My Startup Labels

books, brainstorms, drafts, essay prep., essays, fiction, free-writing, graphics, links, media, movies, non-fiction, outlines, quickposts, reviews, revisions, typing, websites

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Happy English Language Day!

Graphic source:  English Language Day at the UN...

According to a calendar of UN observances, today is English Language Day. When I looked that day up on the Internet, I found that it is celebrated on April 23, "the date traditionally observed as the birthday of William Shakespeare" (English Language Day at the UN..., Language Days at the UN, ¶1, retrieved 2012.04.23). 

However, the William Shakespeare entry at the Britannica Online Encyclopedia, to which that UN page pointed, suggested that April 23, 1616, was actually the date of Shakespeare's death. Neither Britannica nor Wikipedia cited a date of birth, only a date of baptism, April 26. A parenthetical note in a sidebar at Wikipedia indicates that his "birthdate [is] unknown" (William Shakespeare, Born, retrieved 2012.04.23).

This calendar event caught my attention, primed as it was by noticing a Chinese language day on the calendar last Friday, April 20. It turns out that the UN observes six such language days:

Language Days at the UN aim to entertain as well as inform, with the goal of increasing awareness and respect for the history, culture and achievements of each of the six working languages among the UN community.

 (English Language Day at the UN..., Language Days at the UN, ¶4)

Do you know what the other four working languages of the UN are?

[218 words]

Start-up Labels (2012)

Here are labels you will need to use for required posts on your blogs:

• books, brainstorms, drafts, essay prep., essays, fiction, free-writing, graphics, links, media, movies, non-fiction, outlines, quickposts, reviews, revisions, typing, websites

(based on: pab's potpourri, My Startup Labels, 2011.04.20; 

with additions in bold typeface)

For example, on book reviews, you will need to use at least three labels, including:

• books, reviews, ... (comma-spaced values);

plus:

• fiction, OR
• non-fiction.

You are welcome to use other suitable labels for book reviews, as well, such as "adventure" or "history" (without quotation marks), as long as they reflect the content of your posts. For details on how to use other required labels, please see Sheet 1 in the Labels and Links page on the Writing Studio Blog.

Now, to jump-start your labels collections, please:

1. Copy and paste the labels in the first list above into a new draft post on your own blog;
2. Entitle the new draft post, "My Start-up Labels" (in title case, without quotation marks);
3. Copy and paste the labels in the list above into the Labels field on the draft start-up labels post;
4. Publish the start-up labels post on your blog; and then
5. Add a labels gadget to your blog. 

Once you've published your start-up labels posts, with labels in the label field (as well as the body of the posts), the labels will show up in your Labels gadget. Then, when you compose new posts, you will be able to choose appropriate labels for required posts, rather than typing them in.

[239 words]

Three Simple Tools for Creating Strong Passwords

In a recent post on his blog, Free Technology for Teachers, Richard Byrne introduced Three Simple Tools for Creating Strong Passwords (2012.04.20). He wrote, "One of the best ways to protect your online identity is to create strong passwords containing unique characters. Sometimes it's difficult to think of new strong passwords" (para. 2). The tools he introduced can help you generate strong passwords quickly and easily.

'via Blog this'

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BR 1-02: I Can Do It!

Now I can do it. Nearly... ([Watanabe,] pp. n-m).

I chose another Puffin picture book, because they're easy to read. This one is about a bear who is learn[ing] to do things on wheels: a tricycle, a bicycle, ....

This book is very short, and too easy for me. I'm going to try something more challenging next time. I recommend harder book[s] for you, too.

If kids learn like this, maybe they will become motor-heads. If President Obama heard this story when he was young, perhaps he was inspired by the "I can..." parts.

Reference

Watanabe, Shigeo. (1984). I Can Do It. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books.

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BR 1-01: A Difficult Day

Melinda felt as if she were lost in space[,] and nobody even cared (Fernandes, [n.p.]).

I picked this book because I like the Puffin picture book series. This is a story about a girl who has a real bad day. It was easy to read, and I enjoyed the ending. I think you'll like it, too.

Reference

Fernandes, Eugenie. (1990). A Difficult Day. Harmondsworth, England: Penquin Books.

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Onomatopeia: What's that?

This short video (1:25) by Mindy Bauer shows and tells what onomatopeia is about. Watch, listen, and learn!

That seems to be Mindy's first YouTube upload (Feed, 2012.04.10). I look forward to seeing more like it.

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