Impactful Integration With Amy

  Throughout my time as an educator there have been training sessions that really stuck with me and those that were quickly forgotten.  As I begin rolling out Tech Tuesday sessions with teachers this school year, I took some time to reflect on what makes an interesting, memorable and impactful training session for me.  These are some of the questions I consider in how I provide training for teachers: 1.  What does this look like in the classroom? 2.  How can I apply what I've learned? 3.  How does this solve a problem or make my life easier? 4.  Is the information easy to follow and come back to? Making Thinking Visible- What does it look like in the classroom? In my recent training session with my teachers, we revisited their Gripe Jam which I spoke more about in this blog post .  They delved into brainstorming areas they are struggling with in their classroom.  It could be organization, lesson planning, lesson implementation, engagement, ut...

Big announcement!! I just found out I am officially an Google Certified Coach!  Getting started with tech coaching has been a dream of mine for awhile.  In this blog, you will be following along in my journey as a librarian and tech coach.  Come along with me as I navigate how to balance running a high school library and support my campus with impactful technology integration.  It is new waters for me and I'm excited about the challenge ahead. During the pandemic, my perspective on technology integration changed as the reality of one to one devices and virtual learning set in.  I saw the need for more teacher support in navigating the sea of technology tools and options.  In the summer of 2020 I heard about the Google Certified Coaching program .  I had just applied to be a Google Trainer and I knew from completing that certification program I wanted more of what Google had to offer.  The Google Trainer Program prepared me to provide effective an...

This issue of Power PD includes some creative ways to engage students and to keep your momentum going as we fall back into the routine of school.   It's time for Power PD issue #2!  We are back in the campuses with students here in my area.  I'm looking forward to all the opportunities to collaborate with my staff to make this year amazing.  I recently had a chance to present in our district technology conference and I was able to listen to over one thousand educators as they shared their word for 2021 using an EduProtocols strategy called Thin Slides.  The overwhelming majority of educators in my district are excited, but nervous as we approach a new school year in a pandemic.  I'm right there with them.  I admire their persistence and optimism moving forward, and I look forward to all the potential this year holds for each of us.   Let's Collaborate- Please reach out and let's collaborate on your next project.  I'm so excited to h...

I'm so excited to finally be sharing my 2021-2022 Power PD newsletter.  I was inspired by many other educators who have been doing #PottyPD or #CopierPD and I wanted to try this out but put my own spin on the name.  Each issue with have a short message from me and 5 ideas teachers can use to "recharge" their teaching.  Ready to check it out?  Here we go! Welcome back to the 2021-2022 school year!  Thank you for taking the time to check out my Power PD newsletter and this blog.  The purpose of this blog is to share my educational journey with you!  On here you will find additional information about the items in the Power PD flyer you saw.   I will be posting all Power PD newsletters in one Google Slides deck.  You can see it below.  Please check back often for the latest newsletters. 1.  Classroom Screen - this is an awesome tool you can use to help you manage your classroom.  Check out Pocketful of Primary's video tutoria...

This post is week 8 of 8 in the #8WeeksofSummer Blog Challenge for educators . Honestly, as the final week concludes I'm sad to see it go. I'm so glad I stumbled across this challenge during #pd4uandme Twitter Chats.  I had received some feedback from a few of my colleagues and friends that I should try my hand at something new.  One suggested blogging and one suggested opening a TPT store.  I thought about options and marked them down as possibilities.  When I saw the #8weeksofsummer Blog Challenge I knew this was the time for me to make the leap and just start already!   This week's topic is all about sharing new knowledge, skills and attitudes I learned this year.  The biggest change that led me to gaining new knowledge was becoming a Google certified trainer.  It has opened so many doors for me.  Three years ago I attended a regional service center training to become Google level one certified.  During that summer, three years ago, t...

This post is week 7 of 8 in the #8WeeksofSummer Blog Challenge for educators .  I don't know about you, but I always have mixed emotions as we get ready to go back to school.  I am excited about all the potential each new school year brings, but I'm also feeling like summer passed to quickly.  Can you relate?  Throughout this summer I have been searching out my own training through my PLN on Twitter, PD books and other online resources.  I also stumbled upon some new to me blogs and podcasts that I felt like I could really relate to.  One thing all of these resources have in common is that they are focused on one or more of these topics:  how to engage students with high yield strategies a framework that allows students to represent their ideas in multiple ways and to provide students voice and choice in how they express what they know using backward design to choose technology tools after the learning objective has be set innovative teaching methods...

I'm always up for great book recommendations, how about you?  When it comes to fiction, I like to go in pretty blind and be surprised by the outcome.  With nonfiction, I'm pickier. I want to have a good idea going into it if it will meet my learning needs.  Today I'll share a few PD books I read during the school year and in future posts I'll share some I've started reading this summer.  There are so many great books to choose from and it was hard to decide what books to prioritize on my reading list (TBR).  So I thought I'd do a series on my first thoughts based on kindle free downloads to get a glimpse inside the titles on my TBR and narrow down which are a best fit for me. I've been adding to my TBR (to be read) list all school year, waiting for summer to come so I'd have some extra time to dedicate to improving my instructional practice.  I don't know about you, but as a high school librarian I am constantly reading to keep up with current trends...

  Have you had a chance to try out www.wakelet.com yet?  If you haven't it is a really awesome tool for organizing information.  It can be used in so many ways.  You can create interactive collections of links, videos, notes, gifs, and so much more.  I have been using Wakelet for about a year now and I'm at a place where I really see why people get so excited about Wakelet.  Recently Wakelet hosted "Wakelet Live" on YouTube where educators and Wakelet ambassadors from around the globe shared their ideas and uses for Wakelet.  You can check out the playlist from the event here.    During the event, I attended some exciting sessions including portfolios, thinking about what to keep and what to ditch after our pandemic experience and many new ways to utilize Wakelet.  I also attended Desiree Alexander's Keynote on " How to Break Barriers and Achieve Your Goals ." Alexander's presentation was so just what I needed in the place where I am in...