Sunday, April 21, 2013

Sheep brains are cool and so is being part of a pilot program

In the fall, I applied to be part of a pilot program for a new program that Project Lead the Way (PLTW) is rolling out. It is their “Medical Detectives Unit.” It is geared around Biomedical Science/CSI-ish stuff.

My application was selected. This was pretty cool on various levels. One, I really enjoy teaching my other Gateway to Technology classes and this could be an exciting addition. Two, there are about 30 other teachers who are piloting this unit.
When you are selected to be part of the pilot that means PLTW will pay for your flight and hotel. You get to go through some of the curriculum and give feedback to the curriculum writer.
It is really cool. I added some details to a PowerPoint and some lessons today and learned a lot of things about DNA. I also got to dissect a sheep brain—which is much cleaner and less gross than you would think.
But, I have this nagging feeling of guilt.
One of my friends made a comment to me about how she has never left her two year old son overnight. If she did, she said she would “sob uncontrollably.”
My daughter is only 6 months old.
When my hubby dropped me off at the airport—I did not want to look in the back seat and see my precious baby girl. I didn’t want to say goodbye to her. I knew if I did, I would cry. She is very, very awesome.
But, I also have a very, very awesome husband. He is extremely capable and is a fantastic dad. He knows more about babies than I do.
Plus, my mom and sister are less than ten miles away.
Yes, I feel guilty about leaving my little angel. But, it has been really cool to learn some new stuff and meet some new people.
I get to go home tomorrow.
Oh, and only 31 more days of school left.

Then, I get to hang out with my girl every day.

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Twitter for PD/Collaboration: #wmsplc


Ok, I am giving myself ten minutes to write this.

I presented to my PLC today. Since I am an elective teacher, I have the luxury of not having to worry too much about data and testing. So, our PLC is a little more exciting than the core teachers. (Or so I think.) In our PLC each week, a different teacher selects an article to share out to our group.

This week, I chose an article entitled, “Using Twitter for Professional Development.”


I was a little nervous because I am relatively new to Twitter. I started really using it at SWSWedu, and now I am trying to get as much out of it as I can.

So, I “moderated” a #wmsplc chat this morning. I had my questions prepared ahead of time.

We have a variety of ages of teachers from different subject areas: art, music, and technology in our PLC.

Most people in our group were also new to Twitter, and having them set up an account proved to be a bit of a challenge.

But, we were able to get there.

We “live chatted” from the same classroom.

We talked and shared some ideas face to face, too.

Many were taken out of their comfort zone.

Some sat back, as I figured they would. They didn’t have a smart phone/tablet and Twitter is not really their thing.

That is ok, too.

I think it got some people thinking.

Even the gentleman who works across the hall from me--he asked me a few hours later if “I got any new tweets?”

My ten minutes are up. It is time for me to go pick up my daughter.

Hope you learned something new today. J

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Changes at the "W"-Missing my old friends during testing week

This week was STAAR testing--Texas's version of standardized testing.

Lucky for me--I did not have to proctor a test, but I had hallway duty. It was a little crazy and my knees are reminding me of how old I really am.

I was responsible for the 7th grade hallway. Every time a teacher had a question, had to use the restroom, or needed to turn in their tests, they put their "I need a break" sign on their door. I had a counterpart, but, she was pulled both days to read a test to a late arrival.

Anyway, my time in the hallway/as a reliever made me a little sad.

I went into classrooms of some of my old friends who have moved on to bigger and better places.

I miss their pink, their futons, their motivational posters, pictures of their adorable puppies, etc. I miss their smiling faces and their team meetings.

I went into my old science classroom (I have moved to a computer lab in the 6th grade hallway) and it made me think of my old kids who I taught as 7th graders. They are now 11th graders. But, I could see them dissecting their frogs, complaining about their test scores, asking me questions to get off topic.

I looked around my old room to see if there was anything of mine still there.

Nope. It was all gone. Even the dilapidated bookshelf had found a new home.

I know change is a good thing, but sometimes it can make you feel lonely.

I think it might be time for a happy hour with my old peeps from the "W."






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