Value the Moments

Recently, my 58 year old neighbor passed away. He was a great guy who could decorate for the holiday's like no other. Halloween was always great. He turned his front yard into a graveyard and would even become part of the scene to scare some and excite others. His passion for Halloween and his family will stick with me forever. At the same time, he was someone who would take time to teach. I asked about his graveyard and he showed me how he used installation and spray paint to make his unique tombstones. He was a great parent. He would do anything for his children and even volunteered at the fire station to spend time with his son. Tony, you will be missed by everyone who knew you.

At his wake, a former student approached me to see how I was doing.  He is currently in his second year of college. We had a conversation about his middle school years. It was a humbling experience as he told my wife I was his favorite teacher. He talked about specific lessons, our field trips and how he was lucky to have such a great experience.  I left the conversation reflecting on his words. Was it the lessons? The trips? The conversations? What made him feel he had such an amazing experience? It's all of the above. As teachers it's so important for us to bring passion to the classroom. As @burgessdave says "Provide students with an uncommon experience and they will surprise you with uncommon effort." This is only part it. It's also about relationships. We have to take time to get to know our students. We can't expect our students to give 100% for people they don't think care about them. Teaching is a profession where we don't always get to see or hear the impact we have. Don't take for granted, especially all those special moments in the classroom and at home. You never know when they could end.

EdcampSWCT- The Building Blocks

Becoming a connected educator has connected me to the most amazing educators across the world. Last summer, I went to #edcampldr in Philadelphia. It was the first time I met Sharon Plante and Amy Traggianese, two amazing educators from Connecticut. We were connected via Twitter but I never met them face to face even though we live roughly 20 minutes away. After having dinner and a great day of learning, we discussed bringing an Edcamp to Southwestern Connecticut. We eventually heard of another group who also wanted to put together an event, so we combined forces (Jimmy Sapia, Sean Hutchinson, Joel Pardalis and Frank Rodriguez). It was great to connect via +Voxer and finally meet this passionate group of educators this weekend. Fast forward 7 months: we just held @EdcampSWCT in Norwalk, CT.

The last week was very stressful for me.  I am a teacher and a tech coach in Norwalk and was honored to be able to host the inaugural event in my hometown. We had 3 different winter storms and the feeling that the event was going to be poorly attended crossed my mind. It was even more stressful because I invited many colleagues who weren't connected and were skeptical. Also, the building we had the event was not at the school I teach. I wasn't sleeping and was going through the what ifs.... I was out of my comfort zone, but I hear that's when the magic happens.

We were setting up and people were arriving. I ended up staying at the front table to greet teachers as they arrived. When I finally made my way downstairs, I was stunned!! We had roughly 120 educators from administrators, teachers, pre-service teachers and students. I went to check the board and it was almost filled! We did an introduction and found that many had never been to an Edcamp before, so we went over the rules and the board.

We had many great sessions with students even presenting. Talk about student voice! During the first session, I walked around, watched discussions and people connecting and collaborating. I visited some teachers who were having a roundtable discussion about movement and the outdoors in education. I know many think Edcamps are tech camps but I think they are relationship camps and inspirational camps. I led a session on Google Classroom. We had novices, experts and students. It was a great discussion that left some ready to push their school and district to become a Google District and unleash the power of Google Apps.

What did my colleagues think? Well, many finally got connected- which was a huge win! Here is what they said: " It was good, I want to go to another, "  "I've been in a hole doing my own thing, it's nice to know I am not alone," "It was very uplifting," "I learned so much," " I want to bring this type of PD to my school in the fall," " I connected with some new people" and my favorite #Iamhavingfun (from someone who still has a flip phone). When I arrived in school today, I didn't bring it up but a teacher sought me out about attending another Edcamp and another e-mailed me a new website she created www.edtechsimplified.com . I am excited they took a chance and were willing to power-up their professional learning.

It is an idea, a mindset that together we are better for the children we serve. In the end, I am grateful to have worked closely with Sharon and Amy. They are a huge inspiration to me and I have learned a lot from them. That is key: Be a learner and instill that in others you meet. As I said during a discussion, "Anyone can be a leader, you don't need a title to inspire." If we were able to put on an Edcamp using the tech tools +Voxer and GHOs anyone can do it. All it takes is one block to take the first step...Keep Building.

Taking risks and moving beyond 140 characters

Every week, I try to participate in a discussion on twitter with other social studies educators called #sstlap. This is always such a great discussion with amazing educators. I have gained many resources and ideas.  This group has pushed my thinking way beyond the silo at my school.

During a discussion last week, I took a risk and reached out to +Benjamin Brazeau @braz74. I wanted to discuss a way to amp up the professional learning by having a Google Hangout (he wanted to do one in the summer).  We discussed bringing in special guests to take the learning beyond 140 characters and letting teachers elaborate on great lessons. We immediately thought of having +Matthew Barry @mrbarry628 and +Chuck Taft @chufttaft  join in on the discussion.  They are social studies gurus and true pirates. We ended up bringing in a couple of other teachers @stlinok + @spotsjaws into the discussion.   We had a uncanny amount of educators who wanted to partake and share ideas.

My first reaction was a little disappointing as I wanted to have more teacher voice in the hangout. As I reflected; I realized we took a risk.  We did something different and now have a recipe for success. The discussion was lively and productive. The main group of 4 kept the discussion moving and shared great ideas. As we move forward with other live events, we can bring in more teachers and more ideas.   In the end, the kids are the true beneficiaries.  I truly believe "together we are better." If you have any ideas, please don't hesitate to share your ideas to help make the live events even better.

How can this be used in a classroom? Connecting with classes, debating issues, collaborating on projects and connecting with experts. The possibilities are endless.

A special thanks to @braz74 for running with the idea.

Edscape- Why?

You drove over an hour on a Saturday to a workshop, why? A teacher from my school asked me. I traveled to New Jersey for Edscape. When I left, I was excited and a little sad as I was missing my son’s flag football game. I arrived early to listen to #satchat live, where the friendly aroma of Pepe’s pizza filled the air (which was brought by my friend @iplante Sharon Plante). It was a great discussion on our game changers in education. I realized how my philosophy of education has changed even more over the past year and a half since becoming connected. It was great to reconnect with Billy Krakower @wkrakower, Brad Currie @bradmcurrie, Sandra Paul @spaul6414 , Elissa Malespina @elissamalespina , Ross Cooper @RossCoops31 and Chris Casal @mr_casal during the live discussion.

We then went in for the keynote address by @stumpteacher. His speech made me realize I continually make excuses about not writing my thought/reflections. He inspired me to write this post and to write at least once a week moving forward. He discussed innovation days and passion projects. Over the past few weeks, I’ve been thinking a lot about innovation. I recently applied for #GTTAX to become a Google Certified Teacher and the focus question was on innovation. The first session I attended was on innovation by @jcwastler. He is a passionate and inspirational leader from Maryland. He stated many conditions exist for innovation, including freedom to fail and empowering teachers and students. Innovation isn’t about what’s new, it’s about what’s better. He mentioned the book Pure Genius by Don Wettrick; "students need time to create their own learning experiences". I have already placed my order.

I’m working to transform libraries in my district to learning commons, so I went to @NMHS_lms session on maker spaces. She did an amazing job transforming her library and gave me many new ideas. If you build it, they will come. My greatest takeaway was that the space has to be owned by the students. Her library has a lounge, a little bits bar, a smart TV, 3D printers, fixed stations and rotating stations. It is an old library, but you can tell it is owned by the students.

My final session, Ed Perspectives was presented by @mssacktien and @bradcurrie. Starr, a hign school english teacher in New York talked about taking risks in education. This year, she is using @voxer with her students and she stopped her standard grading system. I have always tried to take calculated risks in my classroom. This year, I completely transformed my classroom (something that many in my school disagreed with). It was so great to meet and talk with Starr. She has inspired me to take even more risks. I truly believe that with great risk, comes great reward. I even had time to set up a collaborative project with @spaul6414 and was able to discuss planning EdCampSWCT, coming next march with @iplante and @atragg

Yesterday, was a great day of learning for me, but above all it was great to hang out with the amazing people. It was great to meet @E_Sheninger as he did a great job in organizing the event. When I returned home, my son said “Dad, I can’t believe you went to school to learn on a Saturday! You must love learning; I do too” This comment stopped me in my tracks as I realized “setting an example is not the main means of influencing others; it is the only means” - Albert Einstein. As leaders in education, we are setting the example for others to follow. This is true for my children and fellow educators. Why did I travel to New Jersey on a Saturday? What should I tell my colluege? I ventured to New Jersey because I enjoy learning and hanging out with such an amazing group of leaders. It is personalized learning and more importantly, together we are better for kids. I proceeded to invite him to Ed Camp New Jersey in November. We shall see, one person at a time.

We put up Halloween decorations today. 

ISTE 2014- It's really about the people!

Over the past few months I heard about ISTE (International Society for Technology and Education). Many people spoke volumes about this conference. It made me want to attend to see what it was all about. I asked the district if I could go to this conference. To make a long story short-myself and another teacher @ebartush (she signed up for twitter two days before we went) were allowed to attend. 

It was 5 days learning. The amount of information is so overwhelming, it is like "drinking water from a fire hose." What made it so amazing? Was it the content? The ideas? No, it was the informal conversations I had with people. We arrived a day early and were able to participate in HackEd. I participated in a great discussion on @voxer led by @elissamalespina and @wkrakower. It is a truly versatile app in education and highly recommend it. We were then able to talk to @cybraryman about twitter and his famous pages.

Saturday through Tuesday, I saw so many inspirational discussions/workshops, by amazing educators/leaders such as @jasonmmarkey, @daiseydyerduerr, and @mccoyderek session on Principal Leadership. They inspired me to lead as an advocate and not focus on roadblocks. I saw great ignite sessions by @msmagiera, @techninjatodd , @tanyaavrith , @rafranzdavis and @kleinerin. I talked briefly with @techbradwaid and @techminock about @daqri. It is definitely something I will be bringing back to my school. I was able to meet @casas_jimmy, @mmiller7571 and talked with @colinwikan who had some great ideas on providing teachers with technology PD. I sat and talked with @ashleyhurley about her presentation and school life. She is such a great person, I was happy to have a discussion with her. 

In the end, what really meant the most to me was building a friendship with Brad Gustafson @gustafsonbrad. He is a Principal from Minnesota and the type of leader I aspire to be. He is so excited and passionate about learning. Brad has an attitude that anything can happen.  Every time I complimented him on his innovation practices, he complimented his staff. I have read about him prior to attending ISTE and was even signed up for his Digital Leadership Challenge (highly recommended). I never expected to spend 3 days talking education and family. He is an expert at using the @touchcastapp to tell his school's story. In an early discussion he mentioned making an ISTE video. I said let's do it. My colleague Eva said "why don't we make it centered around your one thing?" With the amazing Erin Klein sitting 15 ft away-the project began. We then spent two days, in between sessions, talking to around 20 educators about their passions and their "1" thing. All of the amazing leaders in education had a slightly different message. Compiled together we have a powerful message to share. The conference is over, I learned a lot, but more importantly I made a friend that makes we want to be better as a teacher, leader and person.  Thank you for everything Brad. Hope to reconnect at Edcampldr.
 

Implementing technology to break down the traditional walls of a classroom

The last few months have been very exciting and fast paced. I have been implementing technology to break down the walls of a traditional classroom. I should have probably written multiple blog posts about each of these amazing events.  I will break it down into three categories: 1. my class 2. other classrooms 3. communication with parents.

1. In March and early April, I was able to connect my students with students in North Carolina and Illinois on a March Madness project. Everything was focused around the Essential Question "How can one individual affect a group of people or the United States?" Students collaborated on projects using Google docs. Voting happened using Google forms. What made this project so great was that students used 21st century skills throughout. They were communicating with students in other states, collaborating with each other, thinking critically to make projects better because they creating for an authentic audience. It will be great to add a Google Hangout component in the future. Thanks to @sofiageorgelos and @amcrowe5.

2. In March, I worked with the Art teacher and a Social Studies teacher connecting their classes with  students in Jordan and with the Sheffield Museum in Canada. It was great to help teachers connect their classrooms virtually. Watching students connect and learn from experts and students halfway across the world was both exciting and meaningful. The art students sent their projects to Jordan and vice versa. They were able to ask and discuss each other's projects. In Social Studies, students met virtually with a "Medieval Serf" from the Sheffield Museum in Canada. Students were able to ask about are parts of life and learn from an expert. He even played music and taught the students Medieval Dance. They were breaking down the traditional walls of the classroom.
















3. At my school we have been able to find new ways to communicate with parents. First, we have started using Google Hangouts to stream live for parents who cannot attend. This is revolutionizing parent communication. On our 8th grade trip to Washington D.C. I wanted to communicate with parents in real time about our trip. I used remind101 and twitter to take pictures and keep parents informed. I received multiple e-mails of gratitude for this new and exciting way to connect with parents.

Technology is changing education faster than any force in history. Remember, it is simply a tool. Tech should be implemented to improve learning, engage students and communicate more effectively.

Making History Come Alive!

Teaching is a profession where we can positively impact the lives of students on a daily basis. This cannot be said for every profession. I was able to visit New Jersey and see @burgessdave present about his book Teach Like a Pirate. This was an amazing experience for me.

I have been teaching under the mantra of "Making History Come Alive." It was fairly obvious that my mantra fits in to being a Pirate. Making History Come Alive is giving students the opportunity to experience history and to be excited about attending class each and every day. In his book, P is for Passion. Passion can come from many different places. It may be the content or your individual passion. You have to bring passion to every lesson- presentation MAKES a difference. In passion, falls these life changing lessons that can impact students positively. Hooks keep students on the edge of their seat. "Guest Speakers" who are really you dressed up. Another example of a hook is when I pretend to find notes.  I tell the students for days I am disappointed about finding notes in class and tell them I will read it if I find another. The next day, I find a note. It is a break-up note- the students are on the edge of their seats. It is a note from the Colonies to England. The students never forget the Declaration of Independence is just a break-up note. I've had teachers say "I can't do that." Anyone can do this, it make take time and hard work but don't just teach a lesson- create an experience!! Act-it-Outs are a great way to create an experience- Mr. Burgess turned his classroom into a speakeasy when studying prohibition, passed out sausage as they read The Jungle. I have turned my room into a battle field and simulated trench warfare, acted-out a hurricane, loyalty during the Middle Ages, climbing Mt. Everest, and even experiencing the Skittle Tax. It makes history real and not just something that happened a really long time ago. T is for Transformation- If you provide an uncommon experience they will give you an uncommon effort. Ask yourself, if students didn't have to be there, would you be teaching in an empty room?

Anyone can bring passion and creativity. Questions are the key to creativity. You may have never asked the right questions. I challenge everyone to create an experience where students are constantly drawn to your class, to be excited about learning. Use the power of passion and presentation to create a flame of excitement that will burn long after they have had you.