Learning...... Learning on Sunday Morrrrrrning

Okay, okay, I know - that was a cheesy title. Just be thankful you weren't here in my living room to hear me singing it! ;)

With the state of education today, I can pretty much expect to pay out of pocket for any events I would like to attend (like TedxNYED and potentially ISTE in June) so more and more I appreciate the wonderful PLN I have developed online.

Yesterday evening I participated in the #elemchat that focused on teaching students about digital citizenship. As always it was a wonderful discussion, and during that time Aviva (@Grade1) mentioned how she uses Evernote in her classroom. I had heard of Evernote, but as of last night it was on my "things to learn when I have time to figure it out" list. Several people asked Aviva to write more about how she uses it, and she did not disappoint.

Her top ten list of ways to use Evernote is extremely informative, and the comments that went along with it also showed me that I needed to move Evernote to the "let's do some learning on a Sunday morning" list. So while I was reading her post and the comments, I went and downloaded the software, signed up for an account, installed the clippers and got myself started. My PLN provided me with an opportunity to learn about something new and gave me specific ways to use it in my classroom. At no charge to me or my school district.

The best part of the whole experience this morning is that a coworker and I were just talking this week about how we would like to do our Daily 5 / CAFE data collection next year, and we talked about doing everything electronically. I have already shared Aviva's post with her, and I'm looking forward to seeing what we can create together. Thanks to my PLN I have a workable way to solve a problem I was pondering this week.

Getting information from people around the world, and trying out new things. Now that's what I call learning on a Sunday morning! Thanks, PLN!!

Interesting Confirmation and An Audience

We spent the day at my parents' house today, and I had a really serious, heated, LONG conversation about education with my parents. One of the things I've struggled with as I've jumped into my PLP work and started developing my virtual PLN is that I'm part of the choir, and I'm following the choir. How do we spread the word to others who aren't in education. Who better to start with than my parents, right?

My dad, who is a school bus driver now that he retired from his other job, confirmed something that I have been saying for a while now. People in this area don't want schools to change because kids will never be able to survive if they don't know how to do the things that we know how to do. My dad wants me to teach the basics first, and then once the kids get the basics I should move on to the harder stuff. He said something along the lines of, "Make them understand what they are doing, and then you can use all the technology you want. I don't want a bunch of stupid kids running around who can't do their jobs because their calculators and computers don't work!" News flash, Dad. They probably won't be able to do their jobs no matter how much they know because all of their jobs will be technology based.

We talked about many different aspects of education. My dad often focuses on kids being "bad" or acting like "jerks" so I think it was different for him to hear that there are reasons why these kids do bad or jerky things. I also tried to help him understand that the positives he is providing will not instantly undo the mess parents have created the last 10 years, but he's doing something. I could tell that there were several points with which we did not find common ground, but he and my mom were listening. That is what's important - somebody not in education was listening to me, seeing things from my point of view, and starting to consider education differently than they had before we talked.

This is what "the choir" needs to do. Whether we are teachers, administrators or parents, those of us in education who believe in change need to start talking. We need to find audiences, sit down and talk about what our kids need to succeed. This is the only way we are going to combat those who are "Waiting for Superman" and those who have nothing nice to say about teachers and public education.