Self Portrait - Picasso Head

For this assignment I was asked to go to the following web site Picasso Head and create a self portrait. This was a fun and easy activity. It had great ease of use and allowed the user to share the art created with others that visit the site as well as with friends through a link sent via email. I selected the pieces I wanted for my face, added color, played with rotating and sizing. Then published it on the website and sent myself an email with the link to my piece of art. My Picasso Head can be found at this link. Or you can view it below:

 In the assignment we were told creating and managing identity is big business and to practice making connections. So, here is what I got from this lesson. Creating and publishing anything "on the web" or "in the cloud" means that you have presented a piece of yourself to an unknown audience. So, when you go to a website or post your information to a site or share your information with someone via the internet, you need to be knowledgeable about the site. As teachers it is important that we are aware of the implications of placing information on a given site and that we are cautious when having our students go to sites. Cautious, not fearful. For example, the site that I noted in my last blog VA Education Wizard , is a safe site to have students create an account and enter their data into. It is funded by VA Department of Education.

While I may not use this specific web site in my teaching. I can use the lesson behind the drawing. It is our responsibility to incorporate technology into our classrooms in a thoughtful way and to use it in conjunction with our knowledge of teaching and our knowledge of our subject area. We should not implement technology for technology's sake, but seek to understand how introducing technology into the lesson enhances the subject we are teaching.

This lesson relates to the ISTE NETS  T standards for me in the area of facilitating and inspiring student learning and creativity. It was a reminder to me that I need to incorporate technology into my lessons in such a way that the technology encourages my students to more fully understand and use the content I am teaching. And of course, if technology helps to make the lesson more fun and creative, the students will be more engaged. This was a site that used creativity.