This post is part of Te@ch Thought’s 30 day blogging challenge.  The purpose of this challenge is to focus on reflective teaching. 

     Ahhhh!!!!  School started and then I promptly fell off of the blogging wagon!  I think that it doesn’t matter if I follow the challenge to the letter.  The important thing is that I reflect and think critically about my teaching!  That being said…let’s work on catching up!

Day 3: Discuss one “observation” area that you would like to improve on for your teacher evaluation.
     In New York State, our whole teacher evaluation process is so flawed.  I wish it was all about the teaching and what really happens inside the classroom.  This is why the topic of improving my observations is especially meaningful to me.
     I want to be better at questioning my students.   I want to not only ask better questions but I want to require more of my students to answer them.  I have this thing where I feel bad asking students questions who are shy or who I don’t think will know the answer.  So I don’t call on those students.  Which is not good.  Soooo, I am working on questioning this year. 
     I downloaded iLeap Pick a Student and I plan to use that randomly call on students.  I think that even the shy students might feel better knowing that it’s “chance” that I am calling on them rather than intentional.  Also, after rereading this I’m realizing that I need to toughen up.  My job is to make my students think and be accountable.  They will be better off and learn more-----which is the point, right?

Day 4: Respond: What do you love the most about teaching?
     The students.  Hands down.  They are the best part about teaching.  They make me laugh and inspire me and keep me young.  My brain works overtime to find ways to keep them interested and make sure that they have everything that they need to be successful.  Yup, it’s all about the students!

Day 5: Post a picture of your classroom, and describe what you see–and what you don’t see that you’d like to.
     When I was in the throws of flipped mastery in the spring I really wanted to change my classroom set-up.  When everyone was working at their own pace I thought about how cool it would be to have bean bag chairs around the room for students to curl up and work.  When my students were working together on projects, I wished that I had tables in my classroom or at least desks that could be grouped together easier.  I had to move away from flipped mastery this fall. I’ll probably be talking more about this in a future post.  As a result, I’m not so big on the bean bag chairs right now.  Tables still sound pretty cool…
     Otherwise, I love my classroom.  I think it’s the prettiest high school classroom ever!  It’s very me.  It’s busy and colorful and there are presidents that are there to help me teach.  I plan to add more presidents in the future.

Day 6: Explain: What does a good mentor “do”?
     It is now a requirement in NYS that new teachers have a mentor for several years.  When I started teaching, my district did not have a mentor requirement.  As a result, I’ve never had a real mentor.  I’ve had people that I have bounced ideas off of or asked for advice but I’ve never had anyone that I felt I could go to 24/7.
     So, if I could have had a mentor---what would I have expected from them?  I think that I learn best from observation.  I wish that I could have been partnered with someone who I could have observed teaching.  To actually see how a master teacher works and then get to sit down and have a discussion about that teaching----how amazing is that?

Day 7: Who was or is your most inspirational colleague, and why?
     This one is a hard one!  I have had a lot of teachers who I really respect and who have inspired me to try new things.  I can think of 2 teachers in my department who I often think “I want to be more like them”.  One of them has been teaching 5 years longer than me.  He still has the “joy”.  He is energetic----seriously energetic.  We often joke that he should not be allowed to drink coffee.  His love of teaching shines through every day to his students who love him right back.  He is joyful AND he is a great teacher who likes to try new things but has the fundamentals down pat.  He’s actually achieved a 100% pass rate for his students on the Regents exam.  Twice.  I may actually hate him a little bit. ;)
     The other teacher that comes to mind is someone who has been teaching a few years less than me.  She’s so good that when our principal wants to target a group of students to get better results, she is chosen to teach them.  This means that she’s been required to teach a bunch of different things and some of them are not necessarily her favorite classes.  That doesn’t seem to matter though.  She works her butt off to make her class interesting, even when the topic is not one that she is passionate about.  She is so creative in designing lessons!  Not only are these lessons fun but they’re functional too.  The students are learning.  Also, she’s great with parental contact.  I need to take a page out of her book for that one.
      I feel honored to work with these two very inspiring teachers.

Day 8: What’s in your desk drawer, and what can you infer from those contents?
      Can you believe that our desks don’t have drawers?  They’re basically just tables with computers on them.  I have a filing cabinet that has old files in it.  I’m not a paper kind of person---I’m all about the technology.  I have closets in my classroom that are full of all kinds of things: posters to rotate onto my walls, past examples of students’ work, arts and crafts supplies, cleaning supplies, and tons of dry erase markers.  What does this say about me?  I think it mostly says I’m a packrat! 

Question: What’s the biggest buzz in education?  
Answer: Anything that has to do with technology.  

     I am someone who grew up with computers.  I was one of 
those students who used the internet as a source in high 
school and my teacher had no idea how I should cite it in 
my paper (because it was new).  My Master’s is in 
Curriculum Development and Instructional Technology and I 
have NEVER written my lesson plans or student grades on 
paper planbooks or gradebooks.  Technology has been a given for my teaching for my entire career.
     This is not the case for some of the teachers that I work with.  I know of teachers who struggle with our electronic grading system and are mystified by smart phones.  Using Google Drive is not a time saver for them, it’s a chore.  They do not use technology in their teaching because they aren’t intelligent enough or because they don’t care enough about their students.  The reasons these teachers don’t use technology because it is unfamiliar to them and they don’t know where to begin to find something that will be useful for both them and their students.  
     Enter Graphite.  As I mentioned in my August 28th post, I am in the Graphite Accelerator Program.  The specific program I am in is sponsored by NYSCATE which is the New York State affiliate of ISTE.  
     So what is Graphite?  According to their website: “Graphite™ is a free service from nonprofit Common Sense Education designed to help preK-12 educators discover, use, and share the best apps, games, websites, and digital curricula for their students by providing unbiased, rigorous ratings and practical insights from our active community of teachers.”

     What a great service?!? Graphite (a subsidiary of Common Sense Media  and Common Sense Education) employs “professional educators” to review a variety of technology products ranging from websites, apps, and programs.  These educators rate each product in the categories of engagement, pedagogy, and supports.  They discuss the pros and cons as well as how the product works or functions.  The products are categorized and searchable based on content area and skill set such as thinking and reasoning or creativity.  There’s even a “Common Core Explorer” search function.  Then, teachers---like you and me---can also review these products by writing Field Notes.  
     This means that teachers like me who are comfortable with technology can share our knowledge of what works and what doesn’t.  We can also learn about new resources and save some time with new products based on the experiences of other teachers.  Teachers who fall into the category of “don’t know where to start” can actually find a place to start!  Beyond reviews and field notes there are App Flows which are written by teachers as actual lesson plans using educational technology.
     After I finish the Graphite Accelerator Program I am planning on becoming a Graphite Certified Educator.  You can do this too!  As more teachers review products on Graphite, the richer a resource it will become.  You will be helping educators around the world to introduce technology into their instruction that will be meaningful for their students.  Talk about 21st Century Skills!
     I hope that you will check out my Graphite profile and see what I’ve been working on and I hope that you will also consider contributing to Graphite with Field Notes about your own educational technology experiences.  I hope that Graphite will also be a means for you to try some new things in your classroom and to expand your own instructional horizons.  

*One last thought for my New York State friends: participating in a project like Graphite is great for your APPR.  Our district uses the Danielson rubric and contributing and using Graphite could certainly fall under several domains, particularly Domain 4: Professional Development.  Why not get credit for sharing your knowledge?

     I'm currently putting the finishing touches on a presentation I'm giving this week at the New York State Council of the Social Studies Annual Conference this week and I realized that I hadn't posted too much here about my experiences last summer at the Library of Congress Summer Teachers Institute.  Bad Dawn!!!
     One of the lessons that I did early on the year was my own take on the Library of Congress' Connecting with Primary Sources activity.  

In my activity, I used maps!  It was a great way to introduce a wide variety of topics to my US History students because I chose traditional maps as well as infographic type maps which covered topics from colonial times through present day.

      The students walked into the room and chose a map that was of interest to them.  Then I reviewed the process of studying the maps (see above) as well how to use the Primary Source Analysis tool which was created by the Library of Congress (see below).

     I had a horrible time limiting myself to just 25 maps and ended up selecting over 35 maps (see below)!

     After completing their Primary Source Analysis (PSA) tools and answering any of the questions the students had, the students moved on to their next task.  They then had to locate the students who had maps which fell in to the same category as their map.  This was something that I needed to help them out with a bit and eventually I told the students what the categories were and they were then better able to find their matches.  See categories below.

     Lastly, as a group, the students shared their maps and discussed what they found interesting about their maps or the questions that they had.  Then the groups created a headline that would summarize the significance of their maps.  This was an eyeopening part of the lesson for me since the students had a very difficult time summarizing!  It helped me to understand why essay writing is so difficult for them, particularly document based questions.
     Overall, I really liked this activity and really like the idea of doing something like this as a way to either pre-assess student knowledge at the start of a unit or to use as a post assessment.  It's much more informational for me than a multiple choice assessment.

     This past Saturday I attended the Hudson Valley New York State Association for Computers and Technologies in Education (NYSCATE) Conference.  NYSCATE is an affiliate of ISTE.
     One of the best sessions was about implementing Genius Hour.  This is something that I hope to implement myself.  I’m a very cautious teacher and it’s difficult for me to just dive into something new.  This semester with my fully implemented flipped mastery classroom, I am dipping my toe into my very own version of a 20% Project.  The plan is to go all out in the fall or even next spring.  I want to do it right.
     I love the idea of students getting to pursue their passions.  But, the idea of no parameters is too much for me.  Is that wrong?  Maybe, but I am who I am.  That is why I loved the ideas that were presented by three teachers from Arlington Central School District (Kathy Bellino- @kgbellino, Julie Jee- @mrsjjee, Katie Nixon- @smilingIrish215).
     English teachers Julie Jee and Katie Nixon have based their projects (Project Inspiration and The Passion Project respectively) on literature and informative texts.  The students are connecting the curriculum to their passions and vice versa.  It’s truly genius. 
     Kathy Bellino is a social studies teacher who uses 20% time in her Civic Action and Leadership course.  This course is an alternate for the NYS required Participation in Government graduation requirement.  The theme of her Project Action is for students to answer the essential question of: "How can the average citizen bring about positive change in their community?" This warms my social studies heart!
     What I love about all three of these teachers’ projects is that they have created a loose structure for their students so that they can be successful but still be very free to follow where their passions lead them.  I love that they have worked to get students who say that they do not have a passion to discover that they really do after all.  I especially loved that they brought two former students with them to the presentation to give the all-important student perspective of what it was like for them to learn that they are capable of more than they thought that they were.
     All three teachers said that success was due in large part to meeting with students individually to discuss their ideas rather than just having them fill out a form stating what their intended project would be.  They also talked about how student buy in was important to making the project an overall success. 
     Julie Jee has graciously agreed to allow me to share the link to the Livebinder resources used in the presentation. Be sure to check it out and be inspired to reach towards genius status! 

     I am a good teacher; or at least I think I am using the typical teaching metrics.  I have good pass rates on the Regents exams, my psychology elective is fully subscribed, and I have a good rapport with my students.  But here’s the question: am I doing the best I can for my students?  Am I teaching them to think critically, use reason and logic or am I just teaching them to pass a standardized test? While attending the Library of Congress Summer Teacher Institute  I decided that I need to up my game.
     At the LOC Summer Teacher Institute, we learned a variety of methods to encourage students to think critically.  After each demonstration I thought “Why am I not doing this with my students?”  I learned that although I am teaching them enough to pass tests and to have a general knowledge of the subjects I teach, they are not learning as much as they could (or should).  Basically, it’s all about putting the students’ learning and critical thinking process first above my teaching.  
     You would think that this would be easy for me to swallow and to put in to place but it’s proved to be difficult.  I think that a large part of the problem is me. It’s that whole “sage on the stage” thing.  It’s what I grew up with and was taught to do in college and what I have done for the past 13 years.  I have a difficult time giving up how I have always seen my role in the classroom.
     I am diligently working to remedy this situation.  I have begun gradually flipping my classes in the hopes of filling class time with more meaningful activities.  That really hasn’t been enough of a change and so the first week in February (the start of the new semester) I will be moving to a completely flipped Psychology class using the mastery model.  I am extremely excited and anxious as well.  I hope that my students will be willing to accept a really big change from what they have experienced for the past 11-12 years of schooling.  I hope that I will be able to retire my sage role and become the “guide on the side” that I know my students need.

     I have spent the school year so far reading like a fiend---all kinds of books, blogs, and articles about putting students at the center of learning. I have done a number of mini experiments with my classes which have moved both me and them out of our comfort zone.  I have used sites like ZooBurst to have students create children’s books on abolitionists and apps like Viddy for students to illustrate answers to review questions for Psychology.  I have had students organize themselves based on the documents they were assigned to analyze and had students search out their own supplemental information on the topics we discuss in class.  At every turn I have asked for student feedback and have used that to modify future trials.  Luckily, my students are very willing to provide constructive criticism!
     I will be attending three conferences in the next two months which will also help me in reaching my goal to provide my students with the best learning environment possible.  I will be using my Psychology classes as my model to move to a flipped mastery model for my US History classes for the 2014-2015 school year.  I truly believe that the move to flipped mastery will foster inquiry, creativity, and critical thinking on the part of my students.  I also believe that it will help to put my students on an equal footing in terms of access to technology, extra help, and the biggest item---it will eliminate homework.  
     So, here’s to my year as a teacher.  The teacher my students need me to be.

     A lot of good things have happened for me professionally this year.  Being selected to attend the APA/Clark University Workshop for High School Teachers and the Library of Congress Summer Teacher Institute were certainly high points.  Being allowed to host two Twitter chats (#psychat 9/4 and #sschat on 11/4) are icing on the cake!
     My Twitter PLN (lovingly called my tweeps) already know the value of Twitter for professional development.  Many of my Facebook friends and school colleagues, however, still need some convincing or at the very least a starting point as to how to make the best use of Twitter. 
     One note before we formally get started----I only use Twitter professionally.  I don’t talk about my non-school experiences, politics, friends, food, etc.  I also do not use Twitter with my students although many teachers do.
     Thus, I now present: The Clemens Twitter Guide to Professional Development! *Please imagine a curtain being lifted and roaring applause at this point.
     First: Sign up for Twitter.  You can do this online or via an app on your smart phone or tablet.  Be sure to choose a good user name.  This is important because this is how you will be known in the Twitter Universe.  If you can’t use your real name, use something that is representative of who you are professionally.  Basically, don’t choose a handle such as @sexybeast, people won’t take you seriously.  
     Also, be sure to put something descriptive of you professionally for your profile.  Mine says “I'm a hs social studies teacher (USH & Psych this year), VP of my local teachers union, and follower of all things education especially tech.”  You should add a picture for your profile as well because often times spammers just have the egg as their profile picture. 
     Second: Follow some people.  My best advice is to first follow someone with the handle @cybraryman1.  This is Jerry Blumengarten who is a retired social studies teacher from NYC but basically knows everything there is to know about educational technology.  His website, http://cybraryman.com, is chock full of information on all areas of education for students, parents, and especially teachers.  After you follow Jerry, go to his page of PLN All Stars and follow people from the subject(s) you are interested in.  That will give you a great start.  You might even want to take a look at who some of those people follow and follow even more people!  The way I use Twitter, following more people means I get more information from a diverse set of people.  You can look at who I follow to get some ideas as well.  I have mine followers broken down into lists such as Social Studies Teachers, Psychology Teachers, Teachers who Flip, etc.  
     Third: Take part in a chat.  Chatting is the best way to dive in to Twitter.  You will see how everyone formats their Tweets, meet new people to follow, and most important learn a ton!  I typically end up with 20-30 additional browser tabs open during a chat due to all of the information that is being shared! It’s amazing and a little bit overwhelming when you first get started but it is easy to get the hang of and an invaluable resource.   You can find a calendar of Twitter chats here.
     Let’s take a minute to discuss how to chat most effectively.  Trying to chat on the Twitter website or using the Twitter app will most likely be impossible.  The chats just move too fast and are too difficult to follow that way.  There are two good options for chatting: TweetDeck using a computer (available as a website or as a Chrome App) and HootSuite (available as an Android and iPhone/iPad app).  I prefer using TweetDeck because it updates faster and because I am constantly getting links that I need to open tabs for.  Both work well and are the main ways that people take part in chats.  

     Above is a screenshot of my Tweetdeck.  As you can see, I have several columns going.  Twitter works via hashtags (#) and so my columns are hashtag based.  When participating in a Social Studies Chat (#sschat) I can follow only the discussion taking place in the chat by following my #sschat column.  The chat is still fast paced and I might still miss something, but I will get the majority of what’s going on there.  Most chats have their discussions archived for future use such as the Social Studies Chat Ning which houses the World History and World Geography and U.S. Government and Civics chats as well.  That way, even if you miss something or miss the chat altogether, you can still get all of the information.
     Fourth: Don’t become fixated on missing stuff.  Twitter is worldwide and thus people are tweeting 24/7.  You have a life, you are going to miss stuff----it’s okay!  You can make sure that when you are looking for information that it is easier to find.  Even though a chat normally only takes place once a week, people use the chat hashtag to post information about a topic all of the time.  It’s another way that you can get great professional development.  For example, one of my posts was about the NY Times Learning Network: 14 Ways to Use The Learning Network This School Year http://zite.to/14nNIBr  via @zite #sschat.  Adding #sschat tagged the post so that people following that tag could easily find it.  For a list of popular Twitter hashtags go here.

     There are two great ways to keep up-to-date on Tweets.  You can use your TweetDeck columns to scroll back and see posts you missed when you weren’t online.  This is not my preferred method but if you don’t have a tablet it may be the best option for you.  Since I have an iPad, I use Flipboard which is available for both Android and iPad.  I love Flipboard because it turns your twitter timeline into a magazine!  You can view all of your twitter followers’ tweets as a whole or search just by hashtag or just by a particular person! It’s handy and easy to then either retweet, email to yourself, or open on the internet.
     There are many resources on the internet that are geared towards assisting teachers with getting the most out of Twitter as a professional resource.  I can only say that it is thrilling to meet your tweeps in person after talking to them for months online, it’s exhilarating to have people to discuss ideas with who share your passion, and it’s amazing to see what is available outside of your everyday experiences.     *By the way- taking part in Twitter chats is a great way to fulfill Domain 4d on the Danielson Rubric for  Participating in a professional community and 4e Growing and developing professionally.  I have been keeping track of my participation in chats for our district's required Artifact!

     Over the summer I read a book that many other teachers read as well: Teach Like a PIRATE.  This book has been the talk of the town for a while making the rounds at conferences and water coolers.  One of the biggest venues to discuss the book is via twitter chats.  You can now find subject specific chats in addition to the general #tlap chat (Mondays from 7-8pm Eastern Time).  There’s #tlapmath, #ELAtlap, #sstlap, and #SCItlap (for science).  I’d say that the twittersphere’s response is a pretty good endorsement of how influential this book is!
     This book interested me before I even knew that Dave Burgess is a fellow high school social studies teacher.  Honestly, the pirate thing was the biggest draw for me.  Who wouldn’t want to teach like a pirate?  I wanted to be the teacher who would hold the students captive to my educational awesomeness and the idea of being a bit of a quirky peg-legged, eye-patched, friend of parrots was a definite incentive for me to read the book.  Finding out that the author teaches difficult to motivate students US History was only icing on the cake!
     So, I’ve decided to put my own spin on the pirate lifestyle for my classroom this year.  I loved Dave’s idea of selling the class to the students.  I made my class handouts resemble advertisements and even had endorsements from last year’s students.  I decided to break away from my regular first few days of class where I went over the rules day one and dove into the curriculum on day 2.  Like I said, I did my own spin on the pirate life so on day one for US History I did an activity called History in a Bag  and for Psychology I did the Marshmallow Challenge. 

     Next week I will be doing activities where the students will be up and moving in both classes.  Both activities are inspired by my summer conferences.  My US History classes will be doing an activity I learned about at the Library of Congress Summer Institute involving maps entitled “Connecting with Primary Sources” (more on this later).  My psychology classes will be taking part in a Values Walk.  
     I truly believe that using the PIRATE methods in addition to my own general zany character will really make my class an exciting place for my students where they feel motivated to learn.  Coupling this with my move towards gradually flipping my classes and integrating more technology overall will make this even easier for me to accomplish.  My goal is to have more class time to engage my students and really help them to connect with the content.  So far I’m feeling extremely energized and very excited to teach my lessons.  One student has already said to me “You can tell you really like your job”.  What a great endorsement two days into the school year!

     I was looking back at my blog posts and I realized that I never mentioned that I was accepted to the APA-Clark University Workshop for High School Teachers!  It just so happens that the conference took place this week from 7/22-7/24 and it was AMAZING!!!  Twenty-five high school psychology teachers were selected from throughout the nation (16 states were represented) to take part in the 9th annual conference in Worcester, Massachusetts.  Did I mention that it was amazing?!?
     The conference was a combination of presentations from professors at the forefront of psychological research and from master high school psychology teachers.  The high school teachers coordinated the activities and materials they shared with the topics the professors presented.  For example, Dr. Marianne Wiser (Clark University) discussed how she approaches her sensation and perception course.  She discusses each sense in order of complexity from least complex to most complex: pain, touch, taste, smell, hearing, and vision.  The master teachers then gave illustrations of activities, videos, web-links, and handouts to use in class. 
     The most engaging presentation was given by Dr. Champika K. Soysa (Worcester State University) who spoke about children experiencing PTSD in Sri Lanka due to war and the 2004 tsunami.  The stories were heartbreaking but the discussion about how sociocultural characteristics can impact perceptions of mental illness was thought provoking.  The presentation which I think will have the greatest impact on my teaching was from Dr. Victor Benassi (University of New Hampshire).  He shared his studies of how the single most effective means to increase student test scores is by taking a quiz---even if the student doesn’t get the correct answers to the quiz prior to taking the test.  The best kind of quiz to give uses a variety of types of questions including open-ended and multiple choice questions.  Quizzing is more beneficial than rereading the text, making flash cards, or even being given the test questions prior to the test!
     Beyond the seminars that were given, I greatly enjoyed our tour of the Psychology department at Clark.  The research that is taking place at Clark is diverse and timely.  Topics include comparison of adjustment for families who adopt children from both traditional and homosexual couples, correlation between parenting styles and student academic success, and Latino men’s perceptions about seeking treatment for mental illness.  I left the tour feeling excited and a bit jealous of the grad students who are taking part in these studies.
     The best part of the conference, however, was having the opportunity to rub shoulders with some wonderful, knowledgeable, and dynamic high school psychology teachers.  I got to meet in person two members of the weekly twitter chat #psychat: Amy Ramponi (@AmyRamponi) and Jennifer Schlict (@jenslish).  Jennifer also maintains the blog “Using Pop Culture in High School Psych Class” (http://psychteach.com/).  Amy will be taking over as moderator of #psychat in August 21st discussing “Kicking Off Your Psych Class”, Jennifer will follow on 8/28 with “Tech Integration in the Psych Classroom”.  I will be moderating my first ever twitter chat on 9/4 discussing “Unit Projects in Psychology”.  I can’t tell you how excited I am about having the ability to take part in something like this!
     The other people that I met at the conference were equally influential in making this a terrific conference.  Dr. Lee Gurel’s generous donations made this conference (and the last 8 conferences) possible.  Dr. Gurel is a Worcester native who graduated from Clark in 1948 and still remembers how influential his psychology professors, particularly Dr. John E. Bell, were in guiding him and believes that high school students deserve the same opportunity for inspiration and guidance.  Dr. Nancy Budwig (Clark University), Caitlin Crowley and Emily Leary Chesnes (APA) were also instrumental at ensuring that conference attendees were able to get the most out of the conference. 
     I would certainly recommend the conference to any high school psychology teacher.  Although I was one of the only participants that does not teach AP level psychology it was a great experience.  Applications are typically due in April so be on the lookout on the APA web site in late winter.  If you are interested in any of the materials that I received from the conference, please feel free to email me at [email protected].  

     Why did I create this blog?  Well obviously, at some point, my plan is to become an internationally renowned educational expert – particularly in the realm of curriculum and instruction.  A girl can dream, right?
     I created this blog in the hopes of helping other teachers and maybe starting a few conversations.  I also created this blog as a sort of personal educational journal.  Hopefully, as I continue my path through the realm of education I will be able to look back at my posts and see how I’ve grown as an educator. 
     With professional growth in mind, I hope that you will indulge me as I do a little planning and a little dreaming about one of my favorite topics: Professional Development. 
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  *  *  *  *
I love teaching and I think that I am a good teacher but I want to be better. I have aspirations to maybe one day earn a PhD.  I am planning on beginning the process of becoming a National Board Certified Teacher this year.
     But like a greedy person, I want MORE! I have categorized my “demands” into three categories: gotta have it now, maybe next year, and in my dreams.  I’m a bit conflicted with my gotta have it now choices.  Am I biting off more than I can chew?  What do you think?  Regardless, enjoy my wish list and if you see Santa Claus, please tell him that I have been very good and I deserve to go to each of these events!

Gotta have it now!

• ASCD Conference on Teaching Excellence (June 28–30, 2013, National Harbor, Md.): My Superintendent actually recommended that I join ASCD.  I found out that my district will give me some money towards the conference fee and my sister-in-law lives in DC so I might be able to avoid paying for a hotel.  I’d like to one day go to the ASCD Conference on Educational Leadership but that happens to be in Las Vegas and in November and that’s not going to happen.
  
• Summer Institute for National Board Candidates: Since this is one of my immediate goals, and I want to be as successful as possible, this looks like a perfect opportunity for me.  The institute is described as being “created to give candidates an entry point to the National Board process that is experiential and inviting. Candidates will learn the fundamentals of the NBC process: core propositions, teacher standards, entry requirements, types of writing, and framework of accomplished teaching.”  This conference is about two hours away from me and the $175 cost includes meals and hotel.  How can you go wrong!  It is being held July 10-12th.  
  
• APA-Clark University Workshop for High School Teachers: This conference may have to move into the “maybe next year” category.  It’s a wonderful opportunity.  Twenty-five high school psychology teachers from around the nation travel to Clark University in Worcester, Mass. for three days (July 22-24) to learn from great professors about teaching psychology---what can be better!  Actually, what’s better is that it is free and within driving distance and housing is included.  Why would I not go (or at least apply)?  Because I am definitely going to go to either the ASCD Conference of the NBTC Summer Institute AND because I have been accepted to the Library of Congress Summer Teacher Institute for this August.  *Can I just take a minute to say how excited I am about this?!?  Holy cow this is going to be amazing!!!* With an already busy summer scheduled, should I add on one more thing?  I’ll let you know what I decide.
  

Maybe next year?

• National Council for the Social Studies Annual Conference: I have been to my local and state Council for Social Studies conferences but this is the holy grail.  Sadly, this year the conference is in St. Louis and the conference fee coupled with transportation and hotel makes this impossible.  Next year, however, the conference is in Boston (November 21–23, 2014) which makes this doable.
  

In my dreams…

• Harvard Graduate School of Education, professional development: Ah, Harvard.  The ultimate dream.  This year they are offering 8 week-long courses.  I particularly like the look of Enhancing Teacher Effectiveness in High Schools and Project Zero Classroom.  Project Zero Classroom “features various frameworks and tools that enable you to look at teaching analytically, develop new approaches to planning and make informed decisions about instruction”. Meow! Sadly, these courses cost $2,500 a piece and that does not include housing for the week.  I’m going to save up to make this dream come true!
  
• ISTE Conference: This June the conference is in San Antonio and again travel costs are the biggest obstacle.  I had actually asked our director of technology about going to this conference the last time it was in Philadelphia and was turned down due to lack of funding.  The next time the conference is in Philly is 2015 so I can certainly try again then.   
  

*Update: (3/28) I couldn't help myself- I applied for the APA Clark Workshop for Psychology Teachers.  It was just too good to pass up --- or at least to try for.  I'll let you know if I get accepted!

     Curiosity and cooperation – obviously these are vital requirements to be a successful student and/or teacher no matter what century you are in.  The 21st Century, however, forces us to be willing to cooperate with people from around the world.  Thankfully, as I discussed in the previous two posts, there is technology available to assist us in meeting those goals.
     Now, we are ready to move on to the next component of 21st Century Learning: communication.   Although you do not have to contribute to your PLN the more you contribute, the more that people will be willing to contribute to you.  It’s always positive to have someone to bounce ideas off of or to discuss the best approach with.  I have found that since I am unfamiliar to so many of the new methodologies being used, I need to ask questions, a lot of questions!  I am much more likely to get people to answer me if I am willing to provide contributions myself.  Here’s how to get some serious skin in the game:

• Twitter- This is by and large the best way to create a diverse PLN and it’s not as hard as you might think! I’ll be writing a post on this topic later on.
  
• Edmodo- I had heard of Edmodo previously but did not have the opportunity to use it until I was selected to be part of the SMART Board turnkey trainers for my district.  The person who facilitated the training used Edmodo as a means for sharing resources with the group.  I became hooked!  I downloaded the app, joined a bunch of groups, and haven’t looked back. What can you do with Edmodo?  According to the website: “Edmodo provides teachers and students a secure place to connect and collaborate, share content and educational applications, and access homework, grades, class discussions and notifications.” Feel free to connect with me by searching for Dawn Clemens.
  
• Wikispaces- Wikispaces has been around for a while but should not be overlooked as a place to collaborate with others.  “A wiki is a space on the Web where you can share work and ideas, pictures and links, videos and media — and anything else you can think of.”  You can find and create many wikis on many different topics.  They are also great to use for class projects.  Just completing a search will offer a wide array of resources (for example Karen Brooks from Ulster BOCES has a wiki with specific resources for technology and the Common Core.   Many groups allow anyone to post within a wiki once you receive posting permission.
  
• Google Sites and Google Drive -  Create your own website using Google Sites to collaborate, plan, and share information.  Google Drive allows you to share and edit files with others via the internet.  
  

     My final post in this series will focus on critical thinking.  I'll also be including a bunch of other links to assist you in creating a PLN that works for you!

A variation of this post can be found in my original article “What is a PLN and Why Do You Need One” found here.