By Nicole Pagtakhan
I'm From Beaverton, OR. I'm from the smog that comes from the motorcycles and Jeepneys that take up the roads. They are a sign of a new adventure, squished next to my older sister. I'm from the monay and pan de ube pastries, savored at any time of the day. A short walk from my aunt's house to the bakery was always an exciting quest, knowing I'd earn a sweet and buttery bun by the end of it. I'm from the family members that I cannot speak to. Though the second language of the Philippines is English, my parents often translated their words instead of teaching me Tagalog. I'm from destiny, culminated from my parent's magical love story. Living a neighborhood apart when they were children, they officially met after their families moved to Canada and they became adults. I'm from ambition, of two parents who wanted to make a life together away from their families. Their independence and hard work inspires me to become the teacher I want to be. I'm from laughter and happiness, lighting up the room as I move. There are many trials that my family and I have gone through, yet we still find the happiness and appreciate it where we can. I'm from the heavy rain, showering the evergreens. They comfort me at night, whether I'm drifting off to sleep or staying up late to finish work. I'm from the dusty trails in the forests, leading me to new sights. I feel connected to the earth as I take in the sun, and the soreness in my legs vanishes. I'm from the letters NP. Noli, Noralene, Nhatalya, make up my immediate family, and I wouldn't want it any other way.
Direct link to Sway: https://sway.office.com/kbbHO81HCEo8GYHq?ref=Link
Adobe Sway was fun to use, though tricky at first. I was a little confused about reordering the blocks and if I wanted to use a different image, for example. But, it’s fairly useful once you understand how it works. I like that I can view it on WordPress without opening another tab. I think it works as a very cute way to present information. Similar to how I used it, I think it would be fun to use it for Student of the Week presentations for students to share about themselves.
The themes remind me of the Microsoft Powerpoint themes because they’re clean and readable. I didn’t look into other themes as much, but I wish there was a website like Slidesgo where you can get copies of very specific themes. It would add more flair to them, even more than the ones in the Featured Sway section.
-Nicole Pagtakhan
Nicole, I enjoyed reading your story – and the intersection of your three geographic roots. Very well written – heartfelt and authentic. The Sway does a fine job of illustrating it. I think it will be a solid resource in your edtech toolkit.
PS: I did the embed. Guess permissions changed and students can’t use that block anymore.
Nicole, I had the same problems with Microsoft Sway. I’m glad you got it figured out. Your story was beautiful and detailed. Your sway was also very organized and really nice to look at. Good job!