And Just Like That, It's Over!!!

It really doesn't seem possible that my sabbatical year is gone.  As with anything in life, we often think we have "so much time" and then we blink and are out of time.  That is certainly the way this year felt....like it flew by in an instant.  I am excited to return to the library and look forward to seeing all our MES students.  I definitely have more new lesson ideas and procedures to try than I have classroom time for the entire year, but this is good...It means the students will benefit from my experiences for many years to come!

CARNEGIE MELLON COLLABORATION

 

One of my most important sabbatical goals was to re-connect with Carnegie Mellon University.  When I first started at Marshall, we had graduate students in our library on a regular basis, working with our students and sharing their new inventions.  It was a wonderful experience for both our students and those at CMU...we were even involved in the creation of a storytelling computer simulation that still exists on the Carnegie Library website!  

At the end of the year, they held an open house for visitors to explore all the wonderful technology creations from their graduate students.  It was such a thrill to be in this entertainment center, as the memorabilia surrounding these students is incredible!  When I asked about all the artifacts, they told me that they are all there to provide inspiration for the students, and that each area has a particular theme; movies, music, etc.  No wonder these students are so creative and successful!

CHILDREN'S CHOICE AWARDS

The Children's Choice Awards happens every year through the Allegheny County Library Association and the Allegheny County Intermediate Unit.  Students read up to 8 books and then get to spend the day with a national author, participate in a STEM activity and compete in a battle of the books.  Each year, we travel with our 4th & 5th grade book clubs to the Soldier's & Sailor's Museum to participate in this fun event.  

School Visits...Public Library Visits...Author Visits

I have been incredibly lucky to have gone to graduate school with some awesome teacher-librarians and met even more role models through professional associations like the Western PA School Libraries Association, a division of the PA School Library Association & ALA.  They work tirelessly to create programs that incorporate information literacy through the use of technology and STEAM.  I have visited Mr. Lebanon, Hampton, Quaker Valley and even Frank Elementary in Houston, TX.

In addition to school visits, I also witnessed Sensory Storytime at the Mentor and Akron Public Libraries in Ohio, along with the Squirrel Hill Library right here in town.  I went to lectures by Mo Willems along with Zacariah Ohora, to name a few.  Each visit was special in its own right, and I felt such excitement to learn from professionals whose only goal is providing a quality education for children.

Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures....Words & Pictures Series

We are so lucky to live in Pittsburgh for many, many reasons.  One reason, which many people may not be aware of, involves the Pittsburgh Arts & Lecture Series.  The above image is actually a screen shot of their website announcing the 2017 - 2018 author series.  Each year we have the chance to hear from authors who have a major impact on children's and young adult literature.  

I have attended many of these lectures in the past, but this year I was looking forward to hearing Mo Willems.  I had actually first heard him speak as he moderated a panel of authors when I was at the Eric Carle museum back in October.  Although I was able to see and hear him in person, his role as moderator did not give much insight into he himself as an author.

Elementary aged children really seem to love Mo's books.  Some of his more popular books are "Knuffle Bunny", the "Pigeon" series along with "Elephant & Piggie" books.  While I believe his books are more for Pre-K and Kindergarten, I have to admit that all grades will check out his books when given the chance.  They have simple words and illustrations that tend to always make the children laugh.  Mo talked about some of his previous jobs and also about his new exhibit which is now on display at the Pittsburgh Children's Museum through September 2, 2018.

Perspective....from Apple

I follow a lot of educators mostly through either blogs or Twitter.  One teacher I always learn so much from and enjoy her posts is Terri Eichholz.  She can also be found on Twitter @terrieichholz.  Some educators post a lot of education "stuff" or ed tech that I am already familiar with.  Terri is different, at least for me.  Her posts are interesting and she is always experimenting with many different lessons, technology and STEAM.  She posted this video from Apple on her blog and said she couldn't wait to show her students.  Thank You so much Terri....now neither can I.

FETC...Future of Education Technology

 

I have a lot to say about FETC...stay with me.

I know everyone goes crazy for ISTE.  It's thought to be "THE" conference for all things educational technology, and it is an awesome conference.  However, for my money, I would go back to FETC every...single...year.

My first career was in the business world, mostly in the areas of Marketing. I had a minor in Marketing in undergrad and I have always found it so interesting.  I am at heart a primary researcher...I like to get others opinions and file it away.  In the end, I make my own decisions, but I have found over the years when you keep hearing something over and over again, there is generally legitimacy to the comments.  FETC was one of the conferences people kept saying they preferred to ISTE and I see now why. 

First, I arrived earlier than I thought the day before the conference started, so I decided to go to the convention center, figure out the bus system and get registered.  In about 20 minutes flat, I had accomplished those 3 goals.  The bus transportation provided was free, fast, simple and NICE!  But I digress.  

Most of the sessions this day were paid pre-conference ones, but I did know that there were some Apple classes going on.  I walked into the area and told them I hadn't registered, but wondered if there was space.  They told me to stand in the "waiting" section with about 5 other people and that if there was space I was welcome to attend.  That is something that would never happen at ISTE.  You might get to wait, but you would never get into any session without a ticket.  In about 5 minutes, I was ushered into the room sitting at a table with an iPad waiting for me.  That afternoon, Apple was offering 3 sessions.  All I had to do to attend was just get in line for the next class which was SO EASY!  Again...at ISTE, you had to go to the convention center like 6:30am to get in line to hope for one....ONE ticket.  That's all Apple would give because they had so much demand for their sessions and so many people at ISTE.  By the end of that afternoon at FETC, I had attended three 45 minute classes on all things Apple and my conference hand't even started.  SCORE FETC!

Their keynote speaker, Sir Ken Robinson was so much better (IMHO) than the one at ISTE.   Sir Ken actually kept a coherent thought, was funny and spoke about education.  I don't know what the ISTE organizers were thinking with their keynote this past year.  Again, IMHO, he was all over the board and did not make any connections to education....he just didn't speak to me like Sir Ken did.

The keynotes each day were in the Exhibit Hall; poster sessions were there, and my favorite, the "STEM Theater Presentations"...all were in the exhibit hall.  I actually had time to walk through and see most of the exhibits.  Again, this is something I never got to more than about 15 minutes at ISTE.  I got to meet the creators of ABCYa and even got a fuzz bug!  Their story was fascinating.  It was created by a teacher who wanted lessons to engage his students in a way they didn't realize they were learning.  Their website keeps getting better and better.  Their goal is to hopefully keep it free for teachers.  

A note about the "STEM Theater Presentations".  This was my favorite area.  Every hour or so, a different school would present on how they were approaching STEM in their school.  FETC gives STEM Excellence awards for every school level and the speakers were the finalists for these awards.  On the last day of the conference, the winners are announced.  I sat through so many of these talks.  It was always the principals, teachers and usually librarians who were working to incorporate STEAM (STEM) in a seemless way throughout their schools.

My last picture is from a poster session.  If you look closely, it is Eric Curts.  Eric has a blog called, "Control Alt Achieve" that I really like.  I find it easy to read and has a lot of useful information about technology in general.  You can also follow him @ericcurts on Twitter.  The poster sessions were not crammed together like at ISTE, you could actually walk around and talk to the presenters easily, without feeling like there were 20 people behind you ready to pounce.

The last day, I took a class called "Engineering is Elementary".  I did pay for this one, which was not necessary.  My registration fee included more than enough PD for one year, but this was an area that I am focusing on my sabbatical and I was really interested in attending.  It was worth every penny.  There was not on second wasted in this presentation.  While we were finding our seats, they had a video playing showcasing their STEAM projects with students and displays of materials throughout the room.  

I know I've said a lot about FETC, but I have one more thing to say.  They had people scan my badge at every....single....event.  If I am asked to provide evidence of the sessions I attended, it will be so easy....it was all documented.  At ISTE, I ran around literally, like a headless chicken to attend as many sessions as possible.  How do I prove that?  I have no idea...the only thing ISTE does is keep a record of the schedule you create.  Again, SCORE FETC!

In the end, I would say to anyone asking, go to FETC if you ever get a chance.  ISTE is a great conference, but IMHO, it's FETC for the win.