ASCD 2015 - Day 2

Day 2 began early.

First session 8:00am...

I was fortunate to be on a panel with Elana Leoni of Edutopia.org and Joe Manko an awesome principal from Baltimore. Our panel was "Creating a 140 Character Culture: Schoolwide Twitter Adoption." We've spent a lot of time over the last few months prepping for this and it was a great experience to work with Elana and Joe. Being able to present with them was opportunitiy I was very fortunate to have. If you don't know Elana or Joe, connect with them. They are both doing amazing things with social media in education (keep an eye out for us at ISTE too). They are pretty awesome people.

ASCD 2015 - Day 1

This is my third year coming to ASCD. I love this conference. It's not just tech. It's not just curriculum. It's not just teachers. Of all the conferences I've been too I think ASCD is always the most varied in terms of session topics, featured speakers, and overall coverage of education. It's always a great few days.

Is my ED not as meaningful as an MD or JD?

A colleague has diplomas up in his classroom. It looks great. And not just diplomas, but awards, accolades, and certificates as well. A former administrator of his said, "if doctors and lawyers do it, why shouldn't teachers?"

Great point, got me thinking...

... all of my stuff is in boxes in the basement. I think. Honestly, I'm not sure. Maybe I don't care. Maybe that's the point...

My snow day. And a new perspective

I had a snow day today. What makes this somewhat different from past snow days is that I no longer teach in the district in which I live. That means while I had a snow day, my kids did not.

http://media.nbcnewyork.com/

It got me thinking. Thinking about what today afforded me that I rarely, if ever, get to experience.

Where's Jack?

I loved "On the Road"

It was a definitive tome for me. It was the first book that ended up folded from days spent in my back pocket. It was the story to made me want to wander. I never did wander the way Jack and the boys did, but I was never inspired to, or since, to wander in the way they did.

It was months on a bus.

It was a typewriter.

Chrome's multiple users update

Yesterday Google updated Chrome.

One of the best features of Chrome is the ability to multiple Google accounts logged in simultaneously (previous tutorial post here)

The feature is still there, Google just tweaked the visual...

You no longer see the icons like this:

It now looks like this:

iMovies on paper with Aurasma

One of my pet peeves is the traditional bulletin board. As a technology teacher I feel the traditional paper stapled to cork board is counter intuitive to what students do in the lab.

Paper bulletin board are fine for certain things, but if students are creating animations or layered presentations or movies how do you do their work justice by printing a still image and putting it on a board. How do you honor and celebrate their work beyond simply unloading to YouTube or blogging about it? How do you showcase their work in the hallway without losing any of their awesome?

Augmented reality...

The only 2 things on the internet

I have long told my students there are only 2 things on the internet.

Two.

Nothing more, nothing less.

I use this, especially with elementary school students, as a way to explain, simply, the tenets of safe web use.

The only two things on the internet are

The best part of #edscape? It's an excuse...

Today is Saturday.

A weekend.

A day off.

I just spent the day in New Jersey at the Edscape Conference.

Yes, you can say I'm a dedicated educator. I'm committed to my craft. I'm a lifelong learner. I willingly give up my weekend for professional development... blah blah blah.

But after today I think that's all a lie...

Fear is not an option when it comes to social media in schools

By Chris Casal + Lisa Nielsen

Cross posted at http://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com

Innovative educators know first hand that social media like Twitter, Facebook, Google, and Instagram can be a powerful tool for teaching, learning, leading, and strengthening the home-school connection. In many cases though, others may need to be brought on board. Especially when parents are expressing concerns and unsure of how a platform can be used successfully.

It is the job of innovative educators to ensure parents, colleagues, and administrators know how to embrace the power of social media and also how to address their concerns.  

Here are suggestions for parents, teachers, and administrators in schools embracing social media.