Posts In Category Trainings & Inservices
Notes from the 7th Grade STAAR Writing Inservice
on February 23, 2012 by Laura in Trainings & Inservices, Comments (0)
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- Venn Diagram
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- Notecards
Notes from a Staff Meeting
on February 20, 2012 by Laura in Trainings & Inservices, Comments (0)
Some people doodle during staff meetings; I take and pass notes.
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- Note #4
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- Note #5
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- Note #2
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- Note #3
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- Meeting Notes
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- Note #1
Blogging Webinar
on September 19, 2011 by Laura in Tech, Trainings & Inservices, Comments (0)
I noticed this afternoon that Discovery would offer a webinar on blogging. I haven’t blogged lately; I’ve been overwhelmed by life. The best solution to the blogging blues is just sitting down to write. If I raced home from school, I ought to make it in time for the webinar.
A sign of a good training, inservice, or webinar is that the teacher leaves inspired. I was! I learned about widgets, sidebars, images, and tools. I saw the possibilities and just how little I had to do to spruce up my writing. So I did. I reorganized my blog. I added some new categories. And now I’m ready for a whole new year of blogging.
Thanks, DEN!
The Second DEN Event: Spring PhotoWalk 2010
on May 8, 2010 by Laura in Trainings & Inservices, Volksmarching and Walking, Comments (0)
While at South Fork Ranch, the local DEN announced their own event for the upcoming weekend: a photowalk.
I had no idea what a photowalk is but what the heck! I was even able to convince Susan, my partner in educational crime, to join us even though she didn’t even know what DEN is nor what a photowalk consisted of.
I was told to wear comfy clothing and walking shoes and to bring along a camera, preferably with a tripod. It was at River Legacy Park. Yay! Only a few miles from home. We were to report there at 10:30AM, rain or shine.
Naturally, the weather forecasters predicted 50% chance of rain and thunderstorms. But we didn’t get any of it. Instead, it was a clear morning with soothing breezes, pushing any mosquitoes away.
It was the perfect way to end TAKS week. After being cooped up, monitoring students under testing conditions, it was wonderful to go outside and enjoy nature. It was also nice to be with fellow educators in such a relaxing atmosphere.
As we walked along, I’d take photos of scenes, plants, or animals that I thought were unusual or in some way eye-catching. I think I was lucky to get in some really good shots. I wish, though, I had a better eye.
After the walk, we adjourned to a cafe for
lunch and a conference. But the acoustics were lousy for the conference. We ended up selecting our best photos, narrowed down from several dozen to four. Three of the final four were mine or Susan’s.
My First DEN Event: Spring 2010
on May 7, 2010 by Laura in Trainings & Inservices, Comments (0)
Although I’ve used United Streaming often over the years, I was leery of attending any events. I’m a language arts teacher. Discovery seemed too science-y.
Then Discovery began luring me in. First it was with a webinar. The webinar, intended for science participants on how to improve filming, taught me a lot even though I’m not a science person.
Next they offered a local event at a place I’ve never been: South Fork Ranch. I’ve never been a fan of “Dallas.” As a child, I thought it a waste of my mother’s valuable time which could have been better spent with me! But I remember the fascination of “Dallas,” the opening scene flight over South Fork. The people were rich and glamorous and lived a life totally unlike our own.
In my 18 years of living in the Metroplex, I’d never before had an excuse to go to South Fork. Discovery gave it to me.
At the event, I met the man who had just hosted the webinar that same week. I learned so many new technologies and how to implement them: Wordle, Google Earth, GoogleLitTrips… Wow! I had to share this with my colleagues! These new ideas started percolating through my mind on how to revitalize our curriculum. I could barely wait to start sharing and collaborating. Then the hosts mentioned Star Educators…
Do you mean to tell me that collaborating with my colleagues could get me benefits and a new title? Cool! I love new titles!
So, here I am, less than two weeks later. I’m still firmly in the honeymoon phase and it’s great! It’s the end of the year but I’m so eager to teach and share. I’ve never felt like this so near the end of the school year.
