Getting Started. To get started, there is an Orientation Week with assignments to introduce you to the class and help you get familiar with the tools and websites you will be using. The Orientation Week is the same for both classes: Myth-Folklore (MLLL-3043) and Indian Epics (MLLL-4993). You have assignments due today, TUESDAY, so make sure you get started — and let me know if you have any questions. The best thing is to finish both the Tuesday and Wednesday assignments today if you can so that you are not doing things on the due date. Doing assignments before the due date is much better than doing assignments at the last minute!
New Year, new classes! I've made a lot of changes to both classes over the winter break, mostly thanks to great suggestions I received from last semester's students. If there is anything confusing about the instructions, broken links, something that just doesn't "fit" somehow, please let me know!
My Schedule. I try to be at work from 9-5 Monday through Friday, which means I will usually be able to respond quickly to your questions during that time. I do check email in the evenings and on weekends, but I probably won't respond to those evening and weekend emails unless it is something urgent. If I'll ever be out of the office for a substantial part of the day, I'll include that in the announcements.
College of Arts and Sciences Orientation. If this is your only online course, you do not need to do the CAS Online Orientation; I will cover all the orientation activities you need — so you can ignore the email you received about the college's orientation. If, however, you are taking this online class and some other online class also, you'll need to do the College's orientation.
Daily Announcements. Starting today, I'll be updating the announcements every day, including Saturday and Sunday. If you want to subscribe by email so that you can get the announcements automatically each day, see the "subscribe" box in the sidebar of the blog. Put in the email address you prefer, and then look for the confirmation email that you will get; check your spam folder if it does not show up right away.
Below you will find some items which I hope you will enjoy and/or find useful; each day's announcements will start with information about the class and then finish with these extra items for your reading pleasure.
The following items are for fun and exploration:
Punctuation Saves Lives. For more variations on "Let's Eat Grandma" and how punctuation saves lives, see this blog post.
Mythology Words in English: Today's mythology word in English is JANUARY, which comes from the name Janus, the Roman god of doorways who looks in two directions. For details, see this blog post.
Featured Storybook: The Redemption Squad. Your boss at the MBI (Mythological Bureau of Investigations) is Daenerys Targaryen, and she has a mission that will test both your bravery and your open-mindedness. Are you ready? Your mission orders await you.
Free Book Online: The Fairy Mythology by Thomas Keightley. This blog post provides additional information about the contents of the book. There are stories here about fairy creatures from all over the world!
India Featured Book: Hanuman: The Epitome of Devotion and Courage. This blog post provides additional information about this comic book on Reserve in Bizzell. As you can see from the cover, it features the monkey-god Hanuman, Rama's most devoted follower; you'll be meeting both Hanuman and Rama in the Ramayana next week in the Indian Epics class.
Words of Wisdom: Today's proverb poster is Paddle your own canoe (an English proverb). Details at the Proverb Lab. You need to paddle your own canoe because there is probably not anybody else who will paddle it for you! :-)
Today's Video: Maati Banni: Balma. Balma is a collaborative production by the Indian musical duo Maati Baani featuring 11 musicians from 5 countries; you can see the lyrics with English translation at the YouTube page.
Growth Mindset: Today's growth mindset cat is The future belongs to the curious. Details at the blog; you'll be learning about this "growth mindset" concept at the end of the Orientation week.
Event on Campus: Jason Nelson will be giving a public lecture on Poetry games and curious digital creatures: The wonders of interactive literature at 3PM today in the HCLC Community Space in LL118 Bizzell (details). Find out more about this and other events at the Campus Calendar online. You can find out more at Wikipedia: Jason Nelson. And check out his website, SecretTechnology.com.
Note: You can page back through the older blog posts to see any announcements you might have missed, and you can check out the Twitter stream for information and fun stuff during the day.
The following items are for fun and exploration:
Punctuation Saves Lives. For more variations on "Let's Eat Grandma" and how punctuation saves lives, see this blog post.
Featured Storybook: The Redemption Squad. Your boss at the MBI (Mythological Bureau of Investigations) is Daenerys Targaryen, and she has a mission that will test both your bravery and your open-mindedness. Are you ready? Your mission orders await you.
Free Book Online: The Fairy Mythology by Thomas Keightley. This blog post provides additional information about the contents of the book. There are stories here about fairy creatures from all over the world!
India Featured Book: Hanuman: The Epitome of Devotion and Courage. This blog post provides additional information about this comic book on Reserve in Bizzell. As you can see from the cover, it features the monkey-god Hanuman, Rama's most devoted follower; you'll be meeting both Hanuman and Rama in the Ramayana next week in the Indian Epics class.
Words of Wisdom: Today's proverb poster is Paddle your own canoe (an English proverb). Details at the Proverb Lab. You need to paddle your own canoe because there is probably not anybody else who will paddle it for you! :-)
Today's Video: Maati Banni: Balma. Balma is a collaborative production by the Indian musical duo Maati Baani featuring 11 musicians from 5 countries; you can see the lyrics with English translation at the YouTube page.
Growth Mindset: Today's growth mindset cat is The future belongs to the curious. Details at the blog; you'll be learning about this "growth mindset" concept at the end of the Orientation week.
Event on Campus: Jason Nelson will be giving a public lecture on Poetry games and curious digital creatures: The wonders of interactive literature at 3PM today in the HCLC Community Space in LL118 Bizzell (details). Find out more about this and other events at the Campus Calendar online. You can find out more at Wikipedia: Jason Nelson. And check out his website, SecretTechnology.com.
Note: You can page back through the older blog posts to see any announcements you might have missed, and you can check out the Twitter stream for information and fun stuff during the day.
