Update for August 11-15

Love, Literacy, and Lasting Impacts

This was a week of learning for me. The Ohio Innovative Learning Environments Conference packed five days with fantastic keynotes and breakout sessions. It was great to see so many educators spend part of their summer learning about new ideas. I walked away from the conference with three words that have impacted me and will stay with me for a while.

1. Love -- Love is such a powerful, versatile word that is often associated with romance. However, Steve Farber’s (@stevefarber) keynote reminded us that love doesn’t need to be provocative; it is at the very heart of what we do. We should love what we do, otherwise why are we doing what we do? I appreciate Mr. Farber’s advice on love and work. He suggests that we ask ourselves, “Why do I love this work, and how do I show it?”. The answers to this question will help us grow.

2. Literacy -- Franki Sibberson’s (@frankisibberson) keynote on digital literacy, student choice, and authenticity of the work students do spoke to my heart. Franki spoke on how literacy and what it takes to be “literate” has changed. Franki referenced the National Council of Teachers of English definition of 21st century literacies during her keynote. It is a definition that has helped me personally and professionally understand how my own learning has changed. The definition has also helped me frame the shifts in literacy instruction that we need to be taking in order to help students navigate a media-rich world.

NCTE Def of 21st Literacies has changed me forever as an educator - Excellent guiding document! #ileohio http://t.co/2zrsXJiUMK
— Herb Higginbotham (@HHigginbotham) August 7, 2014

3. Lasting Impacts --  I made it a point to go up to the stage to talk to Franki after her keynote. I did that because she has had a profound impact on me as an educator. Her books and her blog have helped me to understand what reading really means and what teaching kids how to read really means. When someone has that kind of impact on you, I think that you should let them know it.

Saying "thanks" to Franki.

This moment made me reflect on the lasting impact I have had on others. This is hard for me to do because it feels a little self-serving. However, since some would say that being an educator means I am “in the business of changing lives”, I should reflect on the impact I have on others. Recently, a friend and colleague of mine presented her first session at a state conference. She would be the first to tell you that it put her outside of her comfort zone. However, I knew that what she had to share would have a positive impact on the learning experiences of students and teachers.

“@lad817: Learning Mystery Skype#ileohio pic.twitter.com/cRXhVqjBks” Can't wait to try it! Thanks @FourthGradeHZN @NorwichElem @HoffmanTrailsEl
— Stephanie Miles (@smiles3boys) August 6, 2014

As you can see from the smiles, it was a great experience for everyone.

As we begin the school year, I will be thinking about how I can continue to find the strengths of others and then put them in a position where they can use their talents and knowledge to help others learn.  

What will your impact be this year?

Take care and stay positive,

Herb

Upcoming Dates

Aug 13 Staff Retreat at Buckeye Ceramic Supply, 9-12pm

Aug 14 New Teacher Work Day

Aug 15, First Staff Meeting, starts, 8:00am

Aug 18 Convocation at Bradley H.S., 8:30am - 10:00am

Ice Cream Social, 4pm - 6pm

Open House, 4pm - 5pm

Aug 19 First Day of School!

Relationships, not technology, make a difference

I am fortunate enough to be hosting a session at the Ohio Innovative Learning Environments Conference this year.  I am excited to be presenting on the topic of blogging in schools and sharing our participation in the #learn365 project by blogging about what our community was learning each day.

The conference has “innovative” in the title, which makes me think of “edtech” as a major theme for the conference.  It also makes me think that people are expecting a tech-themed conference.  Blogging this school year did involve a lot of technology use in order to share our learning and I was ready to put the focus of the session on the technology and web-based apps we used.  

However, when I look back on the posts we did, the themes that were most common had nothing to do with technology.  Our learning community shared stories of relationships, collaboration, hopes, dreams, and reflections.  We did share a couple of posts about technology, but within those posts were ways we were using technology to connect with others in order to learn.

Learning about how we can utilize technology in our classrooms is important for us educators to do in order to strengthen our instruction.  However, I believe that there needs to be a larger purpose that drives this learning.  This year, I learned that there is amazing power in connecting with others through technology and sharing what we are learning.  This affirmed my belief that it’s the relationships and the connections we make with other learners, not the technology, that really matters most.