This blog is brought to you by Kermit the Frog, and his Rainbow Connection.

When I saw the topic of the blog, I must admit that Kermit was the first voice I heard going through my head.  Haha.  The word connection struck me.  Making connections from my summer externship to my classroom.  You know, that’s not too hard, since my externship has directly allowed me to research the field I love most, music.  But the word “connection” rings a lot more to me that what strategies or new apps I can bring back to the classroom, I hope the personal connections that I have made will transfer as well.

Let me start with the obvious:  I have found A TON of new resources for my classroom.  Working for the Home Base resource bank has allowed me to go deep and really dig for new and exciting ways to teach.  Truthfully, I didn’t know there were so many good things out there for music.  I was just so set in my ways, I never looked.  Why mess up a good thing?  Well, for me it is now not about the proverbial “broken thing”, it is about enhancing an already productive experience to make it a higher level of education.  If I’m learning, the kids are learning.  We are connected in the learning process.

Then there are the other “connections”.  I have had an opportunity to meet new people, and connect socially in ways that I don’t usually get to.  Professional development for me is the usual staff meeting on Mondays, or some county stuff at the beginning of the year.  Not much opportunity to learn outside the classroom.  This externship for me has opened new doors for me in the realm of what I can learn, and the relationships that I can build while doing so.  For me, presenting at Summer Institute with DPI was fantastic, and I really “connected” with the other teachers and administrators that were there to learn.  It felt really good to do some good off the podium.  Usually, it’s my kids that have to perform.  This time, it was on me, and it felt as good as my senior recital in college.

The connection I plan to regurgitate to my students the most is the connection of their own learning to the betterment of other people.  When I learn, they learn.  And vice-versa.  I need to show them that they can have that same effect on their peers, families, and generic strangers.  When we strive to be better people, it spreads like a virus, and good can only come out of it.  I challenge you:  stay connected.  With education, with people, and mostly, stay connected with yourself.  That was the one thing that I can honestly say that I’m going to bring back from my externship: a new, renewed sense of self-worth.  I found my “rainbow connection”. What are you bringing back?