My internship is allowing me to experience the many facets of innovation — from early ideas to market launch. I am looking at construction projects and lots of data to help a new sales team find customers. I am looking at patents and new products to see how they could be integrated into a material for buildings. I am thinking about windows and how they scratch. I am thinking about concrete that can heal itself if cracked. I am thinking about the future but have no specific path.

I see this internship turning into an integrated part of all that I teach.  I will have a “unit” for innovation, but it is really so much more than that. I want my kids to work hard to learn and make mistakes along the way. I would really love my colleagues to make mistakes and try new things so we can push innovation to be a main part of education. Resilience, perseverance, and grit need to be base platforms for learning… struggle, mistakes, and failure are right there too. The “right” answer is not the goal, it’s all the wrong answers along the way that will really build a child’s learning.

So, I have so many ideas — big ideas– but I need to narrow down my thinking to develop my project. However, I know that my teaching will be a lot different due to this amazing opportunity.