First off, I apologize for not publishing this entry sooner. This was suppose to go live at the end of June, but I must have thought I had done it when I really hadn't.
As a student, I
loved the summers in Maine. It meant a break from school and the stress
from assessments and grades. It’s also the perfect season to get
outdoors and enjoy Maine’s coastline and mountains.
As a teacher, I value
these same concepts. I still love summers in Maine, although I do not
have as much free time during the summer months as I once did as a
student. It still is a mental break from the daily grind and
wear-and-tear of planning, administering, assessing, reflecting and
re-tweaking lessons. The summer months have never been a break from
learning for me though.
I find the summer months
to be my best times for learning, reflecting and getting inspired to try
something new for when I return to school in the fall. New experiences,
books or blogs that I have read, inspirational videos or new web tools
that I come across while surfing the Internet, all seem to creep into my
daily life during those summer months when I do have a few extra
minutes to breathe. It’s because of these moments, that I have extended
my professional learning development throughout the year. It is a
perfect opportunity for me to dissect these materials and see how I can
best bring it to my classroom, school, or learning environment and adapt
it to my learners.
It would be great if
every educator could build in an hour a week, at the very least, into
their work schedule to read or write a blog, create or watch a video, or
just share wonderful ideas via social networks with other fantastic
educators around the globe. It would make us all just a little bit
better!
This summer, I will be
taking on a new adventure, as my career’s journey moves in a new
direction. I’m very excited about the possibilities and the challenges
that this new endeavor will bring. I’m also a bit saddened as it means I
will be leaving colleagues and some great friends. The beauty of the
world today though, is that we can always stay in touch with those that
mean the most to us, and to those that help inspire us every day.
Therefore, I don’t feel as though I’m leaving a group behind, as much as
I understand that I am meeting new people to add to my Professional
Learning Network.
Collaboration is the key,
and breaking down the concrete walls of our schools or communities, to
expand on our learning and with individuals in which we can learn from,
can be the greatest professional development of all. I still look
forward to connecting with past colleagues and friends to inspire,
learn, collaborate and create great and wonderful things aligned to the
curriculum through integrated projects.
My advice for
professional development this summer, is to try something new. Read up
on a new web 2.0 tool, or observe how an educational social network
space works. Take a look at successful project based learning activities
and lessons and think of ways that you could implement this style of
learning into your own curriculum and classroom. Browse a few blogs of
leading innovative thinkers in the world of Education Technology and see
what they are doing in their every day lives to inspire life long
learners. Watch a YouTube video from a TED talk, like the one above and
get inspired to try something new next year. Don’t be afraid to pull
your students in to the learning as you learn as well. Students can
often be great observers and helpful in problem solving and setting up
meaningful learning.
No comments:
Post a Comment