Instagram on my PC

Have you ever been frustrated that you can't post pictures to your Instagram account from your PC? 

Yes!  I rarely use my iPhone for posting and I might use my iPad to share a photo, only because it is so much bigger!  What I would really like to do is to post from my desktop or laptop computers.  And, lo and behold, it can be done!  I love YouTube tutorials!  I will save you precious time by sharing the secret of how to do this!

Step 1

Open your browser (Chrome) to www.instagram.com. Log in.

Step 2

Right click anywhere on the screen and select Inspect at the bottom of the options that pop up.  

"Ctrl+Shift+I" will do the same.

Step 3

The Toggle Device Tool Bar at the top is what you want to see. (Ctrl+Shift_M).

Click the phone/tablet option.   

Step 4

Now you see the phone view.  Select your model at the top.  I have the iPhone X.  

 

Step 5

Refresh your browser!  That's it!  You will now see the  +  at the bottom and middle on your phone view, which you normally don't have access to on your computer. You will be using a grey, fuzzy, round cursor to operate it, but it works.  That was all I needed to know.  Leave me a comment if you got this to work!  

I love this!  

I Love Sharing!

You might also like my FREE "Fonts - How to Add New Fonts" to PowerPoint instructions.

Thanks for visiting my blog.  

Find me on Instagram and check out my other links at the top of the page.  Have a great day!  

 

TpT Forward 2021 - Simply WOW!

I am blown away!  This year's TpT Forward conference is/was amazing.  I say "is" because I am still working my way through it! I want to see it all!  

I should tell you, I did the TpT Forward conference in 2020, but was so overwhelmed by the end I was just frozen. I truly have not done anything, other than have ideas, but I just could not bring myself to act, in any capacity. It was a truly terrible year for teachers, inventing teaching from home via Zoom, to hybrid models, etc. I did return to the classroom as a teacher teaching on call (TTOC) but in a very limited capacity. I took my health very seriously, and even managed to lose 65 pounds! That was MY big WIN! 

Fast forward to TpT Forward 2021.  I am taking the conference in smaller increments - only a few each day.  I have reconfigured my office with the two-monitor model, and I must say, I like it!  

I am mastering Airtable!  I am able to import the TpT stats with the click of a button!  If you haven't tried it, here is a link: Airtable.com.  It is so far beyond a spreadsheet, and free! 

I also learned more tips from Chandra Martin (TpT - Teacher Game Room) about PowerPoint.  I was pretty proficient before, but she had a few tips and tricks I did not know. 

I am also confident that I can now convert my PowerPoint presentations and PDFs into Google slides and TpT Easel products. I am motivated to create better products for teachers.  

Even though it is summer, and I have put new batteries into my motorhome, ($740!) I am deciding to stay home.  We have fires all around us here in B.C. and my piece of the province is considered under a state of emergency.  I am safe, but can see smoke and flames in the hills to the east of me from my livingroom window. The show of helicopters lifting "bags" of water at the airport is mesmerizing, all from the comfort of my home. I took in displaced evacuees while the evacuation orders where implemented. What a crazy year 2020-21 has been.  

What I would like to tell you is that I am putting my entire store on sale for two days, before I update my products and potentially increase my prices, as was recommended at the conference. Know that once you own a product, and changes and/or improvements are made, you simply download the newest version. Score!  If you have a wish list of products you would like to see improved or changed, please drop me a line via artskillsforlife@gmail.com.  I am truly in a working head space, finally!  Click the image to go to my store.     

Remember to work smarter, not harder.  Have a great summer!   

  

  

Kindness Starts Where?

Being a Teacher Teaching on Call (TTOC) I get to see a lot of different classrooms, students, teaching styles, lessons, and so on.  The best part of my job is coming home with something wonderful. I am easily impressed when I see teachers preparing their students to become global, kind citizens. The lessons presented, the discussions, the actions taken - it all sinks in. 

This week was great!  I taught from Kindergarten to grade seven.  The little ones played nicely together at their chosen centres.  I didn't have to break up one squabble!  They have already learned to care and share.  I was impressed!

The older classroom read a short passage, almost like a blog post, and were then prompted to write about it.  Mr. Browne's Precepts, by R.J. Palacio. I'd never heard of it, but it was great, full of daily quotes, which I love! At the end of the day I picked up the book and found that it was by the author of Wonder, which I have not read but have heard of as it is now a movie with well known actors. To have a discussion ranging from baboons to children about bullying, aggressive behaviour, and how a change in attitude can change the future was powerful. 

There is a kindness initiative in the school and it is working!  The principal came in and shared how they had just witnessed the kindness of older students helping younger students getting out of their wet, snowsuits. It makes a difference in all their lives, and is greatly appreciated. This kindness initiative is seen and felt everyday, by everyone. It is the only school where the students, regardless of which class I am in, thank me for being their teacher that day. They thank ME!  Do I feel appreciated?  Yes, I do.  It warms my heart.  And yes, I love working there, as an On-Call teacher.     

And do I thank them for being amazing students, especially towards a TTOC?  Absolutely! 

Kindness, keep it going!

The "C" Word

I don't think there is anyone who hasn't been affected by cancer, either directly or indirectly.  I lost a teaching colleague, just shy of her retirement, to colon cancer.  She taught in the classroom next to mine, and we spent a lot of time together.  I then lost a family member within six weeks of diagnosis.  She also worked in the school system.  I was quite aware of how these deaths affected me, but then I got to thinking about how students would be affected.  Illness and death are part of life, but to our students, these topics can be overwhelming.  I think we need to have a real discussion with them, even at a young age.

I developed a three page unit for a class to discuss cancer.  They may have a family member affected, or there may be someone at your school that is going through this terrible fight, or worse yet, someone in your class.  These scenarios are an opportunity to bring discussion to the entire class.  Students need to understand the importance of empathy and moral support in learning to cope with illness and disease.  

  

  
I am blessed with good health, so far, but I lost my parents almost twenty years ago and my younger brother three years ago, all to medical conditions. Cancer is not fair in who it picks a fight with. I hope the sale of this lesson, with 50% being donated to cancer research, will help find a cure one day. I have seen survivors win this fight! I want to see cancer gone!  Please share the link and spread the word.

Stay healthy my friends.  With thanks,

Doris  

Animation anyone?

I have had the good fortune to teach two blocks of animation to grade 9 and 10s this semester.  I love teaching courses where it is easy to motivate and inspire students to be creative and imaginative.  Do I get any credit?  Maybe . . .

I give credit to the district in supplying us with high end programs to create our animations, and some of my students have taken on the self-directed approach to learning how to use these.  We were also supported with a dozen Wacom tablets.  The learning curve is steep, but students are sticking with it and getting results.

I also like to offer students a way to continue doing animation at home, without having to purchase expensive programs.  My recommendations?  Microsoft PowerPoint and Windows Movie Maker.  Yes, these old standbys work wonders!  I have to say that Movie Maker 12 is better than the newest version for Windows 10, as it reads the MP4 files that PowerPoint creates, which the newest version does not.  You may need to convert them if you don't have a compatible match.  

I have ten assignments I give the students, and the majority of class time is spent working on their projects.  Starting with a logo, intro and outro sets the stage for how animation works.  I have selected a set of fifteen one minute videos created by animation students at the National Film Board (NFB), called Hot House which has eight seasons.

I was fortunate to have a teacher in my high school days (in the 1970s) who introducted me to Norman McLaren and the National Film Board.  Mr. Sparks brought in the films on reels, and it took weeks for them to arrive.  Luckily we can now show these directly at the NFB website or on YouTube.  Did you know that Norman McLaren won an Oscar for "Neighbours" in 1953, a stop animation classic?

On a more modern angle, I bring recognition to animation that we see everyday, without even thinking about it - on TV commercials, at Tim Hortons (or other fast food outlets) on their moving menu boards, on facebook, etc.  Animation is everywhere, and students could be doing it as a job!  One of my former students now does the animation on the Global BC morning news in Vancouver.  I know he does a great job as I watch the news each morning before I head to school.  I hope more of my students carry on their animation ambitions.

I have created a YouTube channel to share the efforts of my students publicly, with permission, of course.  Please have a look and leave my students some encourging words.  More entries will be added in the next four weeks, so please subscribe so you can see the projects as they are added.

I have created a preview for my TpT product:

If you find this interesting, please carry on to the product. 

Thank You!  

  

Video Intro

The more I learn, the more I need to do!  I just completed another course and have created a video introduction for my future video posts to YouTube.  

How did five seconds take all day to do? I certainly learned some new skills, and am rather happy with the results.  PowerPoint rocks!  It is quickly becoming my favourite editing tool.

Product Previews

I thought I was pretty tech saavy, as I wrote in the TpT forum of how I make my previews.  I was gently told that what I was creating were thumbnails, not previews.  She was right!

And with that, I have promptly created my first video preview.  I already see a few improvements I could make, but as my first attempt, I think it worked out well enough.  Now I have a YouTube Channel!