Unplugged...for now

Wow. I am in a haze of excitement and disbelief. This Wednesday I was name the 2014 West Virginia Teacher of the Year. I am honored and humbled...and on the verge of tears every thirty minutes because it has been such an incredible journey to this point in my life.

Between my travels to Germany this summer and preparing to be a finalist for state teacher of the year, I have not been able to post on the TechKNOW Classroom as much as I would like...and it's about to get a little crazier as I learn how to balance this role with my 5th grade class. I know that I want to remember every part of this upcoming year, so if you would like to follow me on my teacher of the year blog, that is where I will be sharing my experiences and reflections.

I have also been at work on another web project, Be the Difference WV. I am interviewing teachers in Berkeley County about their classrooms and why they entered the profession. You can view my Youtube channel at this link.

Thank you for reading the TechKNOW classroom - I will be back, and hope that through my new role I am able to bring you more knowledge and resources to use in your classroom.

My Thoughts about Mister Rogers

"One of the greatest gifts you can give anyone is the gift of your honest self." - Fred Rogers
Even though you're probably one of the 3 million people that have seen this video by now, I felt compelled as a techKNOW teacher to share it with you. If there is any one person outside of my family that I want to emulate in my teaching, it may very well be Mister Rogers. The creativity and adventures he shared with his young viewers impacted and engaged many of us growing up. I'm sure that you (as well as myself) can recall at least one episode of "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" you watched as a child - how to make crayons, anyone? His kindness and gentle nature give me hope that those of us who aren't so loud and verbally outspoken can impact the education and the conscience of our students.
Television in the 1950s and 1960s was what the Internet is today - new, "cool," and a commercial medium. Fred Rogers took an interest in using television programming to enhance the lives of and teach children, without advertising and leisure entertaining (I added the word "leisure" there because Mister Rogers was both educational and fun to watch). For many, his show modeled a safe and loving home, a caring father figure, and how to pretend play without the zing of cartoon characters or video games. I, for one, loved, loved, loved Mister Rogers' puppets! He saw the potential to use new technology to impact those around the world, children he would never meet but would nonetheless nurture. In a way, you could say he's the original techKNOW teacher.
My favorite thing about Mister Rogers is, like the quote I began this post with, he remained true to himself. He didn't become loud and flashy to attract young viewers to his program. In fact, Fred Rogers may have been seen (and especially would be today) as an unlikely television star - a guy with great ideas, but not the persona to pull it off on camera. Yet it was the fact that he was calm, gentle, and soft spoken that set him a part from the rest. It not only made him unique - it made what he taught his young audiences about life stick. He walked the walk, proof positive the volume of your message isn't measured in decibels.
So, enjoy this "jazzy" version of a beautiful song that encourages all of us to be curious, make believe, and grow the great ideas inside of us. Perhaps if we as teachers instill these values in ourselves and model them in our teaching, our students will absorb them, too.

Technology Detox

You'll have to excuse my lack of posting this month. I've been on a tech-cation.

Yes, that's right. On Good Friday, I turned off my laptop, took it upstairs, and didn't open it until this morning - and that was only because I had a grant to write before tomorrow. With the exception of the occasional phone call or necessary text, I was completely unwired for nearly 10 days (I already don't watch television on a regular basis, so no TV wasn't that hard to give up). I was on a mission to go on a complete and utter technology detox.

So, why would the techKNOW teacher torture herself like that? Basically, I needed a break. Computers, iPads, responders, software, apps - so much has changed in education in the almost decade since I began teaching. Remember the "blue out" we used when we made mistakes when writing report cards? Once upon a time, the computer didn't average your grades and print it neatly out for you. All by hand, baby - well, hand and calculator. We thought we were "cool" when we hooked the little (repeat: little) television sets in our room to our computers to showcase Internet images to our classes. Who needs Jeopardy on a Smart Board when you had a rockin' one on poster board with library card pockets to hold your questions in each category? Especially when you glittered the giant JEOPARDY to make it extra snazzy? Okay, maybe that was just me.

Technology has made life easier for teachers in ways you new guys and gals will never know. It's also made our lives a deluge of passwords, programs, lost files, found files, e-mails, formatting issues, and a lot of other "tech-aches" that I don't even need to mention - you just know. The change is here to stay - technology rules. But often, with each new thing we have to do or remember in the classroom, it starts to overrule. Instead of guiding or enhancing what we do, it feels like it's beating us over the head with a yardstick.

Which is why I needed a detox. A complete and unapologetic MIA from the information superhighway. I cleaned. I cooked (and it was edible). I read. I went outside. I planned projects to work on during summer vacation, since it starts next month (!!!) I went out to eat and shop. I had conversations with friends and family face-to-face and not over a wireless device. Most importantly, I survived. My head is a lot clearer, except for the fabulous head cold I picked up when I went out to eat and shop. I'm more calm, organized, and focused. I feel a lot less stressed and a lot more...like myself.

Growing up, we didn't have a computer in our home until I was in seventh grade. Dial-up Internet...maybe a junior, senior in high school. Most of our students don't know life without it. I can entertain myself a week without technology, but can my students? Can yours? Probably not. We need to teach our students to use and utilize the digital awesomeness in their life to learn through but not lean on. If not, there's going to be a entire generation coming up the pike that's plugged into everything but life.

That being said, I just found a great app. I can't wait to share it with you. But you'll have to wait until this evening to find out all about it, because it's beautiful today - and I'm going outside.