big Ideas

      You know that dream when you show up for class in your pj's (or worse, with no clothes!) or you have forgotten to study for the test or learn your lines for the play?  Well, I thought I was going to live that dream in this seminar.  Ok, technology is still somewhat of a foreign language, but at least it's one that I can understand.  I have learned so many new things, even though I still have to return to some of the basic tutorials from time to time.
      The most important lesson I have learned is that there are so many interesting ways to use technology in education and it isn't that hard to find them.  Just being exposed to a variety of applications has opened a new world for me.  Having the confidence and courage to just mess around and actually try to figure out how to make something work was a major accomplishment.  When I emailed my coach to say, "You know that question we had that we didn't know how to answer?  Well, I figured out how to make it work!" That was when I realized I could actually do this.  I'm no expert, and I have a lot to learn, but I know enough to get started and I will continue to learn along the way.
      I don't think I will actually change my approach to teaching.  My orientation has always been to put the students at the center and make them responsible for their own learning.  Technology just gives me more opportunities to make this happen, and will allow the lesson to meet the students where they are, since this is definitely their world.  As Charlie told us, "You don't really need this."  But it does make things more engaging and interesting.  I am also reminded that I don't always have to know how to implement the technology that I am using.  The students can figure that out.  They are much better at it anyway.  I just have to be able to lay the foundation, to know where we are going, and to lead them in that direction.  Their natural abilities and creativity will take over from there.
      I am excited to apply the lessons that I have created to my eighth grade class, as well as to introduce some of the technologies to my staff.  We are beginning to implement project based learning in our school, and the ideas I have gathered from TTF will inform our learning and apply to the project based curriculum.  This will be the basis of our professional development in the next year.