Kid President's Inspirational Message

These images caught my eye this morning as I was out and about in Bellevue.

I love how one kid can spread a message that touches people of all ages, race, and demographics!  Kid President is the perfect example of how well made videos touch the hearts of people.  I am amazed at videos that trend on YouTube and inspire so many people.  Never before have we lived in an age when individuals are inspired and moved by complete strangers.  

Kid President is an excellent example of just this!  You can’t help but smile when you watch his videos.  When you see these images popping up at schools, daycares, gyms, and churches you know where they came from!    

His story is one of inspiration!  He suffers from a brittle bone disease and has suffered over 70 breaks since his birth yet his amazing spirit and love truly makes the world a better place.  

I absolutely love watching his videos, hearing his infectious laugh, and getting up and dancing with him on YouTube! If you have never watched one of his videos check out his playlist!  I guarantee it will brighten your day!!   Keep up the awesomeness Kid President.

Summer Learning - Happened so fast..

Now that the school year has ended and teachers are so excited to be on vacation, it is time to relax and rejuvenate, right? Right! But it is also a fantastic time to focus on your professional learning! I know many teachers who use summer as an opportunity to take classes, read professional books, and work collaboratively with their teammates. Here are a few other ideas for how you can take advantage of summer learning while also working on your tan!

1.) Develop a Professional Learning Network: Using social networking tools like Twitter, Google+, Feedly, and many others, you can connect with teachers around the globe who are doing amazing things. Read about what they are doing, participate in conversations with them, read articles recommended by colleagues, all from your mobile device on your back deck, poolside, or green lawn!  Check out Cybraryman’s list of Twitter Hashtags to follow.

2.)  View some amazing Google Hangouts On Air for free learning opportunities!  Here is a great resource to peruse through.  Connect to a Google + Community like Edudemic.

3.)  Attend a local Edcamp in your area.  Edcamps are usually held on weekends and are free of charge.  Edcamps let you choose the topics being covered and its a great place to network with other professionals.

4.)  Follow some amazing educational blogs.  This is the 2013 best edtech blogs honor roll, as well as some of our favorites:

http://technologytools4teaching.blogspot.com

http://digitaleyesblog.blogspot.com/

http://fluency21.com/blog/

http://comfortably20.blogspot.com/?m=1

http://edublogawards.com/2012awards/best-blog-on-educational-technology-2012/

5.)  Finally get that class website going for free at www.weebly.com!   This site gives you tons of great looking templates to work with. No HTML knowledge is required.  And best of all it is free for educators.

6.)  Find some great YouTube Channels to subscribe to. This is a great way to learn new skills on practically any topic.  Subscribing to a channel gives you instant notifications when a new video has been added.  Check out this #tt4t YouTube channel for a multitude of ed tech video tutorials.  Also click to see some amazing TED lessons for your students using the Flipped Classroom idea.

7.) Think of a place where you can read quietly, soak up the sun, and turn on that mobile device for some unique learning opportunities.

Return in the fall with some great new skills and feel invigorated by the fact that you cared enough to dig a little deeper with your knowledge even on your “time off”!  So if you choose to do any of the above suggestions this summer, congratulations!  You’re a leader, you inspire others with your knowledge, and your students will be better for it!  

Written by Jenny Krzystowczyk in Conjunction with Guest Blogger Dave Zukor

YouTube It!

“Mike, how did you learn to solve the Rubic’s cube?”, I asked my 7th grade son.

 “I YouTubed it,” he said.

YouTube is a verb. YouTube it. Anytime and anywhere there is a connection to the Internet, learning can take place. Never has a time existed where there is such open access to information. YouTube, Ted.Edu, and access to SMARTphones are changing the culture of the how and where learning takes place. How fantastic is it to be able to pause, play, rewind, and play a video again?  Now it is truly possible to learn a topic at your own pace without feeling silly about asking questions. With the advent of the i0S devices, the ease of using YouTube, and network speed contribute to creating a culture that is transforming how, when, and where we learn.  Accessing and streaming videos is as simple as changing a channel on a TV.

I decided to give YouTube learning a try and master a new song on the piano. I started at YouTube.com and did a search for “Apologize Piano Tutorial”. I pushed the sheet music aside and slid the iPad on the music stand.  I pulled up this video and went to work. I played the video, paused it, then played it on the piano. Then I played the video again, paused it, played it on the piano. I repeated this process hundreds of times over the course of several weeks to master the song. Finally, I did it! I feel so excited, like a kid learning to ride a bike without training wheels for the first time. The thrill of mastering the skill coursed through my veins.  Now the drive is there to perfect the song.

I can play Apologize without the iPad now. I am still polishing the tune, but am so amazed how fun it was to learn this way. My YouTube teacher never ran out of patience.  In addition, having access to the knowledge via YouTube at the exact moment I needed it, along the ability to pause, rewind, and practice the notes, was key to me learning the song. YouTube is just in time learning that is powerful, purposeful, engaging, and leads to mastery. YouTube it today and learn something new!


-Ann Feldmann