Using Twitter in the Classroom – Justification: Part 2

Just a reminder, this blog post is a continuation of the previous one entitled: “Using Twitter in the Classroom – Outlining the Issue: Part 1.”  

I am currently completing my Masters in Secondary Teaching and will be posting my current assignment to this blog in order to demonstrate how 21^st century technology can be used in the classroom. This is the second part of my assessment task, where I will attempt to justify the use of Twitter, drawing on how it can be used in the learning. I created my own hashtag for each post relating to this assessment task (#MTeachWWIIyr10) on my own personal Twitter account. The link for this thread is as follows: https://mobile.twitter.com/search?q=MTeachWWIIyr10&s=typd or by typing in the hashtag into the search button.

So the question to be addressed here is why a teacher might choose to use Twitter. It is a way for students to:

1. Link their learning in the virtual world for easy reference at a later date;
2. Collaborate with each other remotely and with their teacher;
3. Gain access to a wide range of resources;
4. Share their resources efficiently with their peers through re-tweeting and sharing posts;
5. Link with professionals and the wider community with knowledge and skills in that field of expertise; and
6. Generate their own peer discussion (Miller; GDC Team, 2014);

This is by no means an exhaustive list. In the comments section of this blog, I invite you to include any other ways you think Twitter might be useful in a classroom context.

There is an excellent article by Samantha Miller setting out 50 ways Twitter can be used on the classroom. You can access this article at this address: http://www.teachhub.com/50-ways-use-twitter-classroom. I actually shared this article on my Twitter feed with the hashtag #MTeachWWIIyr10. Miller begins by using a couple of classroom housekeeping examples like tweeting about upcoming assignment due dates or providing a running news feed to show how Twitter can be useful in the classroom. Some of the other examples she uses are particularly novel and innovative like having English students attempt to write a poem in 140-character format or teaching probability. Miller’s article has a wealth of inspiration which really highlights that the application of Twitter is really only limited by the teacher’s imagination. It particularly lends itself to the Humanities area because it has so many applications like tracking weather patterns or connecting with Google Earth (both examples are from Miller’s blog post). I particularly liked her idea of having the students summarize each lesson in a 140-character tweet. This encourages the students to individually process the teaching and learning and engage in higher order thinking to summarize the content. The students would need to stick to the 140-character format unique to Twitter, which in itself is a challenge.

Another interesting article on using Twitter in the classroom is found on the Global Digital Citizen Foundation’s website at https://globaldigitalcitizen.org/60-inspiring-examples-of-twitter-in-the-classroom, which I also shared under the #MTeachWWIIyr10 hashtag. There are some fantastic Easter Eggs here. I liked the suggestion about allowing students who have trouble with ‘disruptive blurting’ to tweet their impromptu comments instead. This is a way of managing a particular behavior in a non-threatening way.

I have also shared two other resources about how to use Twitter on my feed. Dailygenius suggests using Twitter to hold a discussion with the class for 30 minutes outside of school hours at http://dailygenius.com/use-twitter-in-the-classroom/. This might be a great way to keep the class focused and connected on school holidays. If used effectively, it could even foster a virtual community for the classroom. Virtual communities or networks are second nature to the digital native student. However, by incorporating this virtual community into the classroom, the teaching and learning will not feel outdated and irrelevant to the students. This is particularly helpful when the individual student is taking a required subject without any personal interest in the teaching and learning.

Pamela DeLoatch suggests publicly acknowledging a student’s good behavior on Twitter at http://www.edudemic.com/the-30-newest-ways-to-use-twitter-in-the-classroom/. This could be a useful tool for managing behavior, specifically encouraging positive behaviors. Of course, a teacher should never publicly name and shame a student for inappropriate behavior on Twitter. Most of my examples in my hashtag feed are limited to posting a question, which my here-to-fore non-existent students would answer. Much of the suggestions contained in these blogs are difficult to demonstrate without a live class of students to participate. However, there is no question that these suggestions are innovative and completely in step with educating the Neo-millennial learner or digital native (Prensky, 2001). Through most of these examples, students become active participants in the learning. Activating the students as participants is important in developing their neural network (Foreman, 2003) as well as for student engagement.

Potential Problems?

A point that I failed to consider when I started posting under the hashtag #MTeachWWIIyr10 is whether all tweets should contain correct spelling and grammar. I alternated between using the correctly spelled “you” and the twitter favorite “u.” Other abbreviations crept in, especially when I was attempting to re-tweet an interesting tweet with my #MTeachWWIIyr10 hashtag. In the future, I would carefully consider whether correct spelling is important for the class. Perhaps I could even invite the students to contribute their own opinions on this. I think a teacher’s tweets should probably meet the correct spelling and grammar requirements, although you will notice that mine do not. Whether or not the students should be required as well, might need to be decided by consensus with the whole class contributing to the discussion and casting their vote.

Choosing to present this assessment task through the microblogging site Twitter has presented some difficulties. For instance, I cannot post this entire blog post in one post on Twitter due to the 140-character format. However, the functionality of Twitter makes it a good one-stop-shop for accessing information. I can post this task elsewhere and then share the link via my twitter account. It works the same if I wanted to upload a screenshot of the homework I had set for the class. I would be able to share the screenshot via Twitter under the hashtag for the class. I could ask the students to perform a Twitter search and find a Twitter user with knowledge about our topic and their own website. The class could perform a search on the Second World War and begin following users like @RealTimeWWII, @OZatwar or @WWIImuseum. They might be asked to present what they learned about the teaching and learning from accessing this site in the next class. The students could be encouraged to put these users in a list so that they can access their tweets in a single feed. These users post regularly about World War II and their tweets would help bring history to life for the students. This in itself will facilitate student engagement for subjects like History that has a reputation of being dry for students.

Another potential downside to implementing the use of Twitter in the classroom is the additional work required for the teacher. If the teacher is not completely comfortable with using the site, the requirement to keep up with it will become more onerous than intended.  If each student in the class engages with Twitter at once, that is between 25 and 30 posts that the teacher needs to have at least read and checked so that he or she can be sure that it does not contain anything inappropriate. In addition to this, if each student tweets questions to the teacher, they may expect instant responses, resulting in next-to-no down time for the teacher. The concept of set contact hours could potentially address this issue. The contact hours could be set at the beginning of the year or they could be set at the beginning of each week for the class. The teacher would therefore monitor all tweets at a time to be determined at his or her discretion but would only be required to be on-hand for direct answers during set times. This needs to be carefully considered by the teacher and assessed critically against the already present constraints on their time. Alternatively, rather than using Twitter for the whole year, the teacher could set it up for Term 1 only and decide whether to continue with it for the rest of the year at the conclusion of the Term 1. Students might be allowed to expect to access their teacher outside of school hours in today’s digital age but this expectation needs to be managed so that the teacher does not end up becoming burnt out. 

Conclusion

Despite the potential problems raised herein, I remain excited about the applications of Twitter in the classroom. It is obvious from the type of posts that I put under the #MTeachWWIIyr10 hashtag that I enjoy the idea that students and teachers alike can share pictures of historical events. The teacher can also invite students to undertake their own research into questions and share the link to the information that they find. These examples provide opportunities for the students to engage both with the teaching and learning but also with current events. This can be invaluable in stimulating discussion, analysis and exploration of the teaching and learning. Inferential thinking needs to be prompted but remains invaluable for a student’s grasp of the material (Lamb, 2006). When used effectively and within set parameters, Twitter can be an invaluable 21^st century tool in combatting student engagement.

References:

1. (2014). “25 Top Ways Teachers Use Twitter in the Classroom.” Retrieved on September 17, 2015 at http://dailygenius.com/use-twitter-in-the-classroom/.
2. DeLoatch, P. (2015). “30 Innovative Ways to Use Twitter in the Classroom.” Edudemic. Retrieved on September 17, 2015 from http://www.edudemic.com/the-30-newest-ways-to-use-twitter-in-the-classroom/.
3. GDC Team. (2014). “60 Inspiring Examples of Twitter in the classroom.” Global Digital Citizen Foundation. Retrieved on September 17, 2015 from https://globaldigitalcitizen.org/60-inspiring-examples-of-twitter-in-the-classroom.
4. Miller, S. ‘50 Ways to Use Twitter in the Classroom.’ Teach Hub. Retrieved on September 17, 2015 from http://www.teachhub.com/50-ways-use-twitter-classroom.
5. Prensky, M. (2001). “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants Part 1.” On the Horizon. 9(5): 1-6.

Using Twitter in the Classroom – Outlining the Issue: Part 1

I am currently completing my Masters in Secondary Teaching and will be posting my current assignment to this blog in order to demonstrate how 21^st century technology can be used in the classroom.   

The issue I wish to address in this assessment task is student engagement with the teaching and learning. This is a broad issue that can be addressed in a number of different ways. In order to ensure, student engagement the teaching should be student-centric (Noe et al, 2010).  It should also address three separate issues (Kahn, 1990):

1. Relevance – the student can see that there is meaning behind what they are learning and they recognise that learning is not a waste of effort and time;
2. Safety – the student is reassured because he or she knows that the classroom is a safe place, where his or her self-expression will not lead to negative repercussions; and
3. Availability of resources – the required resources are accessible by the student when they are needed;

Since relevance is so important to engagement, teachers need to ensure that their lessons are not perceived as outdated. Sometimes this opinion is difficult to overcome. What students see as interesting or relevant may be affected by their own individual interests. Using 21^st century technological tools can help tackle this perception of being ‘outdated.’ I propose that using a social networking site like Twitter can encourage engagement both inside and outside the classroom. When used well, it can foster peer collaboration, individual research and critical analysis.

An important distinction to point out is the fact that today’s student is growing up in a different culture than previous generations. This new generation of student has been called the Neomillennial learner (Dede, 2009; Willems, 2008) and it has been accepted that this digitally literate generation requires the following to be incorporated into the pedagogical framework employed in their classroom:

1. Becoming fluent in multiple media;
2. Actively learning the material through collective collaboration;
3. Expressing themselves through non-linear webs of representations as well as linear media; and
4. Co-designing the learning experiences with the students in order to personalise the teaching and learning to their individual needs and preferences;

The Neomillennial learner tends to gravitate to group activity; values being considered intelligent; is drawn to new developing technologies; and is, as a group, racially and ethnically diverse (Oblinger, 2004; Raines, 2002). The social aspect of learning has been widely accepted as important (Vygotsky in Deed, 2015; Smith, 1999). An effective teacher recognizes these characteristics and increases engagement by providing opportunities for the students to develop skills in these areas. They also employ multiple modes of learning like group or pair activities. There have been studies which demonstrate that applying Information and Communication Technology (“ICT”) in education positively impacts upon student engagement (McFarlane, 2003; Andretta, 2005). In order to meet the needs of a changing workforce landscape, society now requires students to be “expert learners” (Ertmer and Newby, 1996) or life-long learners, who graduate with creativity, diverse skills, ICT skills and flexibility (Darling-Hammond, 2006; Levy and Murnane, 2004).

Implementing the use of Twitter would need to be undertaken with the approval of the school’s principal, with the appropriate cyber-safety protocols implemented. This might be as simple as requiring each student to set up a school Twitter account, which is monitored both by their parents and the teacher. It might mean that the teacher sets up a class account that can be accessed by each and every student. It is highly unlikely that the students would be able to continue to use their personal Twitter pages for this exercise. The teacher may also have to spend a lesson or even multiple lessons going over the school’s ICT policy to ensure that the students are clear on the parameters of what is appropriate on a school-safe Twitter account. Through monitoring tweets, there would be potential teaching moments about digital citizenship, cyber-safety and what is safe to share online (KQED et al, 2015).

For a teacher to use Twitter effectively, he or she might wish to create an individualised hashtag for the students to use in any post related to the teaching and learning. That way all posts would appear in the same conversation thread. The hashtag system could be used to differentiate between individual topics, units or, alternatively, it could be the same hashtag the whole way through the year.

In my next blog post, I will attempt not only to justify the use of twitter, I will also actively demonstrate it. In order to demonstrate this, I have created my own hashtag for each post relating to this assessment task (#MTeachWWIIyr10) on my own personal Twitter account. The link for this thread is as follows: https://mobile.twitter.com/search?q=MTeachWWIIyr10&s=typd or by typing in the hashtag into the search button. I will include a copy of this thread in the hard copy, which will be submitted. I hope to show the various applications for a year 10 History class studying World War II.

References:

1. Andretta, S. (2005). Information Literacy: A practitioner’s guide. Oxford, UK: Chandos Publishing, Ltd.
2. Darling-Hammond, L. (2006). “Constructing 21^st-Century Teacher Education.” Journal of Teacher Education. 57(3): 300-314.
3. Dede, C. (2009) Comparing Frameworks for “21^st Century Skills.” Harvard Graduate School of Education. 1 – 16, 10. Retrieved on April 8, 2015 from https://lms.latrobe.edu.au/pluginfile.php/1841869/mod_book/chapter/41687/Comparing%20Frameworks.pdf.
4. Deed, C. (2015). EDU5PFL Planning for learning (1st ed). South Melbourne, VIC: Cengage Learning Australia.
5. Ertmer, P. A. & Newby, T. J. (1996). ‘The expert learner: Strategic, self-regulated and reflective.’ Instructional Science. 24: 1 – 24. Retrieved on April 8, 2015 from https://lms.latrobe.edu.au/pluginfile.php/1841869/mod_book/chapter/41687/Expert%20learner%20article.pdf.
6. Foreman, J. (2003). “Next generation educational technology versus the lecture.” EDUCAUSE Review. Retrieved June 29, 2015 from http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0340.pdf.
7. Kahn, W. A. (1990). Psychological conditions of personal engagement and disengagement at work. Academy of Management Journal. 33: 692-724.
8. KQED, Trust and Safety Team at Twitter, Levin, S., Morris, C., and Williams, B. (2015). “Guide to Using Twitter in your Teaching Practice.” KQED Education. Retrieved on September 17, 2015 from http://blogs.kqed.org/education/how-to-use-twitter-in-your-teaching-practice/.
9. Lamb, A. (2006). Inferential Thinking Across the Curriculum. Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://eduscapes.com/sessions/pilot/pilotinference.htm.
10. Levy, F. & Murnane, R. J. (2004). The new division of labor: How computers are creating the next job market. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
11. McFarlane, A. (2003). “Assessment for the digital age.” Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice. 10:261-66.
12. Noe, R. A., Tews, M. J. & McConnell Dachner, A. (2010). ‘Learner Engagement: A New Perspective for Enhancing Our Understanding of Learner Motivation and Workplace Learning.’ The Academy of Management Annals. 4(1): 279-315. Retrieved April 8, 2015 from https://lms.latrobe.edu.au/pluginfile.php/1841869/mod_book/chapter/41687/Learner%20Engagement%20Article.pdf.
13. Oblinger, D. (2004). “The Next Generation of Educational Engagement.” Journal of Interactive Media in Education. 8:1-18.
14. Raines, C. (2002). “Managing Millennials,” in Oblinger, D. (2004). “The Next Generation of Educational Engagement.” Journal of Interactive Media in Education. 8:1-18.
15. Smith, M. K. (1999) The Social/ Situational Orientation to Learning. Retrieved March 6, 2015, from http://infed.org/mobi/the-socialsituational-orientation-to-learning/.
16. Willems, J. (2008). “From sequential to global: Exploring the landscapes of neomillennial learners.” Hello! Where are you in the landscape of educational technology? Proceedings ASCALITE Melbourne 2008, 1103-1113. Retrieved on February 28. 2015, from https://lms.latrobe.edu.au/mod/book/view.php?id=1465562&chapterid=54002.

To Grandpa, from your “No 1 Granddaughter” Possum

It’s been quite a while since my last post, I know. The reasons for that are multiple but one of the reasons is my Grandpa, Ray, passed away peacefully on 29 March 2015 after a two month stint in hospital. He was 87 years old and it has been so hard saying good-bye to someone who had such a huge impact on my life. I thought I would upload the poem that I wrote and shared at his funeral last week.

His unquenchable thirst

Pushed him to new heights.

He was my Pa Pa first

Umpiring my sister fights.

Little hands knead the dough;

Big ones made such a mess.

The flour: high and low;

Grandma sure earned her rest.

His booming laugh roared,

Around his chair, we would run.

In strong arms enfolded,

As we giggled with the fun.

The law now behind me

He allayed all my fears.

He was still proud of me

All of my days and years.

Becoming a Great Grandpa:

The next step for Ray.

Raising the flag to the stars,

He was fierce proud that day.

Looking at pictures of us,

He told me happily

that we were all his:

His precious family.

He got knocked down,

The Comeback King Ray.

Inner strength he found,

He did things his way.

I miss his face,

His hair needing a comb.

But he ran his race.

And now he has gone home.

His love was fierce,

I’m not me without him.

His loss does pierce

But I know I will see him.

I see him in the sun,

Young and walking tall,

Eyes sparkling with fun,

Waiting with Jesus for us all.

You’d look at me and smile,

You knew me so well.

You raised me up high,

And I never fell.

You knew how I loved you.

I knew you were never far.

So now I say thank you

For being my Grandpa.

As Shakespeare once wrote,

“Now cracks a noble heart! Good night, sweet prince; And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!”

My last words to Grandpa were, I love you and I’ll see you soon. Today, I want to say the same thing.

Fly away Pa Pa and until we meet again, I love you.

You’re Beautiful by Phil Wickham

Hi Everyone,

I’ve had a few changes in the last few months which is why I’ve been absent from my blog and am actually back at University to step into a new career. My nephew arrived safe and sound – he’s 2 months! My grandfather is also very sick, which has been hard and some days my heart just aches with it. When I get overwhelmed, which I have to admit has been a lot lately, I like to listen to WorshipMob’s version of this song. You can find it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JP_HLFdfok

Lyrics:

I see Your face in every sunrise
The colors of the morning are inside Your eyes
The world awakens in the light of the day
I look up to the sky and say
You’re beautiful

I see Your power in the moonlit night
Where planets are in motion and galaxies are bright
We are amazed in the light of the stars
It’s all proclaiming who You are
You’re beautiful

I see You there hanging on a tree
You bled and then you died and then you rose again for me
Now You are sitting on Your heavenly throne
Soon we will be coming home
You’re beautiful

When we arrive at eternity’s shore
Where death is just a memory and tears are no more
We’ll enter in as the wedding bells ring
Your bride will come together and we’ll sing
You’re beautiful

I see Your face, I see Your face
I see Your face, You’re beautiful
You’re beautiful
You’re beautiful

Stay safe.

2015 – ready or not

As I write this, I’m still surprised that the New Year has come and gone. 2014 went by so fast for me that I’m not even sure I have clear memory of what happened. Perhaps everyone feels that way this time of year. I mean, if you’re anything like me, preparation for Christmas starts in November – gifts, cards, parties, catching up with friends. It goes by so quickly and then suddenly, it’s the first day of a new year.

I’m not a resolutions person. I never really bought into New Year’s Eve as an actual holiday – I’m grateful for the public holiday. I read a post by Candace Cameron Bure today that reminded me that this time of year is a great time to re-evaluate your goals. You can read her post here: http://candacecameronbure.net/practically-speaking/2015-goals/

It got me thinking about my own goals. My personal trainer likes me to think about fitness goals in the New Year period but I’ve never pushed myself to achieve them. For 2015, I’ve decided to hold myself accountable to this blog post. I’m posting this to make myself think seriously about what I want to get out of 2015.

1. To stay fervent in prayer – I’m a Christian and I believe that prayer really helps me stay centered on the things that God has for me.
2. Spend time studying the Bible each day, whether that is 5 minutes or an hour. This is a habit that I really need to get back into because I know from past experience that without it, I feel stressed and out of whack with myself.
3. Prioritize myself more – I tend to drop everything for family whenever they need it but I rarely put my own needs first. This takes a toll after a prolonged period of time and I start to feel frustrated with myself. It’s my own fault though so the solution starts with me.
4. Get in shape – I’m completely out of the habit of getting to the gym 3 times a week and this has to change. I know it’s going to kill me to start but I also know that it’s going to really help my mindset. I know intellectually that I need the physical outlet… I’m just too good at putting it off at the moment.
5. Write every week – This one is really important. I finished my first manuscript but I owe it the proper time to edit it into a polished work. I also just started my second manuscript, which I’m really excited about so this has to be a priority in 2015.

I figure that if I can really focus on these five things, 2015 is going to be better than 2014.

What are your goals?

Today, I’m promising myself that I’m going to meet mine this year and I hope that you do too. I’m thinking of the feeling of achievement I will have when I look back on this post on 1 January 2016 and realize that I did what I set out to do.

The Magic Bank Account

Wow, thanks for sharing! This is very thought provoking. I love the picture you chose to!

Don’t Have Money, But I Want to Learn a Language. What Do I Do?

I just wanted to reblog this so that I can look up the resources later. Thanks for posting!

The State of the World

I am constantly torn between not wanting to sound ignorant of current events and disgusted by what I read. Has anyone else felt like that? I log on to a news website to see what is currently being reported and instantly I feel sick to my stomach. Stories about mothers sexually abusing their children, a 9 year old child stabbed to death by a 12 year old on a playground, children left to die in cars in hot weather – I mean, the list is endless. And it’s filled with sick and twisted individuals committing unspeakable acts.

Even the so-called ‘fluff’ pieces about celebrities contain the latest in rehab stints, or mental breakdowns, or some other sexually explicit dance move. People getting divorced, people getting cheated on – am I the only one who’s noticed that the news has taken a real negative twist?

I remember in high school (only ten years ago but hey!) we were encouraged to read the newspaper to keep up to date on current events but today it feels like a different world. Readers are bombarded with some of the most disturbing stories and it’s exhausting.

I try to keep this blog positive and free from that kind of dark and twisty stuff. I try to keep my mind free of it as well but today I realised that if I really hate being hit with this type of stuff, I actually need to make the break. I need to stop ‘informing myself’ of these types of stories and to do that I need to give up on the news websites. So starting today, I’m no longer going to log on to these websites. I’m going to risk looking ignorant of what’s happening in the world. It will no doubt prove to be good for me.

Just an update on my life

You may have wondered where I disappeared to. I intended to post something each week but I have been MIA for several weeks now. It’s been hectic here. The roof above my bedroom sprung a leak about six weeks ago and the usual stresses of repairs, workmen and insurance claims ensued. The roof is repaired and I am no longer sleeping in the lounge room so that in itself is fantastic.

Phoenix moved back to my place so there was the usual musical chairs of getting everything set up and moved around so that Phoenix, Dakota, her husband and my niece could all fit back in our three bedroom place. It’s great to all be back under the same roof though. Dakota and her husband just bought a house, which is pretty exciting. Moving day will be in a few months. They are also expecting a baby! This is also very exciting. The baby is due early January.

I took a break from editing my Historical romance manuscript to work on my fantasy manuscript. It’s been a really enjoyable creative outlet for me but I’ve become a little obsessed again. I started this one about nine years ago and it became really complicated so I stopped. Now, I’ve peeled the story back once again and I’m starting over. It’s been a great way to deal with all the other stresses in my life at the moment – a great form of escapism.

I was quite ill with a stomach infection and I had to go to hospital because the pain was so bad, although it appears that I’m now back to normal, no permanent damage done, praise God. I haven’t been in that much pain before though in my life, I don’t mind telling you.

Work has been a giant stress-ball of chaos now for about two months. My tether is wearing a bit thin. Today, I read 2 Corinthians 1:3 – 5: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.”

As I read those verses, I felt as if I was being reminded that God is love. Everything we must face and endure, we do not face and endure alone, because he is with us, comforting us and loving us every step of the way. It helped ease my burden today when I read that and I hope that when you read this, that God uses it to encourage you too.

I am currently worried about my grandfather and trying to give his life and health over to God. My grandpa’s hip dislocated last Wednesday so he’s been in hospital ever since. Now, a dislocated hip is not in and of itself life threatening. However, he’s not in good health to start with. At the moment we don’t know what to do because surgery is a real risk. Not having surgery though appears to mean that his hip will continue to dislocate itself. There’s a very real chance that he won’t survive the surgery so we’re all praying for a solution. All of your prayers would be much appreciated.

I know though that, even as my heart aches with indecision and worry, God is in control. I can trust him with this situation. He will get me through it.

What a weekend!

Well, I haven’t posted much lately and for that I’m very sorry. Let’s see – I was sick with the flu for 5.5 weeks and last Tuesday morning I was woken up at 4.30am with a neck spasm. It hasn’t gone away yet and I’m quite uncomfortable and in pain. It’s made sitting for any length of time quite impossible, which is making work impossible as well.

I’ve been to see an Osteopath but apart from stretching the muscles and providing a massage, there’s not a lot she could do. I’ve been instructed to take anti-inflammatories, pain relief as needed and apply heat packs regularly – all of which I’m doing. Although, I have to say that by about 3pm in my work day, the neck muscles are fatigued and that’s when they really start to grumble.

Anyway, that’s not all that happened over the weekend. I was taking it easy because of my neck. Phoenix and I were originally going to see a movie but school holidays just started here in Melbourne. Because of that, we decided to stay home and watch a movie instead. We’d just finished the movie and I’d just gone into my bedroom to check on my laptop, which incidentally appears to have died, when I returned to sit down on the couch. Not ten minutes later, I hear running water. I said to Phoenix, “Can you hear that? What is that?” She stands up and looks behind the chair – no water. She opens the bedroom door and her whole face drops.

“Your ceiling is leaking water!”

Sure enough, there were two large cracks in my bedroom and water is just pouring down on to my bed. We both start moving furniture and bedding and possessions, all the while, wondering who we should call. Finally we settle on my uncle before continuing to clear the room of all possessions.
We were both seriously concerned that the whole ceiling was going to cave in. By this time it’s really starting to bulge with water. It’s even affecting the far corner of the room and appears to be spreading outward.

Anyway, my uncle arrives at 5pm and asks for a ladder – note to self, buy a ladder! – but after asking a few neighbours, we are still ladder-less. He backs his truck up and is able look over the roof end. He thinks a couple of the roof tiles moved, which in and of itself is not the biggest problem, except we have had non-stop rain for the last five days and the drain pipe for the second storey’s roof empties directly on to the now-exposed area above my bedroom. Hence, a big watery problem that is quickly becoming the swimming pool we always wanted – only kidding! The room got wet but it wasn’t under water, praise God!

So anyway, by about 5.30pm, my neck was screaming at me and I’d become quite useless. My sisters and my brother-in-law managed to get my stuff squared away so that I’m now sleeping in the lounge room until the bedroom is sorted out. I did make dinner and fed my niece so that I wasn’t completely useless.

Anyway, what a weekend! I wanted to conclude with two things that I am so thankful for:
1. The leak occurred while Phoenix and I were at home so my bedding and clothes etc were not damaged;
2. The leak did not occur during the night before while Phoenix (who crashed in my bed) and I were fast asleep;

Anyway, it will remain to be seen how quickly the damage can be repaired. I don’t want to know how wet it must be up there! I will no doubt keep you posted.