my version of transparent, collaborative leadership...with a Teamann twist

A power point Christmas? No thank you…an alternative!

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I am in charge of our campus Christmnas card each year. I consider it my badge of honor (albeit, a badge  made up in my head) that I’ve not done the same style of card in 4 years. (It’s the little things.)

When I started thinking about something for this year, I remembered a tool that I had heard of from my favorite lil’ol podcast, Techlandia.

Jon, Curt, & Allison had talked about VideoScribe HD a few weeks ago and it was the perfect solution! The app was less than $5, even when I paid a little bit more to get the branding removed when it was rendered.

 

The result? A unique greeting that looks like it took me forever…but didn’t.

Clever, eh? Also appreciate @ipadsammy being at my beck and literal, call! 🙂 This is an easy tool that turns any presentation into something fancy…and we all know power point is very 1997. (**quote from Grey’s Anatomy**)

If you don’t listen to Techlandia, I highly suggest you do so, it genuinely provides me so many resources that benefit me, my campus, and ultimately, our students.

Jingle bellN,

Amber

 

How busy are you? #SAVMP

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ku-mediumI wrote about managing time over on the School Admin Virtual Mentoring  Program blog this week and it really resonated with something a couple of assistant principals’ and I recently discussed.

We’re all working late and we’re all working hard. I think that’s just educators as a whole in this trying time of national pressure and low morale. How much of this pressure do we put on our self?  & is it even effective?

I’ll never forget a teacher I worked with a number of years ago. He stayed late every day. He came in early every day. He held his own extra sessions of Saturday school. I remember watching his students take their lunch trays down to his room each day and working through recess and thinking wow, this guy is SERIOUS.

When his test scores came back that year, imagine all of our surprise when only 1/4 of his class had met standard. How was that even possible??

Easy. Activity does not equal achievement.

If you’re constantly working and never seem to get caught up, or stay afloat, or feel like you’re drowning…maybe you should take a step back and re-evaluate what you’re doing. Spinning your wheels isn’t going to get you ahead. It’s actually only going to frustrate you even further.

If you don’t get your priorities in order, someone else will do it for you. If you fall behind in your lessons because of let’s say, an assembly, or some random computer based testing…don’t stress yourself out cramming everything in. Figure out what the TEKS of the lessons are and focus on those! Get the big picture across and don’t stress over whether you were to take grades on every suggested activity. At the end of the day, or er, grading period, that’s what matters. what the students were able to learn.

Think about all that you say you “have” to do…and before you stress out to the point of regretting your chosen path of impacting children each and every day…change those words to what you “choose” to do. You are the owner of your time.

Choose to have achievement, not just activity.

Choosingly,
Amber

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Top five reasons I am a “connected” educator…

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October is a big month to celebrate education. Not only are we leading the charge for National Principals Month, but NASSP is also involved in promoting the importance of connected leading and learning during Connected Educators Month I thought in that spirit I would list the top five reasons I think being a connected educator has changed not only the way that I do my job, but also how I think, interact, and learn. (Those are HUGE facets of anyone’s world!)

#5. Connections become friends.

When I have an important decision, point to ponder, or even a snarky opinion to express…I now contact people that I have developed relationships with online. I have met some of them once, hung out with some of them twice, but I interact with them on a daily basis. They’re my sounding board, my inspiration, and the ones who keep me on a path of doing what’s right for kids.

#4. I get the opportunity to discuss innovative, trend pushing, status quo breaking initiatives with educators who are out there making it happen. The last #SAVMP hangout was awe-inspiring. (And not because I was leading it, wink wink!) We had three different educators who are doing things in three incredibly different ways, all making a difference in education.

 

 

3. Conferences become family reunions.

BT (that’s before twitter) I’d attended both the ASCD and ISTE conference with my instructional technology position. They don’t particularly stand out in my mind (aside from the great travel companions). This year, ISTE and ASCD were the HIGHLIGHTS of my admin career. I had such an incredible time putting faces and voices with profile pics and avatars. Between each session there were hugs and speedy chats as you went from session to session. I traveled to ASCD alone. In Chicago. If you know me, you’d know that is a HUGE thing for “Ms. I can’t even go to the movies alone.” I went and came back having found two ladies who are not only inspirational educators, but are now inspirational, supportive friends. I have already started planning for both conferences again next year, and @ErinKlein and I have roomie ‘rangements pending!

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EdCampDallas is also just around the corner and that’s another great way to make connections with learners around you. We sold out (!!!)  this year, but keep your eyes open for others to pop up in our area soon!

 

#2. Your jargon has changed and changes often.

Hashtag. FF. Voxer. Techlandia. MISTERMACNOLOGY. Podcasts. Feedly. Cpchat. Follow. Retweet. Google hangout. Ignite. Blogger. Google Plus. DM. Chat. Followers. Twitterati. Bammy’s. GFC.

All google worthy things that are now a part of the lexicon of being a connected educator.

 

#1. Like you even had to read this far to know what my #1 was. 🙂

 

Do something this October to get connected. Follow a blog. RT something worthy. Follow a chat. Lurk and learn. Stalk a celebrity. Just DO something!

 

 

connectedly,

Amber

 

Keep calm…and be a ninja!

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Back in October’s #edcampdallas, we had the great fortune of meeting Todd Nesloney (@TechNinjaTodd), who had driven down from Waller, Texas. He & his ninja counter part Stacy, (@TechNinjaStacey) were so enthusiatic and engaged throughoutthe day, they decided to go back and host their own #edcampWaller. It was a resounding success.

Much like Matt Gomez (@MattBGomez), Todd is a forward thinking, take charge kinda teacher and has been featured by many as one to follow, specifically in the realm of flipped classrooms. I asked Todd to do a guest post about his leadership on his campus and what results he’s seen. He’s a charismatic speaker and innovater…but he backs it up with phenomonal classroom results.

Thanks for the post, TNT!

toddI’ve been teaching for 6 years. Before that I worked four years at an elementary school as a classroom aide (as part of the “Grow Your Own” program) while I attended Texas A&M University. And before that I worked at an elementary school while I was in high school as part of the “Ready, Set, Teach” program. In those 11 years I have never learned as much as I have this past school year when I finally decided to step up and take charge of my own professional development.

Teachers are Leaders. The sad thing though, is that many of us don’t see ourselves as that. Sure we view ourselves as leaders of our classroom, but when it comes to helping out other teachers or other schools we sometimes feel very inadequate. Over the past 9 months, the number one thing I’ve learned is that there are far more exceptional people in education than I ever realized. Once I joined and became active on Twitter (in June of 2012) I found a wealth of knowledge, experience, ideas, and creativity from many of my new connections. It energized me. It lit a fire I haven’t had since before I started teaching.

So often as teachers we get bogged down by all the rules, procedures, and paperwork. We also can get derailed by those “Negative Nellies”. Those people who are so convinced that education can never be fixed and therefore they’ve given up. I was almost one of those people. Four years into my teaching career I was ready to quit. I was preparing my students for a test because the state and my district wanted great scores. I was shoving problem after problem after problem down my students throats. I was teaching them how to take a test. And in the process I was looking like an excellent teacher because my students were scoring exceptionally well! But I was dying inside. I view myself as a game changer. Someone who thrives on pushing boundaries and trying new and exciting ideas. But I turned into this robot who was making my students into test taking robots. I hated it.

Then I heard about the Flipped Classroom, Project Based Learning, and Twitter. And my eyes were opened. I decided no longer would I listen to those who said the only way you could get kids to be successful was to teach the test. I was no longer going to listen to those who said my ideas were too outlandish and that I needed to take a step back. I decided I was going to take charge of my own learning and I was going to forge new paths within my district for the betterment of my students.

For a while I felt very alone. Sometimes when you blaze new trails there are many people that whisper behind your back, that hope you fail, or that constantly tell you your ideas are crazy and it can begin to feel like you’re the only one on a sinking ship. Then I found my PLN (Professional Learning Network) on Twitter.

Through the power and connections of Twitter I was reminded I’m not alone. That out there in Texas and the rest of the country and the rest of the world are educators just like me. Educators who want their students to LEARN not just to take a test. Educators who want to push boundaries, change conventional thinking, and really challenge their students. I found a network of peers who encouraged me, cheered me on, challenged me, and best yet have walked with me through every step of my new endeavors. Have I met many of these people in person? No! But I have met some! And getting to meet these people in person fires you up even more. I now attend every single conference and training I can in hopes of finding more people like me and of course in hopes that I’ll get to hang out with or meet more of my twitter friends. I now even plan my own conferences (EdCampWaller) in hopes of bringing even more great minds together.

And better yet, these new endeavours and connections haven’t only benefitted me, they’ve also benefited my students! Now my students are getting these fun and engaging lessons that I’ve heard about from other educators. My students are getting to connect with other classrooms from all around the world. And best of all, guess what, since I refused to teach a test in October of 2012, my scores have increased by 12% to an almost perfect pass rate this year. Who said you have you to teach a test?


So don’t fret. If you’re trying new things and often feel alone, forge ahead! Seek out other educators through Twitter or whatever other avenue! Step outside your comfort zone and you will find a world of encouragement and learning that you couldn’t have ever even dreamed of. Take charge of your learning and lead the way!