To pick the highlight of my week at NCCAT is going to be difficult.  I am a very decisive person (which means that I make choices quickly and easily).  My dilemma is that I have too many instances from NCCAT to choose from.  Let me give it a shot though . . .

In the teaching world, it’s very uncommon to be a part of a team of adults who are positive about their work.  Since there is always something bothering somebody, teachers get burned out pretty quickly.  At NCCAT, I was surrounded by other adults who share the same vision for the public education system and they were POSITIVE!  At first I thought that everyone was pretending to be on their best behavior, but as time passed I realized that these people were genuine and enthusiastic.

I appreciated the fact that the presenters were familiar with the classroom and understand our daily struggles in the classroom.  Because of this, they were able to give us resources and ideas that we could actually use!

And oh-em-gee, how could I forget to mention white-water rafting?!  I have never done that before!  It was a blast!  The amount of teamwork to make that event successful is astounding. On the ride to the river, I thought I was going to be sick!  I was so nervous (rightfully so because I am the most clumsy person I know).  I chose to raft with a group that would keep my mind occupied, and oh did they 🙂 

I don’t know how to properly put into words how much I appreciated that week!  I plan on implementing some #augmentedreality tools that were introduced to me from Dayson Paison.  I don’t know who created those tools but, man they are cool!  I was really looking forward to the gamification session with Cindy Bullard, but the majority of the session was spent on the ideology of gamification, not how to implement it in your classroom.

In a work week at NCCAT, I accomplished so much!  I ate amazing food, expressed my opinion, sat by a campfire, jumped into the coldest water I think I’ve ever felt, watched wild elk, and made lifetime friendships.  I wish that every teacher could experience NCCAT.

I truly believe that it is crucial for teachers to have ongoing opportunities to learn from one another.  I trust that, through the Kenan Fellowship, I will be introduced to material to re-vamp my classroom.  By becoming a Kenan Fellow, I am granted a chance to work with professionals who can teach me how to implement  research that is discovered about student learning patterns.

This opens a world of possibilities for my 7th grade students!  They will be able to apply real world knowledge and modern technology to the content they’re learning if I have the proper foundation to teach them with. I will have the chance to use new technological tools for my classroom lessons and be exposed to new curriculum resources to engage students in my science lessons. The Kenan Fellowship can provide guidance in creating these types of lessons.

I am also looking forward to developing a relationship to promote collaboration amongst myself and my peers.  By connecting with colleagues through the Kenan fellowship, I will be able to plan project-learning instruction that can relate to real-world issues.

I know, I know.  You’re probably thinking “Only the biggest nerd in the world would be this excited about adding more work to their life”.  True, I may be slightly crazy to be so excited about more work. But think of how many students will be influenced by this group of teachers who committed themselves to further education!  Which teacher has the student who will cure cancer?  Who has the next Einstein?  A future president?  No one knows; just means I must teach my heart out every single day and never settle for being a mediocre teacher.