Digital Fluency
It's been a great morning of learning about digital learning as a leader. My number one takeaway? Leaders must model with the technology they want teacher and students to use. And it's a challenge because there are so many avenues. It's important to start small, help teachers see the relevance, and go from there. Otherwise it's overwhelming and difficult to really master one or two things Patience is key, especially with more experienced teachers.
My Learning Today
Makerspaces
I've heard of Makerspaces over the last couple of years, but I really don't know too much about them. This kind of surprises me since two of my favorite opportunities for kids are Destination Imagination and Camp Invention. Both of these seem very much connected to the idea of the Makerspace and I really want to learn more about them. Some questions to answer include:
- When is the next one in my area?
- How are DI and Camp Invention connected?
- How could I be a part of a Makerspace that would benefit Irving students?
Genius Hour
I really like the idea of Genius Hour. There are some natural connections to R4D (formerly TPSP) and what I think we really want students to be doing. TPSP is a great structure when you're first learning the process, but wouldn't it be great if kids could truly experience a Genius Hour as described in this blog? http://www.geniushour.com/
Voice and Choice
I selected this idea to read about because differentiation is such an important piece of the classroom. I feel like i'm pretty well versed in it, but I know I can grow in it, especially in terms of using technology. So I was super excited to find Shake Up Learning. I could totally get lost in this blog for quite awhile. I loved the section on how to really utilize Google forms. I've got to figure out how to utilize this and soon!
Smore
I've used Smore for personal use for a couple of years and I really like it. But I would love to use it professionally. Just gotta figure out how and to what purpose.