Pages

Saturday, November 2, 2013

Voxer as an Educational Tool

www.voxer.com

Today, I had the privilege of presenting a session at TCEA Area 10/11 Conference.  I had a great little group of participants that listened to my ideas about using Voxer as an Educational Tool.  Jake shared Voxer with me a few months ago and my creative juices started flowing about how I could integrate this into the classroom.

I am so excited to share the Google Presentation with everyone!   I will continue to add to this presentation, and, if you have ideas, please email me and I will add them.

Enjoy!

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Painting & Prepping


This is the bedroom that will be for my mom when she moves to Texas.


I've always hated painting.  Not the kind the you do in Art class; the kind that requires one to buy supplies, tape, cover, mix, edge, and cut in.  It's not so much the paint on a brush moving up and down covering walls.  It's the prepping.  I hate edging.  I just don't have a steady hand, and I want it to be finished quickly.  I want the finished product, but I have trouble getting through the prep.  

I have spent the past few weeks doing A LOT of painting in preparation for a House ReWarming party.  (My former tenant trashed my house.)  I've painted 2 bedrooms, a bathroom, the kitchen, and part of the dining room.  I still have to finish the laundry room and dining room.  Nonetheless, I am tired of painting.  While I was painting the bedroom in the picture above, I was taking greater care than usual.  I want it to be beautiful, without blemishes and mishaps.  It's going to be a bedroom for my mom when she visits and eventually when she moves to Texas.  But, that meant time prepping.  I had to patch holes, caulk, and remove the old blinds.  

Today, while having a painting marathon, I started making connections between the work we do with students and how it relates to painting.  There should be considerable time prepping before we are actually teaching, in front of students.  We have to do the hard work, the work that is not always fun, before we spend time with students.  This week, along with my Academic Specialist, we are going to be purposefully planning with our teachers.  We are going to be doing the hard work.  I have been prepping so I can be ready with ideas for our teachers.  My ideas are focused on our campus/district goals and strategies including Academic Conversations and Critical Thinking.  How can we interest our staff in using technology to improve their instruction to meet the needs of students? How can we help them move past using technology for Substitution and Augmentation and into Modification and Redefinition?  

I appreciate that my principal is so supportive in giving teachers time to plan.  She understands the need for prep.  I hope that our teachers will also see the value in the prep.  Maybe I need to bring them treats.  

Saturday, September 21, 2013

My Arrival, My Journey



Some of you may be asking why it took me so long to start blogging.  Well, the answer is life.  This year was rough for me, personally.  But, in June, things started to turn around.  Presenting at iPadpalooza in Austin in mid-June, going to #ISTE13, and connecting to Tweeps face-to-face was just what I needed.  I really enjoy resting during the summer after many 60-70 hour weeks during the school year, but unfortunately, I wasn't able to do much of that.  I did spend 10 days with my mom in my tropical paradise, Aruba.  During my vacation, my mind was going a mile a minute.  We were able to schedule in lots of pool/beach time, but with a Skype interview and news that my rental house had been trashed by the tenant, I was itching to get back home.





July was just as busy as I worked to get my house back to a livable state so I could move in to it, later that month.  It was a roller coaster as I spent many hours at the house and continued to pray about my career path.  Another great conference, Podstock, was one of the highlights of July.  The day I left for Kansas, I had an interview for an Instructional Technology Specialist position in my district.  Left there feeling good, but I prayed and cried the whole way to Wichita, asking God to direct me toward His Will.  That evening my principal called and offered me my "dream job". 

So, here I am, working at my dream job.  I don't think I can express in words how much I love my job: the administration, my Campus Technician, other ITS' in my district, and getting to help teachers learn to teach with technology naturally. 

Good things are coming, on this blog, on Twitter, in real life, and on the Interwebz.  Will you join me on this journey?






 

Blogger news

Blogroll

About