Edcamp’s 2018-19 District Initiative

#Edcampcova

The 2018-19 District Initiative is in full swing. It started in New Mexico with a 150 person Edcamp at the beautiful Rankin Training Center in Albuquerque. The APS team were trained to be Edcamp Specialists back in April. They have been planning ever since. They are hoping to help teachers feel more comfortable when it comes to using technology in the classroom. Some of the topics were Google Classroom, Apps for Engagement, Project Based Learning, Passion Projects, All things Google, STEM, Edpuzzle, Nearpod, Classroom Management in a 1:1 classroom, PBS Learning Resources, Coding and many more. The teachers were excited to learn and fully engaged in the day. Edcamp secured the food for the day. We went with two local restaurants. One restaurant specializes in breakfast tacos and the second restaurant specializes in pizzas and salads. The day ended with the Edcamp Specialists giving away prizes and sharing their favorite tech platforms. Edcamp will be back in New Mexico in November and again in the spring.
I flew directly from New Mexico to Virginia. The second District Initiative was held in Newport News, Virginia. We hosted 2 back to back Edcamps here. There were Edcamp Specialists at both events. The first Edcamp involved 3 elementary schools with vary different student bodies. The conversations were rich and lively. Some of the topics discussed were Mindfulness, Integrating Content into Literacy Blocks, Morning Provocation,, Trauma Informed Care, Community Engagement, Math Strategies, Fexible Seating, How to Conference During Reader’s Workshop, Student Discourse, Effective Writing Instruction, Google AR and Virtual Reality, just to name a few. The teachers were very thankful for having the opportunity to attend an Edcamp. The administrators attended the sessions also and offered support and shared success stories.
Day 2 in Newport News was centered around three high schools. We brought together a high school who has 1:1 technology with high schools who are just going 1:1 this year. The conversations centered around Classroom Management in a 1:1 Class, Go Guardian, How much technology is too much, Cell phones?, Homework?, Co-Teaching, Flipped Classroom, Virtual Reality, Trauma Informed Care, and so many more. There were 400 teachers in total at these 2 Edcamps in Newport News. They had a DJ and many activities that got their teachers up and full of energy! I will be back in the beginning of 2019 to host and Edcamp Encore and to check on the progress and forward motion from these 2 Edcamps.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

cindy leatherwood

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *