I recently found the following article, written by David Warlick, on his "2 Cents Worth" blog and felt the need to share it in this setting.

On this weeks Teaching Teaching Teachers webcast, we were joined by four National Writing Project teachers who were selected last summer to participate in Tech Matters — a 4-day summer institute sponsored by the Tech Liaison Network of the National Writing Project.  Joe Bellino, Bonnie Kaplan, Kevin Hodgson, and Donna Bragg discussed moments they remember from Tech Matters`06, and they talked about five issues they faced after they returned from Tech Matters. These teachers talked about learning to turn these separate challenges into strands of a web of support for change in their teaching and in their local Writing Projects:

• creating a personal learning system to continue learning about important new technologies
• bringing personal learning and experiences with Web 2.0 technologies into their classrooms
• working with other teachers in their buildings and in other schools in their area to them to begin their learning about Web 2.0 as well.
• staying connected with other teachers in the National Writing Project's Tech Liaison network, developing projects for their own learning together
• working alongside the leadership team of their local Writing Projects, helping these leaders to take their own personal next steps with important technologies.

Thats an outline of what these teachers learned last summer. What did you learn last summer? Did it make a difference in your classroom? How are you learning this summer? Join us to share one of your memories about summer learning.

For example, here is a part of Cynthia Calvert’s story:

Being at TM 06 was one of the best things that ever happened to me both professionally and personally. If I had not been invited to TM06, I would not have met Jason, Tracey, and Paige–my fellow Common Threads collaborators and my life would not have been as full. I now count them among my closest and dearest friends. Then I wouldn’t have met Kevin who inspires me to take risks and try new technology tools that until TM06 I did not know existed. I could go on about each and every person who was involved in TM06. I am a better person and a better TL for having been a part of the institute. I know this sounds corny, but it’s true. Finally, I have a better handle on what my job as Alcorn WP’s TL is. I have more confidence and speak with more authority when I talk about technology. I’ve learned to take baby steps, thanks to Peter and Betty, and not try to do everything at once, so I’m less overwhelmed.

Tech Matters`07 starts within hours. We have already invited all former TM participants to join the Technology Matters website (a DrupalEd site that Bill Fitzgerald and Will Banks have been helping us to build). If you were a Tech Matters participant in  `03, `04,`05, or `06, and we missed you. Please register on our site now: http://nwptechmatters07.org/user/register
 

We would also like to invite anybody who is reading this now to subscribe to the work of Tech Matters`07. We want you to hear the podcasts, see the videos and pictures, and read the texts published by this years invited participants of Technology Matters.
  Subscribe to Technology Matters in a reader (and receive all text, audio, and video that is made public.)

Add Technology Matters Podcast (audio only) to your iTunes

Subscribe to Technology Matters Videocast (video only).

Finally we want to invite you to join us live on webcasts that we will be streaming from Chico, California through the help of Susan Ettenheim, Jeff Lebow, Dave Cormier and others connected with http://edtechtalk.com. Here are the times when we want you to join us. All you need is Skype, a microphone, and a headset of ear buds to join us on any of these afternoons:

• Tuesday, July 17 - 5:00-5:45 Pacific / 8:00-8:45 Eastern
  
• Wednesday, July 18 - 4:00-5:00 pm Pacific / 7:00-8:00 pm Eastern
  
• Thursday, July 19 - 4:00-5:00 pm Pacific/ 7:00-8:00 pm Eastern
  
• Friday, July 20 - 4:00-5:00 pm Pacific / 7:00-8:00 pm Eastern
  
• Saturday, July 21- To Be Announced
  

This year several elementary school teachers--mainly Writing Project teachers--from California, Colorado, Mississippi, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Oregon, and the Philippines sent each other podcasts and poetry and responses on a weblog, Youth Radio: Connecting Youth Voices to the World. These teachers have created a space where young writers and voices can connect with news stories about their communities, their schools and their interests!

That's all fine, but on this webcast Paul Allison and Lee Baber talked to two of the teachers behind this project, Glen Bledsoe and Kevin Hodgson. We never got to the student work because we spent the entire time learning more about each of these teachers as musicians and creative people outside of the classroom.

It's fascinating to hear the differences between the music that Lee and Glen share with us, and to imagine Kevin's sax! Yet what we all share is a passion for living creative, passionate lives in and out of the classroom.

We had a great time together, and we invite you listen in.

Click Read More, below to find a long list of links from Glen's amazingly diverse creative mind.

Mindmeister was our tool of choice for the June 5^th show.  We had a great group playing together in our virtual playground.  Here is the link to our Making Connections Map.  Go ahead and sign-up for Mindmeister and we will send you an invite to join us. 

We jumped in with both feet to Diigo.  Using Yugma we set up the Diigo toolbar, created a group for Making Connections, and added sticky notes to those pages.  We all agreed this tool has great possibilities in a classroom setting.  We did encounter a few challenges when trying to add sticky notes to certain pages and we want to learn to highlight in different colors.  Next week we will report back on how the kids react to using this site and the secret to changing highlight colors. 

Chat:

EdTechTalk: 21st Century Learning #41
Lorrie Jackson and the Laptop Institute
May 1, 2007