Sunrise ~ Sunset

reflections SMARTBoard
Sunrise ~ 6:30 am (cst)
Sunrise ~ 6:30 am (cst)

From sunrise to sunset, Saturday rocked.  The two images you see were taken from my window as I was driving to and from Fairfield with Mom to conduct an all day SMARTBoard training.  Now don’t get me wrong, we didn’t hold these poor teachers captive from sunrise to sunset to show them how to use their SMARTBoards.  However, Fairfield is about two hours from home, so rising before the sun and getting home after dark were part of the package at this time of year.

In a word, these teachers were FUN!  They were smiling, laughing, and having an all around good time.  And while Mom and I try to use this blog for things we have learned while on the road, I think what we learned today is not at all related to technology.

The positive energy that filled the school made Saturday one of our best trainings to date.  Even when the participants showed signs of frustration or being overwhelmed by the implementation of their new technologies, they constantly encouraged and supported each other throughout the training.  There was definitely a sense of team.

For teachers, giving up a Saturday to learn something new on a beautiful fall day is not always easy…but knowing it will benefit the students in classrooms makes it easier to bear.  I think the biggest lesson from Saturday was that having a postive outlook can make a world of difference in how we learn…and teach!

Sunset ~ 4:35 pm (cst)
Sunset ~ 4:35 pm (cst)
Shannon is so right. We didn’t even really talk about it as it was happening, but both agreed that the day spent in Fairfield was nothing but fun. It was actually amazing that they would enjoy spending the day with us, especially at this time of year as we sense the “Countdown” beginning with the approach of “Black Friday”. For us, as well, this coming week will be filled with several presentations, a conference, Education Week and Midterm Progress Reports for our students. Add to this the fact that Saturday was forecasted as being a beautiful day with lots of sun, followed by a very gloomy Sunday. As you can see by the pictures, it was. It didn’t matter. It is easy to be excited about teaching when you are excited about learning. It just reinforces what Shannon and I both believe. It is important to surround ourselves with positive people and make the most of every moment. We did just that.