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Posts Tagged ‘blogathon’
A bit of Nostalgia: Counting Down at the Blogathon
merveoflaz countdown

THREE

It is believed that each number has a special meaning. Since it is the last three days of the Blogathon, I want to devote this post to the number “3”. Three is a sacred number in most of the religions because of being the number of divine. Three was also considered the number of harmony, wisdom and understanding. You can check the other details on mysticalnumbers.com.

As Blogathon runners we have been racing in great harmony by writing and reading regularly. We’ve been supporting each other with great comments, sharing our ideas in an unprejudiced manner and spreading the wisdom. We’ve been  asking each other without any hesitations to learn from our experiences and with a great understanding we’ve been replying. I think number three is also representing the “beginnings” and “endings”. Think about how a marathon starts: “Ready, Steady, Go” and the countdown “3-2-1” in the end. Here are my three wishes:

  1. Hope this ending will be a new beginning for you all.**
  2. Hope you will never lose the desire to learn
  3. Hope you will keep blogging after the Blogathon

 

TWO

There is a common Turkish expression about working together. “There is a sound of two hands clapping, but what about one hand?” Number two reminded me this and here at the Blogathon we were never alone. The comments (though they were more than 2:) of the other bloggers, guests and the Blogathon team supported and motivated us. I was having a little doze before I started this post and guess what I was dreaming about. “Ying yang”. I was telling someone about the meaning of ying yang,  “the two faces that keep the universe in perfect balance”* and drawing the symbol to explain it. Having a dream about that on the day of writing about number 2! What a coincidence! Or just the impact of unconscious thoughts:)It is 11th February today. 1+1 makes 2 and February is the second month. The best day to write about number 2:) Helps me to find examples about it:)) I think I am so lucky. Only two days to the finish line. We, the Blogathoners are all tired, but excited and impatient to see the results. Whatever the results are, taking a part at the Blogathon the second time (ooooh number 2:) was much more fun (and challenging). I’m so glad to have met new colleagues and share lots. Some of you have been my constant readers and that made me so happy. I’d like to thank you for all the contributions. I think I will miss the spirit, but I’m sure most of you will show up with your own blogs in the blogging world soon and we will keep in touch. Ooooh number two Please make this true :) )*

ONE

The last day of the Blogathon. There are only hours to the end. As Blogathon runners, we are entering our last posts before the finish line.The last number in the countdown: “Number 1″. “The number of being the best”*. I assume that number one represents each Blogathoner at the race. Each of us is unique and each piece of post is special in its way. Number one also displays a truth: No matter who we are, no matter where we live and who we teach, we are all the same.  With this in our minds, we have shared our experiences, without any prejudices we read each other’s posts and contributed the comments. That makes us all champions. We are the best and we are the stars. Though it would be fantastic to win it, finishing will be the real spirit of the marathon.  Writing about number one reminds me a great album of Omar Faruk Tekbilek, a Turkish composer and musician. I’d like to share something from the album called “One Truth”.

The song is called “I love You. I’m dedicating the song to all of you, because I love you. Thank you for caring to share your knowledge and experiences and making this race so special. It was totally number one:)

This post was first published here

 

 

 
“Blogathon”, The Ongoing Journey
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I stepped into the blogosphere by joining in “Blogathon 2011” that took place on the TeachingEnglish website. Being involved in a blog marathon has been one of the best moves in my professional development. It was my first blogging experience, but I was so lucky to have met so many great colleagues ready to swap ideas and share experiences. I was as happy as a clam when I learnt about the results of the marathon. Like I said in my last post at the Blogathon, this ending was a beginning.

Soon after I received a silver award, I created my own blog. It was just a month before my blog’s first birthday when “Blogathon 2012” started. Once again, I was running with other teachers not only from Turkey but also from five different countries. I was not a novice blogger anymore, but I felt the same spirit especially while wearing my Blogathon t-shirt. The Blogathon Team was really understanding to show respect to the ‘holy’ connection between me and my precious blogathon t-shirt, so they permitted me to wear my ex number, 120. Just like the first one, the marathon took a month long. I believe it was much more challenging with more people joining in. That meant more blogs to read and more comments to make. The word limit (250 words per post) was a big pressure on me in the first one, but it was not a big problem this time (I confess that I was glad about that, because there so many great posts to follow.)

The best thing was to meet teachers from different parts ofTurkey and other countries (including Blogathon 2011 runners). Blogathon has played the role of a magnet which gathered us together ‘automagically’ and blogging became more enjoyable with the motivating comments of the readers, their collaboration and the support of the Blogathon team that fired the runners with enthusiasm. I was honoured to get another silver award (and felt a bit like a silver award collector:). This was another ending which would open the doors of a beginning for each participant. That’s why I believe the Blogathon is an ongoing journey which will never end.I’d like to thank to the British Council Turkey and the Blogathon team for organizing these kind of events and giving the English teachers a chance to develop themselves (for free:) ). Another thank you goes to my fellow bloggers for making the journey so special.

Tips for beginning Blogathon runners

The world is changing. Learning and teaching are beyond the classroom walls now. The number of the blogging teachers seems to be increasing day by day and it may be your turn now. If you haven’t gone over to the world of blogging teachers yet, you should definitely give it a shot. Maybe you don’t like writing or you think you don’t have enough time for that. Don’t worry! You can still be a part of it by following the other teachers’ blogs. You can share your ideas and experiences, ask for advices and keep yourself updated.  Here are some tips for you if you decide to run at a blogathon:

  • Decide what you want to post about. Keep a list of the possible topics. Using your (smart) phone might be good for that. You never know when a new idea will pop up in your mind:)
  • Comments are as valuable as the posts. Never miss them when you visit a blog post.
  • Reply each and every comment of your posts and do not hesitate to leave a comment when you visit a blog. That creates the real connection between you and your readers. Besides, the bloggers you are interacting with can turn into lifelong friends and colleagues.
  • Use a positive language and soften it while criticizing something.
  • Do not worry about the word limit. You can continue in another post and that may even be more advantageous by drawing the readers to your blog again.
  • Make your posts “reader friendly”. Expressing yourself clearly and adding some humour can help a lot.
  • You may have international readers as well as the local ones, so try not to cause any offence by targeting a group of people. Respect all the political views and religious beliefs.
  • Be ready to say ‘No’ to all invitations and social activities during the marathon, because you will be sooo busy :S
  • Stick to the guidelines and criteria.
  • Getting an award is of course motivating, but finishing the marathon is also important in terms of its spirit.
  • Enjoy the Blogathon and enjoy the moment:)

 

An acrostic poem I wrote and dedicated to the Blogathon:

Bringing ideas all together

Leading the discussion and helping other

Organizing new posts every day

Getting replies and comment, ready to share and care

A door to be entered into another world waiting over there

The taste of each post makes me feel great about all that jazz

Hearty welcomes and warm good byes

On air all the time, running to the end ready to rise

Negotiating and interacting, broadening our minds

 

Other links you might like:

Does Everything Happen for A Reason? by Merve Oflaz

A Post on an IATEFL Interview with Adam Simpson (The Gold Award Winner of Blogathon 2012) and Sirin Soyoz by Merve Oflaz

My Blogathon Experience by Adam Simpson (The Gold Award Winner of Blogathon 2012)

Blogathon Journey by Özge Öztürk (The Runner-up of Blogathon 2012)

My Blogging Journey by Hale Yurttabir(Silver Award Winner)

Blogathon 2012 by Leman Ulas (Silver Award Winner)

An IATEFL Interview with Karin Tirasin (The Gold Award Winner of Blogathon 2011) and Eva Buyuksimkesyan (The Runner-up of Blogathon 2011)

Ready, get set and GO! ELT Blogathon 2011 by Sirin Soyoz

 

This post was first published here

 

 

 
Run Merve Run:)
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I’ve put on my marathon t-shirt (number 120) again and started running at the blog marathon. Feeling very excited and full of energy, I’m trying to reach the finish line.

The Blogathon has been a lot to me so far. As one of the silver award winners of last year I opened the doors of a new world after the race. Being inspired by the race, I started my own teaching blog and I believe this has been the biggest award I have ever received.

Teachers of English from different countries have been running at this year’s Blogathon started by the British Council Turkey. The race takes place on TeachingEnglish site of the British Council. The blogging teachers are supported by the motivating comments of Karin Tirasin, last year’s gold award winner, and the 1st runner up, Eva Buyuksimkesyan.

Teachers send great posts about their experiences, share their ideas, discuss issues and comment on each other’s posts. The race started on 16 January and it will end on 12 February. The gold award, a ticket to IATEFL Conference 2012, has been really motivating for most of the blogging teachers. More teachers are about to enter the magic world of blogging planning to start their own blogs. The British Council Blogathon team is doing a great big job by giving an opportunity to the teachers of English by helping them update themselves, opening a free space to blog and of course motivating them with awards.

If you want leave a comment and support blogging teachers, you should become a member of TeachingEnglish site and it will only take a minute. It is free and fun guaranteed:)

If you want to read my posts at the Blogathon, just click on the titles below.

Today is the first day of the rest of your life

My precious blogathon t-shirt

My Blogathon resolution: Losing weight by writing

The personality you carry with you

Using movies in class

Sorting sticks of a teacher

One minute

Teachers of Crystal Teacher

Are you in danger of …?

Have you been to Barcelona?

A poem dedicated to Blogathon

Today’s Menu

The biggest snowball ever

Other post about the Blogathon:

The race is on in the ELT Blogathon by Adam Simpson

Marks, set,  go! ELT blgoathon 2011 by Dave Dodgson

I’ve entered a competition by Naomi Epstein

Taking part in the TeachingEnglish Blogathon 2012 by Sanja

 
This ending is a beginning
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There are a lot of endings. Happy endings, sad endings, twist endings, ruined endings, surprised endings and so on.

Endings and beginnings are like matryoshka dolls. One closes the other and one opens the other. Then each beginning is an ending and each ending is a beginning.

Blogathon has been a marathon start for me. I learnt many things from all of you, shared my ideas, asked and gave advices. I felt the joy in my heart and the spirit of shared knowledge surrounded my mind.

Now, it is about to end but that will start another thing in most of our lives. As we stated in some posts, we will open our own blogs and go on sharing.  We will go on sharing knowledge like the generous nature.

I thank you all for the delightful journey we had together and wish you good luck.