calculus cheat sheet for trig functions made by AI

Although my only issue with these prompts/questions is that they are vague, so then I tried a prompt that a student could give. My prompt was “create an image of a student’s poster board research project on Van Gogh, show me an image on the layout of the poster board” and this is what it gave me.

Van Gogh poster board layout made by AI

Now this image is much more helpful for a student if they are having trouble laying out their project, or they need ideas on how to make their project look.

I think that DALL-E can be used in a classroom, but it would be used as a tool for creativity, not for learning purposes. What I mean is that if a student is having a hard time visualizing their project, assignment, etc., they could use DALL-E to give them ideas for their project. As a teacher, I think DALL-E could also be used this way. Prompts for teachers could be

Help me layout this lesson plan with ________ information
Make an image of my classroom and give me layout ideas
Make an image of a project concept for ____ graders

I thought at first that DALL-E could hinder creativity in the classroom, but after experimenting with DALL-E, I believe it would boost creativity and critical thinking in the classroom. This is because for students to use DALL-E, they need to give it a prompt which requires critical thinking so that their generated image would turn out correctly. DALL-E can even boost problem-solving in the classroom if the first prompt did not give them the desired outcome. This could help many students whom are visual learners, if they need to visualize a certain concept, say in science and photosynthesis, they could generate a photosynthesis diagram using DALL-E to help. DALL-E is a useful tool if used correctly in an educational setting, if students decide to use DALL-E inappropriately then it could cause more problems than solve them.

In conclusion, I believe that DALL-E could be used in the classroom to boost creativity, critical thinking, and problem- solving. I think DALL-E would be most useful for students in middle school and useful for any teacher in general.

Digital Literacy

December 8, 2024 / Lily Jacobs / 0 Comments

Digital literacy is extremely important today, meaning we need to reevaluate how we can include it in teaching. The issue is that we don’t just need to include it; we need to live with it. Students need to be taught how to always responsibly and safely use, create, and understand online media. This way, instead of trying to change our current digital community, we can create a new digital community by educating the new generation.

I am studying to become a high-school teacher so the way that I would go about teaching digital literacy would differ from younger grades. After doing some research on digital literacy in education; I would begin the lesson by giving the students a few introductory questions. I was given this idea by the KQED lesson plan: fighting fake news. I love this idea, simply because it gives a base point for the students understanding. Then I can ask about their ideas, and have an open class discussion.

A few of the questions I would ask:

What do you believe makes a responsible digital user?
What are some ways that you determine credible content online?
What happens when disinformation spreads?

After having a group discussion, I would give students a group activity to create a more comfortable discussion environment. I would personally do this by creating a game for the class, each group would be given a few articles, newspaper, any digital content to determine if the content is real or fake. Then the group with the most correct answers would win a prize, perhaps a little sweet treat (we all love a sweet treat). To tie digital literacy to the curriculum, I would give the class a small research assignment. I would ask that for each reference they use, they briefly explain how they determined the source and content was credible.

Now when teaching digital literacy, it is important to keep a few goals in mind. Reading NCTE’s statement of the Definition of Digital Literacy, it discuses how important it is for the teaching practice to evolve with the evolving world. NCTE has many goals for students, I find that the most important are that students need to…

analyze and evaluate various media
effectively work well with others digitally
have access to the tools needed to succeed in a digital society
create and share knowledge responsibly and ethically

In the classroom, NCTE’s goals need to be included. I would do this by focusing on promoting critical thinking, integrate inclusivity, and encourage communication. I would do this by integrating small digital literacy assignments into another assignments. Such as previously mentioned: having students explain how their sources are credible.

I believe that digital literacy is extremely important as it encompasses bringing society closer together by educating the new generation. We must remember that we are living in a constantly evolving world. While researching, I found a statement that truly encompasses the need for digital literacy “We have more access than ever. But access does not imply quality, and the vast information we’re being bombarded with demands a renewed emphasis on and teaching of media literacy” (Frank W. Baker). This is important as young students do not realize how much information/media there is. Hence, they don’t feel the need to even think that something is fake. It’s like saying- oh I saw it on TV so it must be real (and we all know how many things on TV aren’t real). I believe that there needs to be a greater focus on digital literacy in education because of how many dangers there are online and how it can affect your life. Not that we want to terrify students, but we want to inform them of the risks and consequences. As well as how to responsibly and safely use, create, understand, and share digital media.

The Grinch’s Ugly Cousin?

December 8, 2024 / Lily Jacobs / 1 Comment

This week, I decided to use a pattern for a new project so that I could learn a few new techniques for making my patterns.

This week, I decided to make a Grinch stuffy. I was searching Pinterest for inspiration when I came across a super cute crochet Grinch stuffy. So, I decided to try it! Although I found the link for the pattern on Pinterest, the pattern itself was uploaded to a website called Amigurumi Cat. Amigurumi Cat is a website led by Abbey Gloria, where she uploads free amigurumi crochet patterns. I enjoyed browsing the website, it’s very organized and appealing. Each pattern is nicely written, which makes it very easy to follow. If you are ever looking for free crochet patterns for a stuffy, I highly recommend using Amigurumi Cat.

Head and Body part of Grinch pattern

From this pattern, I learned a new technique! Notice how in the image of the Grinch stuffy, you can see the cheeks are puffed out to give him big round cheeks. My technique is to increase the amount of stitches in that area, which still works very well. For this pattern, she still increased the stitches but used a half-double crochet instead of a regular single crochet to increase. Half double crochets are taller than single crochets, so using them instead makes the cheeks bigger. This is a great technique to have as it can be used in various different ways.

Below you can see the top of the head and the protruding cheek with the half-double crochets.

Top of Grinch’s head

Although this pattern was super cute, I didn’t fully finish the grinch, I think this week was a success. The new technique with the cheeks is so helpful and I will definitely be using it in the future. Here is my Grinch that I made, he definitely isn’t as cute as the one in the pattern, i didn’t fully finish him even though I got very close, I just wasn’t loving the color, it wasn’t giving Grinch. But here he is so you can see him!

The Grinch’s Ugly Cousin?

Will it make or break you?

December 5, 2024 / Lily Jacobs / 1 Comment

This week, we discussed cyber-shaming/vigilantism and digital footprints. There were many topics introduced, but my main takeaway is how the internet can make or break your life. For some, the internet can give you joy, it can make your daily life easier, and can even give you unimaginable fame. For others, the internet can shame you, berate you, and break your life.

Imagine a scenario where one teenager posted a racist comment as a joke between friends (I know a very basic one). Imagine if that post goes viral, the comments berating and shaming this one teenager would be horrific. Not only would they be shamed online, but it would also affect their everyday life. There would be repercussions and consequences at home, at school, everywhere. Now with the internet, the consequences won’t go away, their digital footprint will always remain. It’s interesting to think about how one message, one post, or one picture, can derail your life completely. The internet is just code, but you throw people’s thoughts in and you get a community that can be hurtful or helpful. I believe that it’s important to realize that there are always consequences, and with the internet, they don’t go away. For this scenario, do you think that it should alter the rest of their life? I’m not saying what the teenager did was wrong, but how is someone supposed to move on with their life when the internet is constantly reminding them?

After watching Monica Lewinsky’s TED Talk, I especially like the one line where she said “I was seen by many, but actually known by few” (5:13-5:17). I think this quote is amazing as it reveals how you are only seeing a fraction of whom that person truly is. So should we judge them by it? We judge one person by one thing they said, who would ever tell you that’s warranted? Now, of course, every situation is different, the circumstances can be extreme or mild but do they always warrant shaming someone for the rest of their life? I don’t think so. People change, whether you believe it or not, everyone changes.

Cyber-shaming today is insane, it’s normalized to constantly berate others for something they posted online or even their actions getting shared online. It has come to a point where no one is safe, ever. Even if you aren’t on social media, others can post you and berate you for something as simple as your complicated Starbucks order holding up the line. Does that warrant being berated? Just because you have a complicated Starbucks order.

I believe that cyber-shaming is a problem, it’s become unimaginably normalized by society and it’s everywhere because you can be shamed for anything. My point is that the internet is scary for everyone, one mistake whether huge or small can derail your life. This isn’t the community we want, we don’t want online shaming but everyone still does it. Everyone wants a supportive online society, but no one puts in the effort to make one.

Bunny Fashion Pt 2

November 12, 2024 / Lily Jacobs / 3 Comments

For this week, I wasn’t too sure how I wanted to approach making a pattern. I realized that in order to continue learning how to make patterns. I needed to see where my skills were at. So this week, I decided to freestyle a little Santa jacket for my bunny.

Although I did not use any resources so this is just a small update post, but this week I realized that I need to keep developing my skills so that I can make patterns. I am happy with the jacket, I think it turned out super cute (not to toot my own horn), but the way that it fits on the bunny is a bit funny, so I need to learn how to size different projects. This means that I need to learn different ways to attach pieces, as well as how to increase and decrease rounds correctly. Overall, I need to keep learning more crocheting skills, so that I have different methods for a variety of projects.

Here is the bunny all dressed up, I have decided to name him Blizz like Blizzard, because he’s now a white Christmas bunny!

Blizz the bunny!!!