8th hour learning

What would you do if your boss told you, "take an hour each day to learn whatever you want." What would you learn? What would you create? What would you do?

My boss calls this time "8th Hour." I have no idea if this is a term that he made up himself, if so, perhaps this needs to be one of his TCEA presentations?

When I was a classroom teacher, I really enjoyed having my students participate in Genius Hour and I think that 8th Hour is essentially Genius Hour for Adults. Next year I might get more crafty...you never know. I bet my office mates would love it if I brought in an old computer or some old piece of technology and started taking it apart. This year I mostly stuck to learning new technology tools, reading books, and Twitter.

Anyway, here is a link to a Padlet I made that included the things I did during my 8th hour learning. (Katie's 8th Hour Learning)

I have really enjoyed my 8th Hour time. Some days, I couldn't get an hour in because of meetings or trainings, and some days I just had too much school stuff to take care of. (Which is fine, because it is all part of the job!) But, I always enjoyed the days I could take my 8th Hour.

Lastly, I found this quote and it really resonated with me:

To me, the best part of 8th Hour is having the opportunity to reflect. We can go, go, go all day--but if we don't take the time to step back and reflect--we are just wasting time. 

Thanks Justin Timberlake: What makes someone an innovator?

This morning as I was checking Facebook, one of my friends posted a video from a Justin Timberlake speech.

He had just received the iHeartRadio Innovator Award and his speech really made an impact on me. I love how he talks about not listening to your critics. 

The word "innovator" has been a word I have heard over and over again this year. Recently, we hosted a Twitter Chat that centered about the topic of being a Genius Educator. We talked about how Genius Educators are those who are willing to take chances in their classrooms. They use technology and they aren't afraid to share what is happening in their classrooms. 

Another way that the word innovator came up was through being introduced to George Couros. I got to hear him speak at SXSWedu and I was really inspired by his talk. He is energetic, he finds a way to appeal to his audience, and he seems to be a great leader. He has some great ideas that I think could really make some great changes in education. I also am really looking forward to reading George Couros's book, "The Innovator's Mindset: Empower Learning, Unleash Talent, and Lead a Culture of Creativity"  this summer. 

(Back to Justin Timberlake)...I hadn't thought about innovators as people who might be considered weird by others. I also hate using words that negatively stereotype people. For example, calling someone who is smart a "nerd or geek." Maybe it is because I am just impressed by people who can think out of the box? 

So that leads me to my topic--what makes someone an innovator? 

If you are an innovator you:

1. Take Risks

2. Dare to think Differently 

3. Do/Make/Create something new

4. Lead by developing others 

What do you think? What else could I add to this list? 

My absolute favorite tech tool this year

There are 14 days of school left.

I have learned so much as a digital learning coach. I have come across some great tools. I have learned about some amazing apps, and I have become a believer in Google Apps for Education. 

However, one of my absolute favorite tools that I have learned this year is Canva. 

If you haven't tried Canva--you have to! I seriously would die without Canva. (Maybe a little dramatic...but it is awesome!) 

I use it for everything (even my resume). 

You can share your creations with your colleagues, so they can edit them. You can download them and insert them into a blog, you can make advertisements and easily tweet them out, you can import custom images, pictures or even screenshots. 

You have the option to purchase some of the icons if you would like, but I can usually find what I need for FREE. 

Your students could use it to create different products, like posters, business cards and graphic responses. If you would like some more ideas, here is a link to a blog post that I found: Five Great Uses for Canva in the Classroom. 

Here are some examples of things I made in Canva: 

I used this as a cover for an iBook. 

I made this to advertise a new award our department came up with to recognize "Genius Educators" who use and integrate technology. 

This is an example of a digital badge that I made in Canva. 

What do you think? How could you use Canva in your classroom/school? Have you tried it yet? Let me know in the comments. 

My Favorite Ted Talk

Recently, we have been interviewing for various positions for the summer and at a high school.

A popular question that we ask during interviews is, "What is your favorite TED Talk and why?" (Don't tell my boss that I just gave away one of his best interviewing questions!)

This is a great question and it is one that is hard for many to answer.



It seems as if Sir Ken Robinson is quite popular in his TED Talk...(but people tend to forget his name in an interview).

However, my favorite TED Talk is from Debbie Sterling who is the creator of "GoldieBlox."

I first heard about GoldieBlox almost two years ago as I was preparing to give a presentation on recruiting girls in STEM. If you haven't heard of GoldieBlox, you have to check it out. Yes, its a toy--but it is more than "just a doll." The "dolls" can solve different challenges and they help girls learn about engineering and build their spatial skills.

Debbie has a great story. If you watch her TED Talk you can tell that she is smart, and that life as a female engineer has been challenging. It seems as if her mom even tried to dissuade her from becoming an engineer. She had professors who told her should couldn't, but tells the story of one of her male friends who helped her study and encouraged her to persevere--and she does!

I love this TED Talk for so many reasons. One, I would love for my daughter (she is 3) to become an engineer and I will work to empower and encourage her to build her "spatial reasoning skills" that she will need if she does pursue engineering. Two, it was a high school teacher who actually encouraged Debbie Sterling to become an engineer (I heart teachers!)!  Debbie had no idea what she wanted to study when she graduated from high school. Three, Debbie talks about the misconceptions that students (especially girls) have about STEM and engineers--that they aren't just nerds who wear ties, or guys like Mark Zuckerberg who wear hoodies.

What do you think? Have you heard of GoldieBlox before?

What is your favorite TED Talk?

National Library Week

This week is National Library Week!

The Digital Learning Team has been working hard to celebrate our librarians and to show how much we appreciate them!

My goal is to make it to all eleven of my campuses and bring soda cans with the following tag on them:

I have a hard time doing "cutesy" things, so this was a bit of a stretch. So far, the librarians I have seen have really enjoyed them and appreciate the gesture. 

We also have a Twitter Chat this week, where we are hoping to honor librarians and generate some exciting discussion on "Future-Ready Libraries."  

How is your campus or district honoring your librarians? I would love to hear some great ideas! 

What you won't learn at SXSWedu

If you go to SXSWedu hoping to learn lots of new tech tools and hear from educators who are in the field of education—you may be disappointed. I am not saying that there aren’t educators at SXSWedu, but it is a different feel and a different kind of conference.

However, that is what makes SXSWedu refreshing. It is almost like an “unconference” within the structure of a conference.

You can attend sessions/panels/hear from big names/attend keynotes/watch films/sign up for mentoring sessions. There is some opportunity for making—trying out 3D printers, building robots and a few random apps and websites—but that is not the focus of SXSWedu. (If that is more your style, you should go to TCEA. Or go to both!)  

What you can do at SXSWedu is plentiful. 

You can expand your learning. You can tweet. You can attend sessions based on topics that interest you. You can hear from futurists: and hear the vision and predictions about how education will change. 

From the Keynote speech on Wednesday morning, from Jane McGonigal. "I am making the future." 

You can also hear from entrepreneurs and people who are pushing their own products. (Which sounds a lot more negative than it is. I feel like you can learn a lot from an entrepreneur.)

You can network with people from other states and countries. You can have discussions about hot topics in education. 

Truly, to me SXSWedu is indicative of what Austin is really about.

Another person I loved hearing from was Lizzie Velasquez. She has an amazing story and is a great speaker on bullying! 

When you think about what Austin represents, not only is the city in Texas—but it is a city that is known for music, the tech industry, the University of Texas, bluebonnets, “Keeping Austin Weird,” breakfast tacos, and food trailers.  (I am sure there is more, but I digress.)

And, for me as an educator, when I leave SXSWedu, I leave with a sense and a hope that education is changing. I feel like our kids deserve it. 

A little "Thanks" goes a long way

Thank you.

Those two words were ones that I rarely heard as a teacher.

I am not talking from parents or students, but in ten years of teaching I never received a thank you note from a principal. I can honestly say that the word, “Thank you,” may have come out of my principals mouth a handful of times. (And, I worked at several schools—so this is not just limited to one principal.)

However, in my new job as a digital learning coach, I get to hear “thank you” quite a bit.

Just yesterday a librarian emailed me and told me I was her “hero.” Last week, I got a really nice thank you email from a teacher that I helped teach her class iMovie.

But, I hadn’t really thought about the words “thank you,” until today when I was talking to two of my coworkers.

We, teachers don’t need gifts. (Sure, Starbucks gift cards are nice…) But, a thank you note goes a long way.

So, as a principal—when was the last time you told your teachers thank you? When was the last time you wrote one of your staff members a thank you note? If you have never done it…start now!

As a parent—when was the last time you thanked your child’s teacher? Don’t wait until teacher appreciation week (If you don't know when that is...I am not judging you.) Just, thank them today!

As an instructional coach—when was the last time you thanked someone for the great things you get to see them do in their classroom? 

March is a tough time to be a teacher, and a little thank you goes a long way!

Thank YOU for reading my blog post.