Here. We. Go.1 year. It has been one year since I last posted on my blog. My #oneword last year was BALANCE. Part of that included focusing on my personal life instead of my professional life. And I would argue I was pretty darn successful with that! 2017 was amazing... here is a recap of the year. February 2017In February, myself and my cohort, did our final presentations to defend our administrative credentials. While it was an extremely taxing experience, it was also so rewarding. I met some amazing people. Our cohort truly operated as that. We responded to each other's late night emails, we could present with anyone in the group, and we learned each other's body language. But there is always one. While Lauren and I don't teach in the same school district, I don't know that I could have finished the program without her. She always responded to my desperate texts of bewilderment and/or frustration. Lauren was my lifeline. March 2017I traveled to Nashville for the first time with Brent. He had a a work trip planned and I tagged along. May 2017Graduation. A day a whole year coming. In May I graduated with my Masters Degree in Administrative Leadership. I had always said that I would NEVER get a Masters Degree. It always intimidated me and I thought it just wasn't in the cards for me. Apparently I should learn to never say never. Now one might ask what I am going to do with said Masters Degree. And my response to that is that I have no idea. I'm content in my current job which I love, so I guess for now I wait and see. June 207I got engaged. Which is ironic because years ago I had said I would NEVER get married again. Is anyone seeing a theme here? July 2017In July I traveled with Brent and his family to Hawaii, the island of Kauai. This was my first ever trip to the islands and it was everything I had imagined! I can't wait to go back! Later in the month, I was honored to be a maid of honor for the first time EVER for my best friend Allison. October 2017My school, Mountain View Elementary, won an award for our STEM work. My school was honored at the Ventura County STEM Awards. I was so honored when my principal, Jenny Goldman, asked me to attend on behalf of the school. November 2017I got married. Brent and I secretly eloped to Yosemite and it was simply beautiful and exactly what we wanted. We left from there and flew to Chicago, a first time visit for both of us! Heading into 2018....As a result of my balancing out, I tried less new things in my classroom, was quieter in staff meetings, and didn't participate in Twitter chats every week. I was able to catch my breath and truly enjoyed my year. I am entering 2018 feeling refreshed and recharged and ready for what's next (whatever that is!). After a lot of thinking and reflecting, my #oneword2018 is Trust. Trusting the process, the journey and cycles of life, the next step, my intuition, and so much more. 2018, let's do this.
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On July 29 I had the privilege of giving an EdTalk at the California Teacher's Summit to 350 educators at the Cal State Channel Islands Campus. Since my word of 2016 is Risk, I couldn't very well say no! This teacher's summit happened across California at 38 different sites. At the beginning of the day, the MC asked all beginning teachers to raise their hands and probably 75% of the room raised their hand! I was floored that this many new teachers were willing to give up a Friday during their summer for professional development. I spoke on my passion of collaboration and connecting teachers through the use of Twitter. In this talk I focused on how Twitter changed my classroom and how it changed me as an educator. While the 3 points I hit were homework, genius hour, and flexible seating, there were many other things that have changed in my classroom thanks to Twitter and my PLN. If you are interested in connecting or have questions about Twitter, please don't hesitate to ask!
For more information on the Ca Teacher's Summit: cateacherssummit.com/
Connect with me on Twitter @teachermsjamieWT# is Twitter
Twitter. To some it is a big, scary word and to others it is a critical part of growing as an educator.
I have found Twitter to be an invaluable resource for my own growth as an educator. As a result, my students have benefited, my classroom has benefited and my school site has as well. I have had discussions with other educators on topics that we didn't agree on which caused to to do some serious reflection on my own practices as an educator. I had to ask myself, Why? Why was I doing what I was doing? Because it was always done that way? Because it was best for students? Why? I think this practice of engaging in conversation and then reflecting is vital to our practice as educators. The ability to connect with teachers around the world opens up an endless amount of possibilities for us as educators and for our students. At my own school site, I have seen another teacher (@MViTDiTeach) connect her class with other classes across the United States in a very visual way. Talk about creating meaningful learning experiences for students! In the book, Innovator's Mindset, by George Couros (@gcouros) states, "Today, isolation is a choice educators make." A choice?? Why would we choose this? If we are to be preparing our students for jobs that do not yet exist, how can we justify isolation? I don't think we can. Kids deserve more. |
Ventura County Teacher of the Year 2016.
On a journey: Special Ed Teacher, Mentor, EdTech Advocate, Book Nerd, Knitter, Risk Taker, LA Kings Fan, #Whole30 lover, #SVTChat, GCE Level 1, Daring Greatly Categories
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