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Ed kicking off EdCampWalpole - Family Feud Style! It's TRUE! Teachers learn best from other teachers.  Perhaps that is why EdCamps are so popular! They are so popular that  our district has dedicated a whole professional development day modeled after the Edcamp style. (Not familiar with Edcamp - read about it HERE .)  Paula B. sharing Osmos to Kindergarten Teachers This is the 3rd year our district has participated in a "modified" Edcamp.   Each year the call goes out to all educators in the system to submit a topic to either "lead", "facilitate" or "explore".  This year more and more teachers shared their craft and experiences with colleagues.  We even had some out of district teachers present. (And a keynote presentation by Alan November!) It's TRUE! Teachers learn best from other teachers!   Why? Because teachers are passionate !  When teachers are passionate about what pedagogy, it's hard not to get excited right alongside them....

October is Connected Educator's Month and I just arrived home after a great experience at the Edscape Conference held in New Milford, New Jersey.   On the long ride (4 hours) home, I had plenty of time to reflect upon the events of the day. One of the recurring themes was the topic of the "Connected Educator." The following is what occupied my thoughts. A Connected Educator sometimes: Goes out of their comfort zone - Met a gentleman at Edscape who happens to NOT be connected on Twitter.  In front of a crowd he mentioned this, but also how he wanted to learn more. We've all been in his shoes but might not have had the courage to speak it out loud.  Way to go Mark! (FYI- This little country bumpkin went out of her comfort zone and drove over the GW Bridge!) Jessie, Dan, Billy, Nancy, Dave #4thchat PLN Opens up their home to those they know 'virtually' - My PLN pal, Billy Krakower and his wife not only invited me to stay at their home but they treated me to a w...

By this time last year I had my summer PD all planned out . So far, I hadn't really planned anything for these first 2 weeks off from school, and to my delight a professional development opportunity arose before my very eyes. Every other Thursday night I meet on Twitter with a group of people interested in Elementary Science. The creator and moderator of that chat, Bill Krakower ( @wkrakower ) of New Jersey, suggested that we try to conduct the chat via 'Google Hangout' . I have heard Bill, as well as some other folks, referring to this 'Hangout' a lot lately, and decided I would LOVE to be involved. What is a Google Hangout ? Think Skype on steroids! Google Hangout is a feature of Google+ which allows up to 10 people to video conference at one time. Within the Hangout there are many extra great features as well. These include Screen Sharing, Google Doc sharing, Watching the same Youtube Video together, a Sketchpad and more. These features promote collab...

View from the 11th floor of NERD Center High atop the 11th floor in the NERD Center (Microsoft's New England Research and Development Center) on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, MA I found myself overlooking the beautiful Charles River.  Early this morning you could see several 'crew' teams practicing in the river. The skyline of Boston was crystal clear. This breathtaking scenery only added to the excitement of what was about to take place.   Waiting patiently, I milled around chatting and waiting for the EdcampBoston 'Unconference' to begin.  An 'Unconference' is basically a group of people getting together and setting their own agenda for the day based on the needs of the people attending.  Read to learn more here .  An 'Education' Unconference is for passionate educators, by passionate educators and is free (a word we educators love!).  It is a day filled with sharing and the exchanging of ideas and resources. There is one rule however, called the ...

My neighbor is always teasing me this time of year.  "So, you're finally off for the summer! Rough job you have!"   We'll, summer has arrived, and while it's true that I am not going into my classroom everyday it doesn't mean I'm not working. To avoid the "summer slide," I look to keep my teaching skills current by working ' away ' from the classroom.   For the past two summers , I was completing my Master's program through Simmons College. As I consider myself a lifelong learner ,  I have decided this year to find other methods to help me become a better teacher. Here are some of the ways that I am working this summer: * Tweeting through Twitter:   I am continuing my professional development by participating in Twitter Chats .  A Twitter Chat is a group of people meeting at a specific time on Twitter for a specific purpose.  On Mondays, I am involved with a group of (mostly) 4th grade teachers for #4thchat . We have discussed such t...