Edcamp with a Side of Encore

Chattanooga, Tennessee had its 6th annual Edcamp GigCity in January. Every year, at the end of the edcamp, participants are asked to give feedback in order to qualify for the door prizes that will be given out next. The planning team has always taken that feedback seriously. Due to feedback, the entire event was moved to January instead of May two years ago. Due to feedback, the edcamp changed a bit. Every year there was always a bit of feedback that attendees wished there were some choices to just attend led sessions to learn things. Our team has always held tight our desire to truly model the edcamp philosophy of participant-driven discussions. We realized that many edcamps also have people truly "presenting" but we liked the simplicity of everyone being seen as an equal in sessions and didn't choose to have sessions with presenters.

That being said, if you truly value feedback, then you must consider what it suggests. Hearing 3-5 people each time we had edcamp say "I wish I could have learned more about (blank)" or "I didn't know enough about a subject to take part and I wish someone could have just presented" kept blaring through to me. I was less concerned with the feedback where people just wanted the opportunity to be presenters and more concerned that some of the attendees wanted to be presented to. We talked back and forth about what we could do to accommodate this request and finally, I reached out to Hadley Ferguson of Edcamp USA and had the following conversation:

Julie Davis <jdavis@ccsk12.com>	Sat, Jan 20, 2018, 10:00 PM
to Hadley

Hadley,

I have been the lead organizer for Edcamp Gigcity for the last 3 years and today we had our fifth annual event. I’m currently sitting here reading responses from the feedback form we asked attendees to fill out and I wanted your opinion on something.

It was always my understanding that Edcamps were to be organic in nature with facilitators but not presenters. We have some other area Edcamps that have adopted the model of having presenters/leaders but we have stuck with the more organic sharing model. Is there a right or wrong way? What’s your opinion on this? 

As I read over the responses I see requests for sessions that are led as well as requests for being allowed to lead sessions. I see the benefit of both ideas but I just wanted an Edcamp opinion. 

And FYI, it was an amazing day with 80+ educators attending and an overall positive response about it. I’m thankful to be a part of the unconference movement! 

Julie Davis

Hadley Ferguson <hadley@edcamp.org>	Mon, Jan 22, 2018, 4:33 PM
to me

Julie,

This is such an interesting issue, and one that happens all the time. The longer edcamps go on, the more this is an issue. It is behind our strategy of having Encore Days as well as Edcamps. The Encore day provides a time for those with specific knowledge to share it with people who are interested in the topic, which has surfaced during the Edcamp. Perhaps there is a way to combine them, so that part of the day is organic and then part of it is targeted. 

I worry about becoming too much about people presenting their slidedecks, though if the Rule of Two Feet is firmly in place, then teachers can choose. My guess is that people are going to do it both ways. 

I'd love to hear more of your thoughts on it,

Hadley

Well Hadley, here are my thoughts! We sat down as a committee and we decided that part of the day would remain the traditional edcamp but the last session of the day would look like the Encore model. While it wasn't necessarily organic in nature because who knew what people would actually want to know more about, it seemed to work! Several members of our planning team volunteered to lead sessions for the last time slots of the day. That way if edcamp purists wanted to leave after lunch, they could. The feedback seemed to lend itself to positive in nature. Perhaps next year we will even change it to the last 2 time slots of the day and open it up to all attendees to have the opportunity to truly present on a topic? The truth is that with the rule of two feet, one doesn't have to worry if it isn't worthwhile or not. Attendees will decide by their actions. 

Does any other edcamps do something like this? 

What kind of PD makes teachers smile? And on Saturday? EDCAMP

Year five of Edcamp GigCity is in the books. It was in a fabulous location- Red Bank Middle School in Chattanooga, TN- and it had fabulous attendees. According to the feedback form most left as very happy campers! (pun intended).

Things I learned:

• Oops on the schedule. We accidentally used the schedule from 2 years ago instead of last year so the sign up said 9-2 but the day was laid out as 9-3. We also had adjusted times down to 45 minutes last year but the old schedule had the sessions at an hour. Our bad! We apologize for that oversight and promise it won't happen again.
• Many hands make the burden light. WOW! What an amazing organizing committee we had this year. Being the lead for the last 3 years, I am finally learning how to delegate and trust the team. I was not disappointed. Sure am thankful for a wonderful group of fellow educators. What many people probably don't know is that this is all volunteer led and run, and Edcamp Gigcity is unique in that the organizers represent higher ed, lower ed, public, and private school sectors. I love that about our edcamp! This uniqueness opens the door for collaborative thinking way beyond the walls of the school house, the district, and even the city! I can't even begin to say how much I appreciate the following organizers that planned along with me this year:
• Dr. Karen Adsit, Education Professor at The University of Tennessee of Chattanooga
• Greg Bagby, Principal at Barger Academy
• Jim David, STEM School administrator 
• Kimberly Elbakidze, Computer Science Instructor at Red Bank Middle School
• Evonne Hackett, Technology Teacher at Lakeview Middle School
• Julie King, Middle School Librarian at The Baylor School
• Arthur Williams, K-5 Instructional Technologist at Lakeside Academy
• We need to make sure we explain how edcamps work a little better for new attendees. Often people are a bit overwhelmed by the "no presenters" and "rule of 2 feet" if it is their first edcamp. We need to make sure we provide more insight on how edcamps got started and why it is so organic in nature.  
• The EdCamp philosophy makes people smile. All day long I watched as people moved around from room to room at EdCamp Gigcity with smiles on their faces. I couldn't help but ask myself, "Is this what you see when you lead PD at school?" And I answered myself (because I'm weird like that) "Not usually." So why do educators like edcamps? I have 3 theories:
• Choice- Educators are at least college graduates and sometimes/often even have advanced degrees...they love Edcamps because they get to choose what they learn about instead of being forced into a PD that may or may not interest, help, or pertain to them. 
• Voice- Educators get to ask questions and share their concerns and fears in a safe non-threatening environment. The beauty of our edcamp is that it isn't "district led" so the voices they are in a room with aren't necessarily the ones they usually hear from so it adds a freedom to learn from others. The value of being heard is important to everyone, the nature of edcamps is active participation no matter what your level of understanding. 
• Free- The event is free, the food is free, and the door prizes are both awesome and free. How does that make an educator feel? VALUED. For some educators, they rarely have the opportunity to learn outside of their school building because of cost or time. Edcamps show teachers that they are appreciated and important by creating platforms for them to learn without other things hanging over them- like lesson plans for subs and money.
• Being an #EdcampGigCity organizer make me a more connected educator. This is year five of our edcamp and every year I walk away with new edufriendships, knowledge, and ideas that I know I have a safety net for if I have more questions. Like all conferences, you get what you put into it. Allowing yourself to connect with others and hear what other schools and districts are doing brings value back to yourself and your school/district. I'm thankful for the opportunity to connect in such a big way to the Chattanooga are. #CHAedu

Educational "Air Time"

Over the last couple of weeks I have really started looking more deeply at the way technology can enhance different learning theories and instructional practice. I realize that has made me hypersensitive to critiquing teachers and teaching styles in a way that I don't want to be. Needless to say, I'm trying to look at methods from a non-marginalizing approach and make the assumption that every teacher is trying their best to meet the needs of their classroom goals and individual students.

That being said I am currently feeling a little overwhelmed with some things that have played out lately regarding academic roles. Believe it or not I was a quiet high school student that rarely would have added value to group discussions unless I was point blank called on because of my shyness. (I  know...you are wondering where that girl is and wanting her to come back occasionally). I mostly made A's and B's as a self-motivated student in above-average ability grouped classes. I was a listener and got what I needed to make the grade but I did not really enjoy high school. High school did not feel relational to me for the most part.

As I have been looking at teaching methods I find myself wondering what are we doing to pull out students like myself. I know there are strategies for pulling in the outliers but do we use them? Is there a reason our students feel like outliers? Is it a perceived intelligence issue? Language issue? Apathy issue? Shyness issue? You have to know who your students are to fill the needs. And of course for me, I'm wondering if digital discussion boards in an LMS might be a solution to give the "quietest student a voice" a quote about technology I often requote from Jerry Blumengarten.

On top of all this I helped lead Edcamp Gig City this past Saturday and when I'm looking at the feedback I can't help but think...even teachers don't truly understand how to best engage in group discussions. The overwhelming majority of the feedback from the 125+ attendees of  Chattanooga's 4th annual educational unconference was positive but the complaints all had to do with people taking up too much "air time," being dogmatic about their views, leading instead of facilitating, and griping about their world instead of speaking about disadvantages with hopes to find a solution by sharing. If educators themselves aren't good at this, that worries me a bit. When someone feels marginalized they shut down. That is the worst thing to happen in education. What skills can we use to prevent this from happening without seeming condemning and causing the opposite person to feel marginalized? And of course, as an instructional technologist I am digging and wondering how can educational technology best support the socratic method, small group instruction, lecture classrooms to best meet the needs of all students, or can it? What are your thoughts?

Finishing Strong by Taking Chances?

I'll be honest, when I was asked to blog on the topic "Testing is over...What now?" I jumped on the chance to be a part of this series because it's a group of amazing educators and I love to blog. Unlike the rest of them, testing seems to have less impact on my private school than at their public schools. There is no tie to funding and there is less stress on our teachers based on test results. While we do not do the state testing, we do have students take the NWEA test. I've sat in an office where an administrator has looked at test results by standard and realized "our students haven't gotten to that yet." There is an understanding in our school that we are going to teach to the end of the year. Managing that is probably a little bit easier to do with a preK-12 school of 1200 than some of these larger districts my friends are in.

Regardless, there still seems like there is burnout in the air and a sense of finality approaching. So what are things we can do to use this time to finish strong? You'll often hear me talking about risk taking and creating a culture where it is safe to fail for both students and teachers. The important thing is you fail forward. In other words, when you try something but it doesn't work you don't say "oh well, that was a disaster!" but "that didn't work, what can I do to value the concept forward and learn from what went wrong and make it better?" That's failing forward. What a great time to take those chances! I challenge you to look for something to try that might make these last days less monotonous. The nice thing is you have some great guinea pigs ready for you, you've trained them all year long! 

I want to share five things you might try in your classroom in these last weeks to take a chance on creating something valuable for the future (yours, your current students, and even your future students):

1. Genius Hour or 20% Time...This is a creation of the Google Company themselves. They allow their employees 20% of their work week to learn about things that they are passionate about. What if you allowed your students some of this type of time with your watch care and guidance? It doesn't have to be chaos. Have students create Project Plans and collaborate to make them better. Then have students create project logs after every time they work on the project. Also, if you want it to be more structured, have it support a certain unit you have studied. Flexibility within boundaries but allowing students voice and choice.
2.  Google Classroom...If you are a district that has been using the Google Suite apps in the classroom  for a while you are probably already leveraging Docs, Slides, Drive, Forms, and Sheets. Now is a good time to try Google Classrooms to see it's efficiencies! My friend Matt Miller from #ditchthattextbook created this blog post that is helpful in both understanding what it will and will not do, as well as giving you some ideas on how to implement it. You aren't a Google school? What LMS does your district/school/coworker use? Create a lesson using that to try it out. 
3. Coding...I'm a firm believer that coding can support any curriculum due to the fact that it naturally teaches sequencing, coding gives access to technology, gives students a life skill, and coding teaches thinking. This blog by Vicki Davis gives you some great ideas for creating coding opportunities in your classroom no matter what you teach and what grade level you teach it in. Don't have access to technology? Make sure you look at the unplugged options at code.org.
4. VLOG...Not all students are good writers but all students have things to share. A VLOG is the video equivalent of a BLOG (weB LOG). Allow your students to VLOG about some topic - you choose it or let them. Start somewhere simple like by using Seesaw Learning Journal. If you aren't already using it, it allows you to give your student a new platform as well. The free version will meet your needs just fine! (Make sure you follow Christopher King's VLOG on day three of this series (tomorrow) to see what a VLOG can do!
5. Edcamp Style Learning...I am a huge fan of the unconference model of professional development that the Edcamp model brought to education. This will be year four of my involvement with Edcamp Gigcity in Chattanooga, Tennessee. But what if we gave students sticky notes and asked them what they would like to learn about? What if we created stations in our classroom that would allow them to learn from each other about those topics? It might not could be as wide open depending on the age you teach but I do believe it could be structured edcamp even for the youngest of students. 

These are just a few ideas that I think teachers could toy with here at year end. These do not take a lot of prep time or learning time on your part but have the potential for adding either depth or efficiencies for your classroom's future. And lets be honest, there are so many reruns of Lion King we want to sit through. Take these ideas or create your own but FINISH STRONG! Want to learn more on this topic? Make sure you look over yesterday's post by Mick Shuran that can be found at http://mickshuran.com and as I mentioned earlier, tomorrow's VLOG by Christopher King can be found at http://firesidechats.blog/


Monday: Mick Shuran http://mickshuran.com

Wednesday: Christopher King  http://firesidechats.blog/

Thursday: Jacob Dunn  https://cultivateedu.com/

Friday: Thomas Fuhrman https://tfuhrman.wordpress.com/

Fueling the Leaders

Yesterday I got back from spending a day and a half at Emory University free of charge thanks to the Gates Foundation and the Edcamp Foundation. Edcamp Organizers Summit was an amazing opportunity for those of us that have been on the planning committees for local Edcamps. It was an honor and a privilege to represent Chattanooga's Edcamp Gigcity.

I'll be honest, a month ago when I said yes to the event I was so excited but as the dates approached and the summer was slipping away, I begrudgingly got in my car to make the two hour trek to Atlanta for the event. My excitement level had waned but my commitment was there. (The irony was not lost on my that I was much like the 30% of our ticket holders that don't show up on the day of the free edcamp due to multiple reasons). After getting to the lovely Emory Conference Center and checking into their hotel, I starting making connections with many people in my professional learning network and realized this was a plus for the event. As I met new edcamp leaders from all over the south I found myself growing with excitement. The event was fabulous! We spent Tuesday morning in true edcamp fashion learning what we wanted to learn to make edcamps better or growing our educational practices.

Sometimes as educational leaders we get run down. Edcamps are hard work and I actually serve with a team of amazing educators that share the workload! In the midst of Edcamp Gigcity I always feel like I am there to serve and personal learning actually takes a backseat as I'm making sure the dynamics of the event are going well. After about the first hour of Edcamp Summit I realized it was relaxing. I realized I was being fueled. I realized I was benefiting from this unconference. It felt like a worthy use of my time!

I'm kind of stingy with anything that takes time away from my personal life but the older I get and more passionate I get as an educator, those worlds seem to be meshing more! I am thankful for being given the opportunity to sit around tables with amazing minds to discuss how do we make our edcamp experiences better. I am thankful for the new connections I made at this event. I am thankful that the Edcamp Foundation created this event for us weary, outliers that want to see professional education opportunities become MORE MEANINGFUL OPPORTUNITIES FOR POSITIVELY CHANGING THE ACADEMIC WORLD FOR OUR STUDENTS.

I am encouraged. I am proud of what we have done thus far with Edcamp Gigcity and due to the excitement of Edcamp Organizers Summit I am ready to tackle another year of providing innovative options and thought patterns in my area. Thank you Hadley Ferguson and Kim Savick for what became an empowering two days for me!

"Edcamp Style" PD- Personalizing teacher learning on a required PD day!

Last year our school had the opportunity to host Chattanooga's EdcampGigcity. Several of the elementary teachers at our school attended and many plan on attending again. After the experience it allowed the lower school curriculum coordinator and myself (lower school technology coordinator) to rethink some of our professional development days. On one day in August before the students came, and again in January of this year we set up Edcamp style PD days.

I am thankful for a curriculum coordinator that I work well with. She is someone that sees the value technology can add to the classroom and looks for ways to enhance learning in many different ways. While our PD days weren't like the traditional Edcamp style (we actually came up with the choices instead of the teachers making the choices), the teachers found the days to be useful.

So how did we decide what the session offerings should be and what did this look like?

• We both spend a lot of time with teachers and learn what their needs are. Many of our sessions were based on things teachers had asked us questions about.
• We have exemplary teachers using tools or creating environments that work. We asked those teachers to lead a session to showcase how they do things in their classroom. Two things happen when you do this:
• Teachers feel affirmed as educators by asking them to lead a session.
• Other teachers feel more comfortable asking questions and learning more from a peer because of the strong relationship bonds that already exist. Hearing "this is a good practice/tool" from a teacher already implementing is more effective than hearing it from myself or the curriculum coordinator that aren't using it practically.
• As the technology coordinator, I used it as a time to introduce new tools and practical ways to use them that would be beneficial for all grade levels in an elementary setting.

We then shared a version of this document below (see red) a day beforehand and asked teachers to think about which sessions would be the most useful for them. We even suggested that someone from each grade level attend different sessions so they could share the information with each other later but this was not a requirement.

                                         A Room               B Room                  C Room

9:00-9:30	RenWeb 1- Steve	Q & A on Integrated Units- Elaine	4 Cs of Tech Integration- Julie
9:35-10:05	Small Math Groups- Carie	Brain Pop- Myra	See Saw- Leigh Ann
10:10-10:40	Problem Based Learning in Math- Craig	Reading groups- Beth Ann	Book Talks- Sara
10:45-11:15	NWEA Resources- Allison	Small Math Groups- Carie	Formative Assessment with Technology-  Julie
11:20-12:00	Reading Groups- Beth  Ann	Positive Behavior Supports- Shonda	Mystery Skype- Julie

Session 1 Descriptions

RenWeb 1- Intro to the cloud-based version of our grade book system.

Q & A on Integrated Units-

We have spent the first half of this year mapping your Social Studies and Science units. During this session, you may ask questions or discuss ideas about the work which has been completed so far and the next steps in the integration process. There will also be five integrated unit notebooks for you to examine. These completed units offer examples of enduring understandings, essential questions, approaches on how to plan a unit map, Biblical themes, performance tasks, and culminating activities.

4 Cs of Tech- We will discuss four different ways to integrate technology into your classroom- CONSUMPTION (i.e.- reading and watching opportunities), CONNECTION (collaboration opportunities), CURATION (research and finding good information), and CREATION (presentation opportunities). I will give you examples of apps and websites to be used in the classroom that represent each of the 4 C’s..

Session 2 Descriptions

Small Math groups-

This session will discuss the benefits of teaching small group math.  We will discuss tips on how to manage your rotations and utilize your math time in the most efficient way.

Brain Pop-

This session will be an overview of the features found on BrainPOP. We’ll take a quick look at units and topics covered, as well as support materials: videos, quizzes, games, activity pages, graphic organizers, and the informational text feature.

SeeSaw- learn how Leigh Ann is using Seesaw learning journal app in her classroom. It's great to keep track of student work in one place, for students to reflect on work, and for you to easily look through. You can even share it with the parents. So easy first graders can use it but it is also even being used in eighth grade!

Session 3 Descriptions

Problem Based Learning in Math-  Quickly review what “Problem-Based Learning” is and the purpose of it.  Teachers will build capacity in strategically planning and implementing daily problem solving opportunities for all students, as we look at a 6-step process for planning for the “Problem-Based Learning” portion of a lesson.

Reading Groups-

You (really) can do it all!  Really!   We all know we feel crunched to make everything happen during a Guided Reading group.  We will discuss time management and the necessary skills that will allow even the shortest amount of time to be beneficial with individualized learning.

Book Talks -

This session will introduce or reintroduce you to the concept of Book Talks, especially as it pertains to a Reader’s Workshop model.

Session 4 Descriptions

Positive Behavior Supports for the Classroom

In this session we will discuss the principles of applied behavior analysis (ABA).  Do you know the difference between negative reinforcement and punishment?  These two concepts are often confused and are important to understand when determining the function of a behavior. We will discuss Functional Behavior Assessment and how it can be used as a powerful tool in the classroom. We will also discuss how to use these methods of training to encourage our students as they seek to serve Christ and His Kingdom.

Small Math Groups-

This session will discuss the benefits of teaching small group math.  We will discuss tips on how to manage your rotations and utilize your math time in the most efficient way.

Formative Assessments with Technology- Wouldn’t it be nice to know if your students got a concept you just taught? We will learn about a variety of different formative assessment tools that can give you immediate feedback from your students. This could mean less grading for you and a faster turn around on knowing what your students have actually learned! Win/win.

Session 5 Descriptions

Reading Groups-

You (really) can do it all!  Really!   We all know we feel crunched to make everything happen during a Guided Reading group.  We will discuss time management and the necessary skills that will allow even the shortest amount of time to be beneficial with individualized learning.

NWEA Resources-  Please bring your laptop and explore the NWEA website for all the resources available to help guide your instruction for your students.

Mystery Skype- Looking for ways to teach geography and connect with the world at large? Mystery skype! We will discuss how to lead your students to ask good questions, how to connect the lesson to other things you are learning in the classroom, and how to lead your students to have a global mindset in their world! We will even get the opportunity to try it out.

As you can see there were a variety of different voices sharing that day. This way even teachers that could share had the opportunity to also attend sessions as well. We asked our math interventionist, reading interventionist, IT director, exceptional education director all to be a part of this day.

I have definitely seen positive results from this. I have had one teacher in particular that followed up with me after sitting through all of my sessions and let me know how successful the use of Seesaw and Kahoot has been in his classroom. While this might be 100% personalized learning, it did give our teachers some voice and choice opportunities in what they felt might be most useful for them.

The Happy #TruthBombs of EdCamp GigCity

Yesterday, after weeks of preparation, EdCamp GigCity came and went. That sounded simple, didn't it? Ha! It was one of the most stressful days I've had in a long time and a completely roller coaster ride week but I want to share the powerful inspiration I saw from this exciting edCamp GigCity experience. I choose positive thinking.

• There is safety in cross-school collaboration. When you are in a room with other educators and transparency happens, it feels somewhat easier to share struggles and successes. I'm not sure why; Maybe it is pride in your "home school" about successes. Maybe it feels easier to share failures with outsiders because you realize all these other schools have them too. Sharing with educators in your building adds the fear of judgment, sharing with non-building educators doesn't leave that hanging over you- just a thought.
• There is beauty in corporate learning. Brainstorming, roundtable discussions where there is the ability to share and ask questions allows for maximum results of information. When I look at the shared notes folders that were set up for edcamp gigcity which can still be accessed at http://bit.ly/edcampgigcity  I realize just how much learning was going on yesterday. Before we broke up for sessions, questions were asked like "What's augmented reality? PBL? Flipped learning?" Things that I take for granted as an instructional technologist, but quite honestly those questions made me excited for the day- it meant some teachers were going to have their socks rocked off- and I'm fairly sure I'm not wrong. Which leads me to the next point...
• There is value in blowing someone's mind. It happens to me as well- I go to the ISTE conference and feel like I am in "information overload" mode but what happens is that after I self-curate all the amazing things I've learned I come out with a "nugget of wisdom" (or two) to implement. Sometimes conferences/edcamps/professional development days feel like learning through a fire hose, but the value is that within the overwhelming amount of intake usable information comes forth for future greatness.
• There is awesomeness in the fact that edCamps aren't Tech camps. I'll be honest, even though I repeated this 27 times, because I was pushing it, most teachers thought it was a tech conference at my school. I love edCamps because they are NOT tech camps, therefore the "techies" aren't the smartest people in every room. Everyone brings value to an edCamp because the path of learning is based on all those lovely little sticky notes that started the day- the ones where anyone in the room could say, "I wanna learn this!" edCamps tend to have many technology-based sessions due to the educators that tend to attend but it isn't locked into just that. I love this fact because it allows us to learn from everyone in attendance.
• There are outstanding educators choosing to better themselves on Saturdays. On. A. Saturday. Educators that worked all week dealing with the frustrations of "end of year personalities" choose to better their practice. They made the choice to be a part of learning ON. A. SATURDAY. Do you see the awesomeness of that statement? Yeah- 136ish educators that care enough about what they do to come to an unconference on. a. Saturday. Ok, ok...I may have gone to far with that point but what I am trying to say is that there are outstanding educators out there in our community and beyond. Everyday on the news we hear the negatives of schools in our area but I'm here to tell you that I met a ton of teachers and administrators yesterday that care about what they do and how they do it. They should be applauded.
• There is innovative dreaming for the future of education. I wrote a recent post about the value of innovation in education- yesterday I saw it firsthand. I saw teachers asking questions, leading discussions, weighing possibilities and thinking "what if..."- I totally, completely LOVE "what if" thinking educators. I was fairly busy doing behind the scenes stuff during the day but I did get to pop in and out of a few sessions. I myself have a "what if..." moment I hope to implement next year from listening to what the Sequatchie county school system is doing with a "student tech club." I can't wait to see what people had to say on their exit form to see what they got from the day as well.
• There are determined outstanding educators all around me. Wowsers. I loved listening to what was going on in the schools represented in those sessions. I was blown away by the intelligence in the rooms. We need to tap into this greatness. We need to visit each other and see what's happening. We need to grow these newfound relationships- after this weekend, our PLN (professional learning network) exploded. We don't need this to be the end, we need edCamp GigCity to be the jump off point for continued greatness and learning. We need to follow each other on Twitter and communicate via educational Twitter chats, we need to follow up with our home schools and make suggestions to those around us to connect with those we met. There is such great value in breaking down the silos of not only our own rooms but our own schools. One tweet I 100% agree with said, "Build collaborative culture not competitive - open the doors of learning from each other #edcampgigcity" -@hollowayreader. This is an opportunity for us- it is up to us to move forward with it. We talked summer "lunch and learn" networking opportunities that would continue to include private and public educators. This excites me.
• There are educational administrators that see the inspirational benefit of the edCamp model. I was thankful for the attendance and support of various administrators at this event. Educators that see their administrators value edcamps see the value themselves. Those are the type of principals/ administrators that see teachers willing to think outside the box because they feel safe to innovatively think. My "YES" moment of the day was when the assistant superintendent of Hamilton County schools tweeted  "Most significant edu discussion I've had in years #makerspace #edcampgigcity" -@RRSharpe. He's not even my administrator but to me this was an epiphany moment. He spent the day going from session to session, listening and learning. There was nothing he could really implement in the classroom but he was supporting the Hamilton County teachers there and listening to their hearts and minds. He got it.

I realize the experience may not have been what everyone was looking for but I woke up this morning tweeting the Chatt Tech Crew about things we could do to make the next one better. What a gloriously wonderful day of collaboration and learning that I now have in my educational toolbox for the future.

EdCamp GigCity Being Hosted By Chattanooga Christian School

On May 9th, Chattanooga Christian School will have the honor of hosting the second annual EdCamp GigCity event for public and private educators to come together from 9-3 for a day of participant-driven learning. The beauty of EdCamps is that it is free to the educator, allows them to be in control of their path of learning for the day, and it gives them a chance to connect with other educators in our city and beyond.

According to www.edcamp.org "Unlike traditional conferences which have schedules set months in advance by the people running the conference, Edcamp has an agenda that’s created by the participants at the start of the event. Instead of one person standing in front of the room talking for an hour, people are encouraged to have discussions and hands-on sessions. Sponsors don’t have their own special sessions or tables, all of the space and time are reserved for the things the people there want to talk about. People could pay hundreds of dollars to attend another conference, or they could go to Edcamp for free."


We are very excited that CCS has been given the opportunity to host the event this year and we are strongly encouraging all local educators (and beyond) to attend. Tickets are now available and educators can sign up for the free event at http://edcampgigcity.eventbrite.com/?aff=estw . Spread the word!