Passion

Only passion can keep a teacher from losing his/her sanity the last month of school. We're down to the last 22 days, but who's counting? The official countdown doesn't go on the wall until we reach 10 days. TAKS Tests in Texas will conclude by the end of this week. Seems that once the big tests are over, students think that school is also over. It is the passionate, fun-loving teacher who keeps students engaged and learning the last few weeks of school. Having access to adequate technology and a SMART Board keeps my students excited about school. The last month includes field trips, student projects, reflections, and many opportunities for fun. Once I have my students engaged, I begin to look for things to keep me busy. Every year I clean out another storage locker or two to make room for newer stuff or sift through teaching files and dump obsolete information. But by far the best thing I've found to do is to keep myself learning. This year James Hollis over at the Teachers Love SMART Boards blog extended an invitation to take his wonderful courses on Teacher Online Training. Not only are they fantastic, they're very well written, divided into manageable sections, super-engaging, and ready for you to apply in the classroom. Today I completed "Sharing Video Solutions over the Internet" and received 150 professional development minutes for the assignment. If you've not checked out these SMART courses, I urge you to subscribe today. If you'd like to see my first completed internet video solution, check out my latest blog, Math From Third. Jim Hollis has seen the future of education and I agree with him when he states, "The process of building an online library is the future of education at all levels. It is just one of the many valuable components to a student-centered learning environment that expands beyond the classroom."