Although I haven't attended an official ISTE session yet, I'm still learning a lot and very very tired! Monday was an action packed day of interviews, photoshoots and meetings. I have never done a video interview before so it was a bit of a learning experience for me and I had to get over some nervousness in the first one I did. Pretty fun though once I got through one! This morning was more or less all about the award so I didn't get to do much other than chat with people along the way.
I was able to go to lunch with a great group of kids from Alabama. They're doing a poster session and are truly awesome! I was able to talk to Julie Ramsay, their teacher about the plans she put in place to get the kids to ISTE. She not only got them here but has taught them some great lessons along the way including amounts to tip, how to pack, how to speak properly to adults, etc. If you are considering taking kids on any kind of field trip, specifically to ISTE, you should talk to Julie!
On Monday afternoon I did a volunteer session in the Virtual Environments playground. I got to hold the title of Grand Poobah which meant I got to wear a cool hat and answer everyone's questions for two hours. It was quite fun. If you haven't visited the VE playground yet, try to stop in. It's in Lobby B by the bus shuttles. There are sessions running in the playground all day long that showcase what people are doing in various virtual environments. The Birds of a Feather Session yesterday was also fun and a great opportunity to meet with others that share a common interest in virtual worlds.
Monday night was a lot of fun with a kickoff at Lucky Strike for the Young Educator's Social. This was a great opportunity to meet other young educators across the globe, share ideas, eat some awesome food and have a lot of fun! I had a great time meeting everyone there, then headed over to a Gaggle Event. Our district is purchasing Gaggle for use in our schools this year so all of those that came to Denver from my district were there. We had a great time. Be sure to check out some of the events held by vendors/sponsors. They're usually a lot of fun and a great way to meet new people. I actually got lucky enough to meet a few other people from my home state!
Today is Tuesday and I am very tired! This week is really catching up to me so if you see me sleeping in a corner somewhere, nudge me! I met with the Awards and Recognitions committee this morning which is a new obligation of mine this year. I am learning that there is a lot more that goes into the planning of the ISTE conference than I ever imagined. These people really work hard all year long to make the conference a success, so when you see those staff members, board members, SIG members, etc., give them a pat on the back.
I am now off to prepare for the presentation I'm doing today with Gerald Aungst. He runs the allaboutexplorers.com website and the presentation, a model lesson, is on information literacy. I'm glad to be helping Gerald with this one and it should be a lot of fun!
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