Another Holiday Read: 180 Days of Reading

Let me begin by saying, "Oh my word!" I can't wait to return to school and use this book.  During my Christmas get away I visited a favorite teacher store (Mardel) and picked up this book. You are going to love this resource, especially if you use Standards Based Grading.

180 Days of Reading for Third Grade By: Christine Dugan
Shell Education 

There is a separate edition for kindergarten through 6th grade.

This book provides standards based practice through daily lessons and would be great to use for formative assessments. Each weekly lesson includes 5 short daily lessons.  Each daily lesson includes a small text reading and questions. Days 1-4 has a text reading with questions and day 5 practice includes writing. It reminds me of Daily Oral Language (DOL) that so many educators are familiar with.

Throughout the book the weekly questions focus on the same standards.

DAY 1-3 of each week
Questions 1 and 2 focus - read closely and determine what the text says
Question 3 focus - apply grade-level phonics and decoding
Questions 4 and 5 focus - vocabulary and assess point of view

Day 4 of each week
Questions 1 and 2 focus - comprehend text and assess point of view
Question 3 focus - read closely and make inferences
Questions 4-6 focus - determine central idea or theme

Day 5 of each week
Focus - produce clear and coherent writing

I love how each day includes a scoring column for the students to complete which is also very valuable for teachers. A quick glance at a daily lesson will show which standards need more practice by looking at the score column.

Page 27 Excerpt

A data sheet and CD are also included with the book for tracking ongoing progress.  I can't wait for our students to read, highlight text, annotate their thinking, monitor their own learning, and master each standard. 

Happy reading and learning!

1st Holiday Read: Using Technology to Improve Reading and Learning

Christmas season usually means a lot of traveling for my family. Since education runs in the family blood we usually try to get away for some R and R over Christmas break. I usually choose a professional book (or 2) to read during this time to pass the travel time, motivate myself and build excitement for the upcoming semester. I guess you would call it refueling. 

My first pick for the break is this easy read.

 I love the easy steps this book provides for educators to include more research within our curriculum (chapters 5 and 6). 

The book gives step-by-step instructions. ..

as well as examples of student work. I always love that!

If you have a "great read" to help us jump start our new year please share. 

From my family to yours, Merry Christmas! 

Showcase Student Work with QR Codes

Now that Missouri weather has plummeted to the freezing mark I guess it's time to stop dreaming of magnificent blue oceans and cool summer nights.  Burr, it's winter in November and a great night to sip a caramel latte and create this long overdue post.

I have a new position within my district and am fortunate to work with fabulous teachers who should be writing this blog instead of me. Thankfully, teachers are life long learners because I'm learning so much from the amazing teachers in my building.

One of the main attractions at our school this year is our Wall of Fame.  During the first quarter our third grade team decided to create a Third Grade Wall of Fame. What is special about our wall? Each student has their own picture displayed on the wall with a personalized name plate. Attached to each picture is a QR code.  Visitors or students can use a QR reader on their smart device to watch presentations created by students.

The great news is we don't have to change the QR code every time we want to change the project displayed.  We were introduced to a company called delivr.com at ISTE.  This site allows us to change the link on our QR codes without changing the QR code.  No more continual hot glue guns, rolling tape, or repairing fallen displays throughout the year. The Wall of Fame stays up all year and the display is changed by a simple click of a button. Woot! Woot! Students also received a copy to place on their "wall of fame" at home (refrigerator).

Students choose what they would like to showcase on their QR code.  They can be very creative when they know their work is going to be displayed for the world to see. If they decide they have something better, we simply change the link to their new project or video.

...and who wouldn't want to have their picture displayed on a Wall of Fame?

So as you sip your latte, warm by the fire, curl up on the sofa, or rehearse your "snow dance"...dig out a great idea and share it with us.

Melissa's Snow Dance definition -
1. A dance ALL educators participate in when a dusting of snow is predicted by the weather forecaster.
2. Snow dances will initiate a personal phone call from a school superintendent letting teachers know that we can sleep late.
3. If a teacher states they do not participate in a snow dance they are lying.

Virtual Co-teaching

Back in May my innovative friends (@beverly_c4 and @MissCollins606) and I decided to combine our fourth and sixth grade classrooms for a co-teaching project.  We called it The Dot Project. Although we are in the same district and meet regularly to discuss innovation, co-teaching was not as easy as walking our students down the hallway to join another class. All 3 classrooms are in different buildings and in different parts of our city.  Our SOLUTION was GHO (Google Hangout).

How did the project work?

Preplanning
Our teacher group met 3 times to plan for the unit.  First, we met during a GHO to plan. What?  A GHO can be used for teachers to plan? Absolutely! I have found it works great for planning when there is not time to drive across town to meet.  Our second planning session was in person and our third and final planning session was via GHO.

The project was built around the 6th grade students giving the 4th grade students advice as they transition to Middle School.  In turn the project enabled the 6th grade students to help themselves be less anxious about Junior High. The literature selected for the project was:

The Dot by: Peter H. Reynolds

This book had a perfect theme for the project.

The Lesson
During the lesson each teacher had a responsibility after the classrooms connected via GHO.
Teacher 1: Delivered objectives and introductions.
Teacher 2:  Played the video reading of the book through the GHO for all classes to watch.
Teacher 3:  Lead a discussion about the story and what students can learn from the story.
Teacher 4: Discussed with the classes the writing assignment and action plan for each classroom.

Follow UP
4th grade students created a Padlet to share with the 6th grade students.
6th grade students created a presentation to share with the 4th grade students.

Would I try this again?  ABSOLUTELY!  I would highly recommend finding a co-teacher (in your district, outside your district, or on the other side of the world) and JUMP.  JUMP simply means quit standing beside the pool wishing and hoping you can get in the water. Count to 3 and JUMP in.  You will have a blast learning, but most importantly...so will your students.

JUMP!

P.S. International Dot Day is coming up on September 15th.  If you would like to JUMP in the water and co-teach a lesson feel free to comment on this post or send me an email. Happy virtual co-teaching!

Global Read Aloud

I've had a great time at the beach this week. What activities are at the top of my vacation list?

• soaking in the sun

• eating seafood

• lots of reading

One great read during my vacation is Kate DiCamillo's The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. Third grade students in my building will be reading this book during the fall and participating in the 2014 Global Read Aloud. I can't wait for students to read and connect with other students around the world. It's going to be exciting!

ISTE

I just returned from the ISTE 2014 Conference in Atlanta, GA.  Let me just say, WOW!  I've never been around so many tech savvy and innovative teachers in my life.  I am back to reality now and am so excited to review, meditate, and continue learning from the people I met and received resources from.

This was my first time to attend ISTE and it WILL NOT be the last. Before attending the conference, I had a Twitter friend tell me that I should go to ISTE even if I had to pay for it myself.  Now that I've been...I totally agree!

What makes ISTE so awesome?

• Sessions for everyone (Lectures, hands on, interactive, technical, posters)
• Excellent exhibits with personalized instruction/learning
• Innovative presentations
• Global presenters
• Student presenters
• Connections with other educators

Make your plans now to attend ISTE 2015 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Registration begins October 1, 2014.

Here are a few pics from Atlanta:

Welcome to ISTE - King of Pops (Popsicles)

Webb City Gang

Poster Session

Poster Session

Poster Session

Braves Baseball

Turner Field

Scholastic Dinner at Georgia Aquarium

Great views during evening!

Eric Sheninger - Our guest speaker at Scholastic dinner.

Author/Blogger, Lisa Parisi, signed my book Making Connections with Blogging.

New Idea for Web Quest

Let me start with a disclaimer: I am not affiliated with Smore.com nor have I collaborated with anyone from Smore.com.  This post was created because I love using the website with my students.

When I started using technology in my classroom I was determined that it was not going to be used for playing. As I look back over the past year I realize I really did not have a clue what students could accomplish by using technology.  I initially starting thinking what apps or tools can students use, and quickly switched to thinking what apps can students use to create and show what they are learning.  I wanted to ensure the tech was being used for learning.  How was I going to create a learning environment that would engage students and be easily managed?

Although Google Drive has been a fantastic (can't live without) solution that worked well for our classroom, another great resource was www.smore.com. Smore is a website that allows users to create web based flyers.  These flyers are great to use for project based learning activities.  The flyers are very simple and fast to create and can easily be shared with students.  The flyers can include activities, videos, web links, rubrics, or quizzes.  Different kinds of flyers can be created and educators can create an unlimited number of these flyers.

Why would I want to make a flyer for my students? I use it for project based learning activities. During the past year I created several educational flyers at Smore.com for my students.  The flyers included step by step instructions to complete a project, similar to a web quest.  Some of these projects were completed with a partner in our classroom and some were completed with students in another building within our district.  These flyers are easy to use and make it possible for students to collaborate on projects with students around the world.

A project in Smore.com is very easy to make.  You can:

• create text
• add a picture
• embed a link
• include audio
• embed a video
• include a form (for assessment)
• link to a rubric

I LOVE Smore because I can include everything from standards in kid friendly terms to assessments and rubrics right on the flyer.  There are so many possibilities.  I've included a social studies project below that was created at Smore.com

After the flyers are created at Smore.com you can easily share them by:

• email
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Google+
• Pinterest

My students do not have email access but they all have Google accounts.  I usually share a link to the flyer in their drive or create a quick QR code for the students to scan.

Another plus...if I change my mind on an activity or need to correct something, I simply login to my account, make the changes, and the changes will automatically be made when my students go to the flyer.  I also love the possibility of reflecting on a lesson and making the changes right after the lesson instead of waiting until the next year and trying to remember. I'm too old for that.

I challenge you to give www.smore.com a try.  You will find it is easy, quick, and fun.

Have you thought a way you could use Smore.com in your classroom? Leave a comment or example below.  My readers would love to read them.

Headed to the Superbowl

Two Days and I’m headed to the Superbowl.  I can hardly wait.  Oops, let me explain.  I realize it is June. This Friday, 17 Webb City techies are taking flight to the Superbowl of all tech conferences.  Our team is headed to the International Society for Technology in Education Conference in Atlanta, Georgia.  

Our Superbowl gear may not be war paint, crazy hats, and signs…but we are loaded with our laptops, iPads, Chrome books, and cell phones. What better gear can you have for the Superbowl of ed tech?

I’m beyond excited.  Last summer I followed the conference on Twitter and was dreaming about attending. This year it is becoming a reality (I hear the “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” song playing…oh wait, wrong sport).  I’m pretty sure I’m more excited than a real Superbowl (sorry, football friends). Last year over 18,000 educators from around the globe attended the conference in San Antonio, with over 800 concurrent sessions.  You see it really is the Superbowl of ed tech.

Every time I read a blog about #iste14 I’m a little more excited.  Being a “newbie” to the conference I have tried to read as many blogs as possible and tried my best to prepare for what is going to take place during the 5 day event.

The count down...

Registration – check

Sessions and vendors favorited – check

District Preparation meeting – check

Airline confirmation – check

Room assignment – check

ISTE App downloaded – check

District Twitter hash tag (#wciste14)  – check

Business cards – check

Comfy shoes – check

Luggage ready (extra space to bring home souvenirs) – check

Why am I excited about attending such an event?

I’m ready to discover sources of inspiration and meditate on how to incorporate this knowledge into curriculum so our students become more engaged thinkers and creators.

I’m looking to be recharged and invigorated with new ideas presented by the experts.

I’m excited to connect with educators around the globe and soak up all of their creativity. 

I’m eager to collaborate with fellow teachers to create meaning and give life to educating our students.

When football fans go to a Superbowl they are filled with excitement.  They anticipate...having a great time with old and new friends, watching a fantastic game in hopes their favorite team will win the national championship, and returning home to celebrate their new experiences.  As we head to this Superbowl of conferences we are anticipating...collaborating with veteran and new teachers, watching and participating in amazing presentations, and returning home to share these experiences with other educators and students.

It’s going to be a great event!  Go #ISTE14

Stay tuned for Superbowl Pics headed your way.

Google Gathering

Summertime is a time for relaxing, refreshing, and … oh yes, PD.  Twenty five of my Webb City friends recently attended the Google Gathering in Girard, Kansas.  What a great way to spend a summer day!

Webb City Staff with our Bright Future T-shirts

Our team generated a lot of new ideas. I attended sessions by Kyle Pace, Judy Griffin, and Ryan Loots. These sessions discussed using Google forms to assess student learning, Google Drive, using Google Hangouts (GHO), and creating an online textbook using Google Sites. The day also brought about an aha moment, “our team has learned SO MUCH about technology in the past year”. It was encouraging to gather new ideas during this gathering, but we also celebrated how much we have learned and applied in our classrooms already.

Things we have learned in the past year:

1. We can't live without Google Drive in the classroom.

We use it for reading, writing, spelling, math, social studies, and science.  Did I leave anything out? We use it in EVERY subject.

You might ask how we use Google Drive.  There are so many possibilities but I’ve listed a few examples below.

Reading

• Responding to reading

• Collaborating with other students (even in other buildings)
• Assessing using Google Forms

Writing

• Creating blog posts and using the comment tool to gather feedback from students and teachers

Spelling

• Creating word sorts
• Sharing with teacher

Math

• Sharing student created videos with classmates and teachers

Science/Social Studies

• Collaborating with students in other classrooms
• Sharing projects
• Researching
• Writing, editing, and sharing research

2.  Google Drive requires trial and error to accomplish great things.  It's amazing that my techy friends and I made it through the past year. I'm pretty sure our patience grew 10 fold over the year. We became experts at practicing the stress relief activities our school counselors always talk to our students about...but in the end I wouldn't change a single thing.  I LOVE THE TECH IN MY CLASSROOM and I LOVE what students are creating.

3.  You can not be successful in the techy world ALONE.  Find a buddy teacher, Twitter friend, or expert. Share and collaborate! This is a must!

Finally, I've learned I can't teach without technology, especially Google Drive. It has engaged my students, fostered creativity, and become a tool my students use daily.

If you need more information about using Google Docs in your classroom, check out these resources:

Simple Guide to Using Google Docs in Elementary Classroom

Making the Most of Google Docs: Tips & Lesson Ideas

Do you have a creative way to use Google Drive with your students/staff or a great resource? Please share.  We LOVE new ideas.

Lobster Diver Math App

As we wind down the 2013-2014 school year we've had time to explore a few new math apps.  I have found a couple that my students continually ask to play and I'm thrilled with the content.  Both apps are currently free which is always a huge plus!

1. Lobster Diver

This app is great to order positive and negative numbers; compare and order fractions and develop number sense.  Here is a video of the app.

2. Math Rings

Math Rings is a great app for students to practice number operations. Here is a video of this fantastic app. Check it out.

Do you have a great math app you would like to share?  Please feel free to leave a comment, link up, and tell us about it.

Google Educator Certification

I wanted to give a quick shout out to +Beverly Carpenter and +Katy Collins.  Although the 3 of us are first and second year teachers in our district, and are located in different buildings, we have developed a Personal Learning Network (PLN) and friendship during the 2013-2014 school year.  The strange bond that brought us together was the love for technology in our classrooms.

In October, I organized an informal meeting with elementary staff from our district in a local coffee shop to discuss what we were doing in our classrooms with our new technology.  Katy attended. Our love for tech and helping our students, connected us.  We were intrigued by what the other was doing. In November, I began connecting with Beverly through an Innovation Academy we both attended. We began discussing how our 4th grade classrooms could collaborate.

After connecting with these two outstanding educators we have:

• connected our classrooms through blogging and writing

and 

• presented at an Alan November Innovation Academy

Presentation on Electronic Portfolios, Blogging, and eLeaders.

Presentation Link

Our most recent adventure was completed today.  Webb City now has 3 Google Educators!  Woot!  Woot!  This journey began in February.  After hours of work and 5 tests, today we successfully completed our certification.  It was a difficult and time consuming adventure, but we learned a lot about all the wonderful uses Google has for educators.  

Katy, Beverly, and I

Test Records

How did I ever teach without Google? Beverly, Katy, and I all work in different buildings but our students are able to collaborate using Google Drive, Lucid Press, and blogging. Our students are better researchers, writers, and thinkers because of the power of Google.

Kudos to my new PLN and all they have taught me and shared with me through the past year. You all are the best! I'm sure we will be off and running toward our next adventure soon. I can't tell you what the future holds for this new found team of teachers, but I can say...look out International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE)  in Atlanta...on June 27th you will have 3 excited teachers headed your way to soak up some great ideas for our next adventure. I can't wait!

What Does a Blended Classroom Look Like?

Having technology in the classroom gives our students access to an open ended source of knowledge and opportunity.  As educators our main goal is to educate our students.  We have dedicated our lives to teaching, helping, encouraging, and loving our students.

Technology is bringing a whole new "look" to our classrooms. The classroom textbooks and workbooks are slowly becoming obsolete in today's technology world.  As we approach this new era with new teaching strategies it takes time and thought to plan out the most effective ways to teach our students.

What does blended learning look like?

I've included a glance below of a blended classroom. This glance includes what reading lessons might look like.  Technology may or may not be used every single day. Some days lend themselves to technology easily but sometimes technology tools are not the right go-to resource. When incorporating technology into a lesson it is important to plan ahead and think about what strategies would be the best choice for teaching the objective.

Day 1 (No technology use)

• Play "Vocab in a Bucket" This is a non-iPad vocab game that students love (I see a new blog post in the future.)
• Pre-reading discussion
• Literature reading
• Somebody Wanted But So Then activity - I use an activity found at one of my favorite TPT stores (my sister's). 
  
  
  

Click here for SWBST reading summary.

Day 2 (Blended Learning)

• Choose one vocabulary word for the week and create an Educreations presentation using the Educreations app.  The presentation must include a student friendly definition, visual representation, and the word in a sentence.
• The teacher uses technology such as the Nearpod app to present reading strategies and questions. This particular app has a polling and quiz feature that is great for classroom discussions and interaction.
• Use www.storylineonline.net for the literature reading or read the literature aloud
• Use a Literature Response Graffiti Wall activity

Day 3 (Limited Blended Learning)

• Independent reading using strategies.
• Use reading stops during the reading for discussion.  

1st stop during reading -  students share their thinking with a shoulder partner or a group  

2nd stop during reading -  students post their thoughts on a board in the classroom using sticky notes

3rd stop during reading -  students post their thoughts on Today's Meet.

Saving Today's Meet on the home screen of each iPad will make it quick and easy for students to access. I keep my link assessable for the entire school year. (www.todaysmeet.com)

We often have 3 stops during our reading.  Some days I use Today's Meet for all 3 stops but I like to switch it up sometimes also.

I LOVE Today's Meet even in classrooms that have limited technology. Teachers can project  a single laptop, iPad, or phone.  Students can take turns posting their thoughts for the entire class to see.

There are so many resources to use even in a classroom that has limited technology.  If you haven't tried blended learning, grab a co-teacher or student and try something. It only takes trying one small idea in your classroom today to make a difference in the lives of our students tomorrow.

Recently I found this quote below on Twitter.

If you have a great resource or idea...please share...your ideas are valued.

Book Store Visit

It wouldn't be Spring Break without a visit to Barnes and Noble.  Woot! Woot!  I'm now the proud owner of 4 new books.  My wallet says, "Ouch!"...but isn't that the life of a teacher?

The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child and Reading in the Wild: The Book Whisperer's Keys to Cultivating Lifelong Reading Habits by Donaylyn Miller

Thanks #4thchat for the book suggestions. 

The Literacy Cookbook by Sarah Tantillo

I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen

I Want My Hat Back is a great book to use as an anchor text. Click here for ideas.  

Here is a sneak peak of Where is My Hat.

After watching the movie "Non-Stop" last night at Movie Bistro, I'm excited to have a good book to read on my flight home this weekend.  I think a book will keep my mind occupied instead of studying the other passengers to see who is a potential hijacker.  Although, studying the passengers might be more entertaining...and could help me get creative juices flowing for a great writing piece. FYI, Non-Stop is a MUST SEE.  It will keep you in suspense until the very end.

If you have a great educational book or anchor text to share please leave a comment below.  I'm always looking for great books to read and share.

Virtual Professional Development

Beginning the "techie" adventure during this school year with 1-to-1 iPads in my classroom, I was unaware of the path and mind shift I would encounter.  One mind shift has been in the area of professional development.  Initially I thought attending conferences would give me PD I needed to be successful in the classroom.  I attended the Technology and the Classroom Conference in Pittsburg, Kansas; Extraordinary Educators Conference in Chicago, Illinois; and the MOREnet Conference in Osage Beach, Missouri.  Although all of these were outstanding conferences with great presenters and usable take aways, I knew there was something missing.  Excited and filled with ideas, I still didn't quite feel confident in the techie world.

How did I get started with virtual professional development?

Professional Literature and Resource Books

In my quest to learn about the techie world I turned to the Accidental Techie and her fabulous resource books. These books include step by step instructions with pictures. I bought every book of hers I could find.  As I was reading Dr. Elliott's books, I discovered excitement and an "I can do this" attitude. She was my rescue and the beginning of my techie professional development.


I also had the privilege of attending several of her workshops at the Extraordinary Educator Conference in Chicago.


Blogs
I couldn't stop at Dr. Elliot's resource books.  I began reading her blog to continue getting ideas and information.  Of course I questioned myself again, "If her blog has great ideas what other techie or 4th grade teacher blogs have great ideas?" Deciding to search for other technology and 4th grade blogs that use technology turned my world upside down again.  I couldn't believe all the great ideas and resources available in the virtual world.  I was in awe of the ingenious ideas teachers were willing to share on the World Wide Web.

Collaboration with My School Team
Let me start by saying I work with some of the best teachers anywhere.  They constantly amaze me with their knowledge and data driven decisions. In our building we realized the value of sharing with each other and the value this piece would have in our professional development and growth as educators.  We decided to meet during our lunch time 1 to 2 times a month to collaborate and share what we have learned AND what is working well in our classrooms. Although we discuss frequently on a daily basis this time was set aside specifically to share ideas.

District Collaboration
I was getting hooked on professional development and needed more information about technology.  I set up a meeting with my teacher friends (and their friends) in other buildings within our district to collaborate and share what is working well.  Some of the teachers have iPads and some have Chrome books.  Wow! We were learning from each other and I was loving it.

I also connected with a couple teachers from other buildings in our district at the Alan November Innovation Academy.  Through this connection we have developed a comradery.  We share resources and ideas regularly.  Watch out, we will be Google Certified Teachers soon.

Twitter

Snow season began and I was bored.  I was thinking, "Where can I find more information about blended learning?"

I had read a few blogs that talked about twitter chats and decided to check one out on Christmas Break/Snow Break (11 snow days this year). The first chat that I happened to join was a school district in McKinney, Texas.  This school district has a regular chat for all 4th grade teachers in their district (my next "I want to do this in Webb City") #mck4thchat.  These teachers are awesome. I learned so much in the short hour.

I would strongly encourage you to find a Twitter chat group for your grade or subject area. Check out this  website from one of my PLN members for more information about Twitter chats in education or to find a chat group for you. FYI, I met Jerry  the Cybraryman on #4thchat.  He has an amazing inventory of resources. Shout out to my #4thchat PLN, you are the best.

Not only are Twitter chats great professional development opportunities but Twitter is a great place to connect to other teachers who teach what you teach.  I've connected with 4th grade teachers all over the world.  Teachers in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom are all part of my Professional Learning Network.  The tweets these teachers share include encouraging words, blog posts, resources, classroom pictures, student work, etc.  I've learned so much from them.  The BEST part is I have my own professional development conference available to me 24/7.  All I have to do is pick up my phone and start looking at my Twitter feeds.  No driving, conference fees, or travel expenses involved...just me and my phone (or laptop).  Check out this Twitter Post from one of my #4thchat tweeps.

Google+

Next on my adventure was Google+.  Yes, another Missouri snow day...and I decided to check out Google Hangout (GHO).  Why were my Twitter friends so excited about Google Hangouts? Wow, I opened up a whole new world yet again.

I joined several Google+ communities but found myself drawn to the Eduhangout community.  Through Google+ communities I was able to connect with teachers interested in Google Hangouts.  This lead to our Mystery Hangouts, book clubs, and activities with students all over the world.

Collaborating with Teacher's in the US and Abroad
Google+ and Twitter allowed me to connect with teacher's around the world.  I connected with 5 other teachers around the US to plan (via GHO) an Olympic Game Show for Digital Learning Day.  We connected on Sunday evenings to plan.  It blew my mind that I was looking at, talking to, and planning student learning with educators in Massachusetts, Indiana, Louisiana, New Jersey, and Florida.

I continue to collaborate frequently with 2 teachers in the United Kingdom and 1 in New Zealand through our Quadblogging project.  Working with teachers around the world to develop ways to help our students learn is exhilarating. 

What's Next?
I can't wait to find out what virtual professional development opportunities arise next.  If you haven't stepped out into the world of virtual PD I strongly encourage it.  Grab a friend or co-teacher, challenge each other, and get going.

“You're off to Great Places!

Today is your day!

Your mountain is waiting,

So... get on your way!”

― Dr. Seuss, Oh, the Places You'll Go!