EdcampWR - An Organizer's (worries and) Opinions

I'm coming down off an Edcamp high.   I'm a horrible blogger (my posts are very few and far between) but after hosting the third #edcampWR yesterday, I'm compelled to write. Those that know me, know that I enjoy event planning.  I love bringing people together.  And I'm passionate about education and promoting the culture of sharing. So it seems like a natural fit to organize an event such as Edcamp Waterloo Region.

When I started planning #edcampWR in 2012, Edcamps were relatively new.  The movement was beginning to grow in the United States in 2010. Kent Manning (retired teacher who was a very active member of my PLN and a big influence on me) sent a tweet over the Christmas holidays wondering if there would be any interest in hosting one in Canada, more specifically, near Belleville.  Around the same time Vancouver was also starting get on board and planning an event for April 16th.  Edcamp Quinte had three events in 2011, the first on March 5, making it the first official edcamp in Canada!  There were only about a dozen of us in attendance that day but it was such a great experience.  There was so much sharing, learning, connecting occurring.  Being there in the moment, face to face with passionate educators, while still connecting with virtual attendees on Twitter and Adobe Connect was amazing and I was hooked instantly.  By the fall of 2011, Toronto hosted their first event bringing in a much larger crowd and establishing "Edcamp" as movement to watch in Ontario.  So, in my opinion, this was the time to showcase what was happening in Waterloo region.  I had just been part of opening a newly rebuilt technology focused school and though it would be a great venue for such an event.  And it was!  We had 130 attendees from 11 different school boards represented at our first event on March 31, 2012.  People came all the way from Windsor, Ottawa, Belleville, and every district in between.  I'd like to think that our event, combined with Toronto's, inspired others because shortly after Edcamps were being planned in Ottawa and Hamilton.  Our next event in February of 2014 had similar numbers of participants and most seemed to come from neighboring and local school boards. Edcamps were now being planned in other areas such as London, Sault St. Marie, Manitoulin Island, Barrie, Peterborough and Windsor!  Fast forward to our event in 2016, although we did have people travel from Orangeville, Toronto, and London, most of our participants we from local school boards.  It seems that educators are not having to travel great distances to participate in Edcamp events as more and more are happening across the province.

When edcamps started in 2010, there were 8 events across the U.S.  That grew to over 50 in 2011, 6 of those taking place in Canada. That rose to 125 events the year we hosted our first event - 7 of those took place in Canada.  I remember the stress of trying to find sponsors for our first event and second events.  It really was the biggest task in EdcampWR planning.  In the beginning, we approached so many tech and educational companies for financial support or donations of products and services.  Most did not even reply to our requests and the others declined.  It was such a challenge to find support for our event.   In the following 2 years, the Edcamp movement has exploded with over 300 events held world wide.  Businesses are starting to take notice and are reaching out to Edcamps to promote their products and services.  When it came time to begin planning our 2016 event, sponsorship woes significantly changed.  Tech companies were contacting us and offering support!  Almost all of our sponsors for EdcampWR 2016 approached us wanting to get involved. WOW! As an organizer, that was impressive. We had twice the number of business partnerships and the best prizes to date. It certainly took some of the pressure off of event preparations but, more importantly, it shows the the increasing support and value of events such as these where people are in charge of their learning. 

Although sponsorship was up, the number of participants for our event this year was significantly lower, about half of what we've seen in the past.  In the week leading up to EdcampWR I received more than 30 cancellations from registrants expressing regret due to illness, death in the family, and conflicting plans. With a free event, it's always guaranteed that there will be 10-20 no shows. I worried that we wouldn't have many participants. I worried that our event this year would not have the impact that it's had in the past.  I worried that eliminating our unique Student Technology Showcase part of our last two events would be missed.  I worried that Edcamps are losing momentum and that people were no longer interested in our event.  I even stayed up the night before worrying about the the mistakes I made on photo booth I created!  I worry a lot....

Phew! Fixed! Such a perfectionist that this kept me up last night.... #hotmess #edcampwr pic.twitter.com/TRW3nwUGec

— Kim Gill (@Gill_Ville) February 27, 2016

Most of the time, I worry for nothing... Despite the lower numbers, EdcampWR DID have an impact, there WAS interest, and the educators were the ones naturally showcasing technology.  I feel like the smaller group made this event a little more intimate.  Roughly 1/4 of participants were first time edcampers and I think that's amazing!  I had been worrying that EdcampWR would be mostly made up of the usual suspects...you know, the ones you see at every tech conference, the ones that are already actively involved in your PLN.  This isn't necessarily a bad thing, it's always nice to see familiar faces, but I couldn't help but worry about the echo chamber.  I, personally, love the echo chamber on Twitter because it's where I go for sharing, support, and motivation.  However, I am also aware that different opinions, values, beliefs, and ideas are essential to push your thinking and grow.  I've always struggled with this balance of needing affirmation and challenge.

Being on the organization side of things, you tend to get around to see little snapshots of what's happening at the event.  I tried to capture and share as much as I could on Twitter (check out #edcampwr to see the stream from the day). As I went from room to room to check in, I could hear amazing stories being told, resources being shared, and supportive teachers providing encouragement and motivation to each other.  I heard little snippets that I thought "oooohh, wish I was here for the rest of this conversation" or "I'll have to get someone to fill me in on that discussion".  Although I enjoy being the host, I feel like I missed a lot of the learning that occurred and selfishly hope that others will share their resources and reflections as well.

My favourite tweet leading up to the event:

Another reason for #flyhighfri? I registered for @edcampwr! #edcampwr Looking forward to connecting and learning! https://t.co/85O5M8GRPP

— Shauna Pollock (@misspollock) January 29, 2016

I am very lucky that my family supports me in these endeavors as well. My mom, a.k.a. the most incredible woman on the planet, always rises to the challenge when I ask "Hey Mom, can you make me a cake for _______?"  Not only does she drive an hour and a half to deliver the goods, she always goes beyond expectations.  This time around there were 6 cupcake packages for prizes and an awesome Instagram cake (pictured below in a tweet from Scott McKenzie) for a lucky winner.  And this I firmly believe!

@careincakes has arrived!!!! #edcampwr Nobody does #edcamp cakes like @edcampwr pic.twitter.com/x47UrleQ5m

— EdCampWaterlooRegion (@EdCampWR) February 27, 2016

Thanks to all who came out to make it a great day.  It's tweets like these that make all the planning and preparations worthwhile:

Thank you to @Gill_Ville, the amazing organizer of #edcampwr! Another awesome learning experience, and great rewards pic.twitter.com/VQvwKYml5v

— Scott McKenzie (@ScottMcKenzie27) February 27, 2016

.@Gill_Ville Thanks for organizing such a fantastic event! Love the conversations and collaborating with amazing teachers. #edcampwr

— Jenni vanRees (@jennivanrees) February 27, 2016

@EdCampWR thanks for the best PD I've ever attended! I learned some great tech tools- now I have to work them in to unit plans! #todolist

— Mrs Hinnegan (@MrsHinneganPELC) February 28, 2016

Great to connect with educators in the Waterloo region. #edcampwr

— David Carruthers (@pluggedportable) February 27, 2016

Thanks @EdCampWR and all the wonderful teachers! It was so nice to part of such a collaborative learning experience! #edcampwr

— Parastoo Ghaffari (@PareGhaffari) February 27, 2016

BIT14 Breaks Blog Blackout!

It's been over 2 years since I've written a blog post.  There have been many factors that have contributed to my writer's block, both personal and professional (that I won't go into in this post).  After returning from the ECOO Bring IT Together 2014 conference in Niagara Falls, I feel compelled to share my thoughts, learning, and special moments that occurred during my time there.

Missing @cakewley #sadface #bit14selfie

This year, I attended on Wednesday and Thursday only.  I've attended and presented at the conference every year since 2009.  It was a different experience for me this time around for many reasons.  The first of which was the absence of some great friends and colleagues this year.  Cheryl Kewley has always been my roomie for the ECOO conference and did not attend the conference this year. I really missed debriefing with her at night before going to sleep. It was a shift for me to have quiet reflection time by myself each night as I retired to my hotel room. I might have been more productive with my time but I did miss the face time with a good friend.

Also, for the past two years Euen O'Conner, Jeff Pelich and I have presented spoof-styled sessions at the conference that have been a lot of fun to prepare and perform at the event.  These guys provoke a laugh a minute when together and I certainly missed both learning and social time spent with these two.  Who know? There just might be an Ivana Tellastory, Willy Wiki, or Doc Google sighting again down the road...

@nobleknits2 @colleenkr @gill_ville

Relationships and face to face connections have become the greater benefit for attending these conferences for me.  I appreciate the learning (which I'll address later) but it's the time spent with inspirational, innovative, and/or creative people that really makes the event such an attraction.  I learn as much from the side conversations, lunch time chats, and stories shared during evening social events as I do from the sessions I attend. I was grateful for the very brief moments to connect with educators I rarely see such as Verana Roberts, Colleen Rose, and Heather Durnin.  I was extremely thankful for some one to one time with some pretty awesome people that directly supported MY learning journey.  Each of these conversations could spark their own post, however I'll try to share a brief summary.


Joe Valenti, SmartPen Central representative, was appearing as a vendor in the exhibit hall.  I have known Joe for a few years and have owned many Livescribe pens (that have come from him).  He was very helpful in explaining the changes Livescribe is undergoing with their products and services.  From this discussion, I have determined that the newer/updated versions are not better for me and my use for the pens. I have been receiving product emails regarding the new ECHO desktop and I warn other educators using these pens to become informed of the changes before downloading the new software.  I have some concerns regarding the sharing options and the switch from PDF creation that the Livescribe desktop version provides.  It is unclear whether old files and functions will transfer nicely into the new desktop.  Also the new viewing features require an internet browser (and access to internet) to view when shared.  For these reasons, I'm sticking to my old software.  The unfortunate part of these company transitions is the loss of the online community and option to embed the pencast in other web postings.  I'll have to work on a way around that one as I move forward. Also, I need to purchase a new pen as three of my old ones died around the same time.  I learned that the Sky pen and Livescribe 3 do not really offer features that make sense for my purposes.  The Livescribe 3 works with an iPad over WIFI which means I am tying up another device when the pen is in use.  I don't have extra iPads to spare for this use so it's not a practical pen for me to buy.  I'm sticking with the old tried and true ECHO pen.  It works for me.

Student Created Game

I am beginning to explore coding and maker space projects so I was thrilled to see so many "tinkering" stations at the Minds on Media event this year.  I was a little disappointed that I didn't have more time to be a participant as the stations were very interesting and hands-on this year.  I was very grateful for my time playing with Cathy Beach.  I had just received my Makey Makey in the mail the day before I left so I was able to take it out of the box and sit with Cathy as she showed me some cool projects she has seen and shared some resources related to Makey Makey.  My favourite was this student-created version of the game Operation created using Makey Makey and Scratch.  So many ideas spinning around and I can't wait to explore more and start using this with my students.

What's locked in the trunk of your car?

David Hann, an intermediate teacher in my PLN has been sharing his #pinballproject on Twitter and I've been intrigued.  I'm working on the global cardboard challenge and making games with my students and I feel that his project idea, with some modifications, would work really well with my class.  David was kind enough to talk about his process and show a couple of examples with me (from the trunk of his car).  He's given me some food for thought and I appreciate his offer to connect with us when we're ready to move forward.  His enthusiasm is contagious and I can't wait to get started with my class in the new year.

@aforgrave on @105theHive

On Wednesday, I helped Andy Forgrave present about K-12 internet radio 105 the Hive.  We had a morning session with a group of interested educators and then spent the afternoon with drop by visitors in Minds on Media.  I think this is a fabulous tool and I was honoured to work with Andy to share ideas and resources to get others involved in this project.  My experience with this will be discussed further in a separate post as it's really got me thinking.... more to come here, stay tuned.




On Thursday, there were many resources and ideas shared in the sessions that I attended that I need to explore further.  One of those is Integrated Thinking, a topic discussed by Heidi Siwak.  Heidi is an amazing educator doing innovative things. I wish I was a student in her class.  Her lessons on "finding value in bad ideas" and "pro pro model" are great ideas for teaching about perspectives and how different people learn to find value in hearing the opinions of others.  Heidi talks about teaching innovation, creativity, and collaboration - not subjects.  If you don't follow Heidi and her work, I highly recommend checking out her blog.  She will surely inspire you to think differently about your teaching practice.

Ask you shall receive! Gotta love your PLN!

I was sad to leave early, missing the Jam session Thursday night, a session with Royan Lee's former students (I always love when student voices are part of the presentation) on Friday morning, and a panel discussion among some great thinkers about Danah Boyd's "It's Complicated" Friday afternoon.  Thankfully with the use of technology, I can catch it later.  Thanks Andy!

All in all, a jam packed two days at the conference with lots of learning still to come!






Resources shared in various sessions that I want to explore further:
(thanks to Adele Stanfield , Stepan Pruchnicky, Brian Aspinall )

iPad apps - Adobe Voice, Green Screen,  Tynker,  Duolingo, ThingLink,  Epic!

Web - sumdog.com   wevideo.com    nkwiry.com

#DigiFoot 12 - Lead Detective: Tweet Me Case

Shortly after attending ConnectEd Canada in May, I was contacted by Verena Roberts, a teacher in Calgary that I met at the conference.  When we met she had shared this idea she had for creating a MOOC (Mass Open Online Course) for anyone to get involved in that dealt with digital citizenship and understanding online spaces.  Verena attended my Twitter in the Classroom session at ConnectEdCa and asked if I would help lead the course for the week dedicated to learning with Twitter.  Since I am passionate about getting educators using this social network for professional learning, I gladly accepted the offer.  Did I mention this was in June?  Any of you teachers out there know how incredibly busy June can be and this was certainly no exception.... so my commitment was stored at the back of my brain until the calendar flipped to July and I could think about something other than work!  July arrived and panic set in as I realized the amount of work Verena had put into planning the course outline and setting up the first week with the various activities!  The bar was set high, so with little time to prepare, I began pulling a few Twitter resources together.

Initially I had thought, "introduce Twitter",  how hard can that be? While planning the activities and my presentation, I began to consider my audience...which, to me, was completely unknown!  I knew that over 100 people, mostly educators, were signed up, but their entry level to the topic was a guessing game.  So I decided to do a little data hunting and threw a google form up on the wiki to see how comfortable people were with Twitter, how they used it and what they wanted to learn.  Less than half of the participants have responded at the point of writing this blog, however I feel it's safe to say that we really have a mixed group of participants at various stages and comfort levels with social media and Twitter specifically.  The preparation began to feel very similar to life in the classroom with diverse strengths, needs, and interests to develop.

So began at the beginning.  What does a new user need to know?  My early perception that this would be easy was quickly altered as I realized all the lingo, tech terms, and number of uses for Twitter.  Half of my audience are proficient Tweeps, so clearly I needed to think of my "Detective's Guides" (inspired by Verena's Detective/case study approach to the course) in two parts; one for newbies and a second one for experienced users.  It also became apparent that there are Tweeps involved in this course that have knowledge and experience on Twitter that I have not yet developed.  This made me feel like there should be a third installment to the Twitter Detective Guide series...one that I am not equipped to create (at this point).  So I have put a call to action out for DigiFoot participants (and anyone else who knows some advanced Twitter uses) to collaborate to produce the third guide.  I will gladly publish the collaborative work once the information has been collected.  It will be interesting to see who might take me up on this challenge.  If you're interested, add your idea to the google doc.

One of the resources being used in the DigiFoot12 course is MightyBell.  This is a service that I have not seen before but I am becoming a fan early in my exploration.  I can see this being an essential tool to use for collaborative group work.  I love that you can share links, videos, files, images, comments, ask questions, post conversation topics, and schedule events within your group.  I decided to try it out for our week two Twitter topic and so far it has worked very well.  This is definitely a tool that I will use again.

I presented during my first Blackboard Collaborate session as a moderator for this course!  On Tuesday, July 10th, I used the slides embedded below to introduce my story and experiences with Twitter to the participants of this course. I believe there were about 45 people that participated in the session and the recording has been shared with the course participants that were not able to make that time commitment.

During our first meeting to kick off DigiFoot12, reference was made to The Seven Degrees of Connectedness post and infographic recently created and shared by Rodd Lucier (will collaboration from Zoe Branigan-Pipe and Silvia Tolisano).  This infographic (seen to the left) became a basis for great discussion about developing your PLN and using Twitter.  It naturally fit with my presentation when considering my own path to learning using Twitter and social media; from being the hesitant lurker, to branching out to share and connect, to making meaningful contacts, and then on too deeper face to face relationships.  The recording of the meeting can be viewed HERE!
I am feeling very connected after reflecting on my Twitter use for this course.  You've heard me say it before, but I'll say it again....Twitter has changed my life! Digi foot12 tweet me

View more presentations from Gill-Ville

#ConnectED Canada

This past weekend I had the pleasure of traveling to Alberta for the first ConnectED Canada conference. There were so many different events and people that impacted me greatly that it's difficult to process it all and get it into words...however, I will try!

First off, a big hats of to Erin (@erincouillard), Neil (@neilstephenson), and George (@gcouros) for all of their work co-ordination, organizing, preparing, and running the conference and related social events. As someone who spends a great deal of time coordinating events such as Family Math Night and EdCampWR, I am fully aware of the dedication and work involved in taking on a project this size. Kudos to these three fearless leaders and to the staff and students of the Calgary Science School that opens the doors to their classrooms to provide us with a window into their learning.

I was most impressed with the manner the students presented themselves, their pride in demonstrating their work, and their genuine interest (and ability) in communicating their learning. I can't help to be a little envious of their learning spaces, with wide open areas, couches, and non-traditional classroom furniture that promotes collaboration and invites learners to move to a place more suitable and/or comfortable for the task at hand. It was interesting to see the students working in a 1:1 mobile device set up, with students using iPads, cameras, and laptops to research, record, and present their learning.

 Having this access to technology has really helped them take their learning to the next level and share it easily. I enjoyed seeing the QR Codes posted on the walls so that others classes can see what other students are working on. In fact, I was blown away by how much the student tour guides knew about what other grades/classes were working on. You really got the sense of a learning community. When students are involved, they frequently steal the show, and in this case, there was no exception! They were definitely a highlight of the conference for many attendees.

The Saturday break out sessions were very thought provoking and included some great debate and sharing.  It always amazes me the conversations that occur when you place passionate educators together in a space and let them talk.  The "educon/edcamp" model for these sessions allows people to connect, collaborate, and become active participants in their learning.  This usually only occurs during breaks and lunch time at regular conferences.  By switching up the format, these discussions are taking place everywhere and are not limited to brief gatherings in the hall.  It allows educators to personalize and control their own learning, a choice that we value when working with students and appreciate even more when applied to ourselves.  During Tom Fullerton's (@tomfullerton) session we had great discussions about professional development that is driven from the top down and how effective this really is.  I loved Tom's analogy of "PD being like shoes" with "value coming from a variety of models".  Not only did he win over the women in the room, but he makes a valid point about the time and place for different forms of PD.  With educators entering the conversations at different starting points, it becomes increasingly apparent that various levels, forms, and models of PD are needed to address the diversity of teacher learners' needs.

 This was very evident during my own breakout session on using Twitter in the Classroom.  I had to admit that I was a little stressed out about the format of my session prior to it beginning.  I have not attended Educon but have been involved in edcamps, and I was a little concerned that my session involved too much "showing" and not enough "sharing".  This fear went out the window as soon as I asked the participants where they were in their own social media use and with respect to using Twitter professionally and with students.  After polling the audience, only 5 educators were on Twitter (three of them had just joined that day) and NONE of them were using Twitter with students.  Although this hinders my planned discussion about how people were using Twitter in Education, it allowed me a chance to start fresh and introduce a new concept to this audience.  That excited me.  So, my session became more of a "presentation" but I am OK with that because it was where the group was "at".  It was also great to hear the feedback from session participants that claimed they were "wowed" by my students' use of Twitter and social media.  Thanks Verena Roberts (@verenanz), Julie Gummesen (@juliegummesen), Fiona (@fina_bro), Laurie Besenski (@besenski), and Preet Dhaliwal (@tweetteacher) for taking the time to talk to me specifically about my session.  Your feedback was much appreciated!

I would be remiss if I failed to mention the new additions to my PLN over the course of the weekend.  I think I received over 150 new Twitter followers over the 3 day conference!!  It's always exciting to meet people face to face that you've been following for a while (such as my new lilac loving buddy, Michelle Baldwin - @michellek107).  There were many opportunities for this, especially with my western colleagues.  I thoroughly enjoyed the online and live dialogue with new friends, Aaron Akune (@aakune), Steve Bloom (@teckteach), Wayne Deptuck (@wdeptuck), Robert Wielgoz (@rwielgoz), Rosalind (@rozgoldsmith), Valerie Irvine (@_valeriei) and Lindsay Bingley (@lbingley).  I look forward to continuing these conversations online!  I also found it ironic that I had to travel to Calgary to finally meet Ontario Tweeps, Tania Sterling (@taniasterling) and Brian Harrison (@bharrisionvp).  All of these new connections have lifted me up and will help sustain me through the last few days of this school year (and beyond).

The one theme that kept popping up, session after session, discussion after discussion, and during the social events was that of RELATIONSHIPS.  Relationships matter!  I also took some time to nurture existing relationships with friends from the Unplugd Summit, reminiscing about the event and the relationships that developed from the experience.  It was a great pleasure to take some time to spend with Zoe (@zbpipe) hearing about her adventures in Jerusalem and touring Banff with Rodd (@thecleversheep), and most importantly, my amazing travel buddy, Alanna (@banana29) who took care of me every step of the journey.  The Unplugd Summit had a huge impact on me both professionally and personally.  So much so that I just couldn't resist attending Zoe and Rodd's Unplugd session.  To hear what you missed, check out my livescribe pencast recorded that day.

This conference was such a full and rich experience, from start to end.

One thing you won't hear from this cat is "I attended #ConnectEDca and all I got was this waterbottle!"



Thanks ConnectED Canada! 

Edcamp Waterloo Voices

It's been over a week since Edcamp Waterloo Region. I think it's taken me this long to come down off my "edcamp high" and gather my thoughts about the event. As an organizer of the event, lots of time and energy went into the planning and preparing for Waterloo Region's first ever edcamp and to see it come and go is a little surreal.

When I set out with this idea of hosting an event on my "home turf", I had this lingering question of "if you build it, will they come"? I am a firm believer that the people that are meant to be there, will be. It is the participants that really drive events such as edcamps. The attendees of EdcampWR were second to none, with representatives from eleven different Ontario school boards! As our guests arrived early on a Saturday morning to dive into the intricacies of educational issues, I couldn't help to note the number of familiar faces from my own PLN, known through twitter avatars and/or face to face networking. It was fantastic to come together to share, discuss, debate, challenge each other, and continue the online conversations that often fuel our edu-passions. It is the quality of these participants and their contributions that made EdcampWR the success that it was.

In noticing those that joined us for EdcampWR, it seemed a meeting of like minds, like we were speaking to the converted. I couldn't help but notice those missing from the edcamp conversation and wondering how do we get others involved in these important discussions? I believe it's important to express opinions and consider various point of views on educational issues...including the technophobes, the anti-gamers, and those anywhere else on the spectrum of technology use. These voices are important to provide balance and context to current challenges facing innovative teaching practices. These voices are necessary to move forward, to change.

There were registrants that admittedly decided against attending and some that left early because they were intimidated by the conversations, topics, and even evident PLNs. As an educator, I find this very concerning. I feel somewhat responsible to make sure everybody is welcomed and invited to contribute (in what ever capacity) and to meet learners new to concepts "where they are at". How do we make sure our techno-babble and edu-speak doesn't hinder or make the conversation inaccessible to some participants? Do we need to be more aware and respectful of various entry points? How can we make our messages more accessible to newcomers?

I also feel that these individuals have a responsibility to take action to make sure their needs are being met. If a conversation is "too out there" or "above your head" then a decision needs to be made; will you move out of your comfort zone and learn something new (as we ask our students to do daily), or will you choose to get involved in a different conversation (that better suits your interests and needs)? There's always the argument that none of the sessions applied to a specific individual. To those, I challenge you to start a new conversation, one that you feel passionately about, one for which you can feel good about contributing. Like many things in life, what you put in is directly related to what you get out. We don't allow our students to disengage so why would we accept this of ourselves?

I recognize that there are all types of learners and that participation in edcamp-styled events often requires a risk-taking, self-directed individual. To those that fit this description, I applaud you for getting involved, sharing your stories and voices, and continuing the sometimes messy learning journey. To those that aren't comfortable with this, how can we include you in the conversations and hear your voices? It's YOU that I want to hear from the most!!!

If you would like to see what over 150 online participants were saying in the backchannel on Twitter, check out Edcamp Waterloo Region Tweets.

Student Showcase at Edcamp Waterloo Region

This is a cross post from the Gill-Ville Class blog.

On Saturday, March 31st most of the students in Gill-Ville attended Edcamp Waterloo Region, our areas first ever edcamp! The students were involved in a technology showcase session where they each presented a project or tech tool to other students in the session and teachers that were attending the event. The Gill-Villeans represented us very well and impressed educators from eleven different school boards across Ontario. It is safe to say that they stole the show! If you are a Twitter user you can check out the #edcampwr hash tag to see what educators are saying about our students and event. Our students shared social media sites such as Twitter, Edmodo, and blogging. Some students shared iPad apps and multimedia projects like our Pan-Canada ePub project. The Gill-Villeans rose to the challenge and inspired educators to learn and try new technology tools. You can learn more about our class showcase sharing by reading a blog post written by a well known Ontario Edublogger, Doug Peterson, who came to see us the day before and wrote all about us! http://dougpete.wordpress.com/2012/03/31/the-day-before-edcamp/

The students also had a large part in helping prepare for the event. In the days leading up to Edcamp Waterloo, the students were eager to show off their baking skills as they made a variety of muffins, cookies, scones, and other treats. They were such a big hit that many educators have tweeted us looking for recipes to some of our goodies! The lemon Oreos that Miss Broderick taught us how to make were quickly devoured and made us famous!

The students in our class also invited Edcamp Waterloo participants to bring donations for the Spring Food Drive. Attendees rose to the challenge and we collected 76 items!

The students that participated received special event T-Shirts from Smart Pen Central and apple swag from one of our sponsors. To show our appreciation, the students created Thank You messages that we sent digitally. Check out the student blogs for their recap of the event and special messages to our supporters.

Mathew: http://kidblog.org/Gill-Ville/Mathew50/edcamp-waterloo-region-3/
Logan: http://kidblog.org/Gill-Ville/Logan608/edcamp-waterloo-region-2/
Kara: http://kidblog.org/Gill-Ville/Kara57/edcamp-waterloo-region-4/
Rachel: http://kidblog.org/Gill-Ville/Rachel609/edcamp-waterloo-region/

The students in Gill-Ville have been learning about various ways to help the environment and reduce our carbon footprint. After learning about the polar bear migration and issues with climate change on their habitat, the students felt a call to action! One thing we decided to do was to raise awareness about the waste humans create. Our class already shows leadership for the school recycling and composting programs, so we decided to go to the next level and learn about eWaste. We also challenged Edcamp participants to bring their old electronics (pictured above). During Earth Week, we will also invite the Ryerson community to drop off their eWaste! Read our eWaste blog posts here:

Jacob’s post: http://kidblog.org/Gill-Ville/Jacob1095/ewaste/
Emilee’s post: http://kidblog.org/Gill-Ville/Emily1271/ewaste-2/
Bailey’s post: http://kidblog.org/Gill-Ville/Bailey270/ewaste-3/

Moving On Over

I have been playing with various blogs and formats and have decided to move away from Edublogs and set up camp here on this space.  The next few posts are archives from the Edublogs page, which will now become strictly personal ramblings... This site will be for professional reflections and dialogue, as rare as they might be! ;-)