“Lifelong learners” is a term often heard in educational circles. Lifelong learners that have a growth mindset are motivated to set learning goals, focus on their efforts, reflect, and achieve new understandings. Lifelong learners with a growth mindset that seek creative and innovative ideas in technology (and live near the Centennial State) go to Innovative Education Colorado (InnEdCO)! And Boulder Valley School District is teeming with lifelong learners, as evidenced last month at the InnEdCO conference. Over 70 BVSD employees attended the three-day conference in Keystone. This number is significant for multiple reasons, such as the incredible growth of attendees over the years and the impact it has on our schools when attendees return and share with their colleagues and students.
In addition to the incredible amount of attendees and presenters that were at InnEdCO, the quality of sessions and learning was on par! And these ideas/tools are a hole-in-one:
- Photos.google.com- You can create shared albums that ANYONE can add to by link! Imagine having students go on a field trip and adding their visual experience. Every contributor’s photo is credited to them, so tracking participation is easy. Check out the BVSD @ #InnEdCO17 Google Photo Shared Album.
- Keynote speaker Rusul Alrubail reminded us to teach with empathy and kindness because micro-interactions in our day often result in high impact for those we encounter, including our students. “Our role is no longer outcome-centered, classroom-centered or teacher-centered. It is student-centered.”
- Keynote Speaker Ken Shelton encouraged educators to empower students’ voices through storytelling. 21st century students are communicating their words and thoughts through online publications of digital and visual means. How are students learning to immerse others in their stories to form connections and relationships? A pro tip: have students storyboard their digital narrative, then swap storyboards with a classmate and create each other’s digital story! Check out his classroom ready comparison of visual language to the published word.
This is just a brief peek looking back at an amazing week of learning and collaborating with like-minded educators and educational supporters from across our region and state. As we reflect on a June filled with innovation and inspiration, we want to know what you are learning this summer! Add in your comments below and/or tweet it out to us @bvsdedtech. Make sure to include #BVSDLearns!
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