A Wiki Just for FCS Teachers

Last week I posted a message on the Missouri FCS teachers e-mail discussion list and then forgot to post the same thing on the blog. (Just in case some read one or the other) So, in the spirit of getting the information out, here is the text of that message:

"One of the nicer things about this discussion list is that teachers routinely help each other with lesson plans, activities, etc. And many times, those on the receiving end do a nice thing and put all of the ideas they have received back on the list. But one thing we have to consider is file size. When a file is too big, it can’t be posted, or if posted, puts users on the other end over their mailbox size limits. Then they can’t send or receive e-mail – ouch! Or- you remember seeing it on the list – but you deleted it and now it isn’t in the archives…

There is a way around this! Kelly Ritter (Lebanon Jr High) has set up a wiki for FCS teachers. A wiki is just a way to help organize information on a website – a website that other people can also edit and change.

Here are your steps to utilizing the wiki -
1. Go to http://fcsteachersunite.wikispaces.com/ and look around.
2. Sign up for a free account on wikispaces if you don’t already have one.
3. Request membership on the FCSteachersunite wiki.
4. When approved, you can begin to edit and add what you want to the wiki.
5. Share! Instead of posting a large file on the list serv, upload the file to the wiki, and the post a link to the wiki on the list serve.

Be sure not to post anything that is copyrighted. It would also be a great idea to get permission from others to post. If you are the one doing the sharing of the lesson, you might want to give permission upfront via using a creative commons license.

It’s a really busy time of the year – but breaks are coming up – if you find yourself with a little extra time after eating too much holiday food, go ahead and play around on http://fcsteachersunite.wikispaces.com/.

And in the spirit of being thankful – thanks to Kelly Ritter (kritter@lebanon.k12.mo.us) for setting up the wiki in the first place. You are an awesome leader in the FCS world!"

I hope to see some FCCLA items posted on the wiki, as well as some great learning ideas for the FCS courses you might teach. If everyone that used the e-mail list would post one item to the wiki, it would be an awesome resource for FCS teachers.