This morning on the news I saw a video, sure to go viral, of some college girls at a baseball game, each one so absorbed in their phones and taking selfies, not one looked up when the batter had a hit and the crowd roared!
Looking up and around you,
interacting with each other, smiling face-to-face, can enrich your life and
improve your ability to reach your students, be they k-12, college or adult
learners. Last summer, I broadened my perspective by visiting
classrooms in the slums of Zambia, this summer, I broadened my horizons by
spending some quality time with quality educators.
Real Face Time
I have to thank, ISTE, NJPAECET2,
and Boston CUE Rockstar Camp, NJAMLE Summer Skills Sharpening Event and of
course my sponsor, TregoED for giving me the opportunity to share and grow this
summer and fall, … but most of all, I have to thank those educators (check out
some of my PLC- those involved in #njamle #njpaecet #cuerockstar #njed
#edcampNJ) who dedicate their professional time (and a lot of their personal
time) sharing so we can offer kids and colleagues the very best we have to
give.
Bottom Line
Twitter is a great place to
connect and share, but all the twitter chats in the world will never surpass
working face to face with people. Replacing semi-colons and parentheses
with real smiles and eye contact activates mind and soul– just ask a dog. In this day of political
ridiculousness, fault finding and mounds of paperwork- gathering with lots of
people that are passionate about their profession and the children they touch
is rejuvenating, exhilarating, and challenges you to improve on what you do
every day.
Head Out
These are just some of the
upcoming free or cheap opportunities (these are in my area, but are being
replicated all over the nation) to put your devices down and look each other in
the eye.
Conferences put on
by professional organizations:
Edscape, October 17, 2015 http://edscapeconference.com/
Edscape, October 17, 2015 http://edscapeconference.com/
Teacher’s
conventions: NJEA Convention – Are you going? Are you a
Middle Level Educator? Let’s do coffee! Follow @njamle
#coffeeEDU or visit njamle.org or the NJAMLE table for details!
Edcamps: EdcampNJ- keeps
getting better every year! Join us on November 21 at Jonathan Dayton
High School in Springfield for a day of great conversations, networking
opportunities and learning.
And easiest- Walk across the hall, you will be amazed at what
your colleagues are doing!
Okay…. so this one is not
face to face, but it is a great opportunity to connect in a unique way and
learn:
Book Talks: Edmodo
Book Talk: 17,000 Classroom Visits Can't Be Wrong by Antonetti and Garver http://www.amazon.com/000-Classroom-Visits-Can-Wrong/dp/1416620087
The Edmodo Group
code is 4thanw Hosted by Brad Currie and Robert Mullen
Where will you get
your next real “face time?”
