After a week at NCCAT I am exhausted and overwhelmed…but in a good way.  So many ideas, so much information, so many things I am dying to run home and tell everyone about.  It’s going to take some time to process it all.  I’m taking a lot with me…especially about incorporating technology into the classroom.  But what I’ve enjoyed the most is the reminder that true learning and transfer takes place when students apply what they have learned in hands on and meaningful ways.  So the truth is we don’t want them to keep their hands to themselves…we want them to use those hands to explore and apply!  Whether that’s creating a book report using Aurasma or learning skills of cooperation and team work while building

a tower out of pipe cleaners it’s the hands on opportunity that makes the connection.  While the world of education seems obsessed with testing it is so refreshing to be in a room full of educators that are obsessed with learning!    It is so important for teachers to take the time to really connect with other educators to allow them to reflect on their practice and where their peers are in their instruction.

I came to NCCAT many moons ago.  I was part of a group studying how to use camcorders in the classroom, “Lights, Camera, Action.”  Wow…we have come so far and it is time for educators and others to realize that the world our students live in is not the same as the world we grew up in…it is more hands on…information is immediate….they do multitask…now how are we going to teach them.  When I came last time we sat behind huge editing equipment.  Now teachers can flip their classrooms in the blink of an eye with nothing but an iPhone.  How are we reflecting on our teaching strategies to make sure they are going to meet the demands of our students.

Time for our final session.  I’m excited to go home and get back to my family.  But I’m left with one question floating through my brain, ” How am I going to help the teachers I work with take that step to embrace more experiential, problem based, and hands on learning?”  The good thing is I know I have a support base to help with that….my fellow Kenans!

Thinking about what to expect from NCCAT I found myself thinking about the last time I was at NCCAT.  I was part of a group of teachers studying how to use Camcorders in the classroom. Wow have things changed.  As I read the Edmoto posts on AR and gamification I realized how in just a few short years our teachers have so many more tools at their fingertips to engage and reach students.  I know that I’ll leave with many new ideas and educational tools to share with the teachers in my district…technology and other.  What a wonderful experience it will be and can’t wait to see what Ah-ha’s we experience as NCCAT “shines the light” on our fellowships.

No I didn’t just jump off the waterfall….but I did just jump into my externship with DPI.  I entered the fellowship with what I felt was adequate knowledge, but soon came to learn there is so much more to learn about Common Core and how the shifts should look in our classrooms.  As someone who trains teachers I’m always asked, “How is this supposed to look in my lesson plans?  In my classroom?”  While there is no easy answer to that our training in Asheville helped to provide a road map in the form of a lesson plan rubric.  Can’t wait to share!!!