Besides presenting on something we're curious about, we're also sharing out a tech-tip with the other fellows.  I am a fan of LearningScience.org

How are we to help students uncover and debunk their misconceptions if we never address them?  In this assignment, we had to help uncover a common misconception students have and use a video editing tool to show this!  We chose to highlight that many students believe that you can see specific things in the dark.  What a great assignment!

We were asked to create masks that represented us.  With the limited materials available, here's my portrait mask to the left. 

I interpreted this to mean that the way I learn is child-like. 

Always curious...

At first I saw the UPS driver's cart.  And then I looked closer and saw it.  The letter D, cast as a shadow from the handle folded over.  When we look closer and think deeper, who knows what we will see. 

We were asked to look closer and find letters in surprising and unexpected ways.  Here's a collection of letter photos taken by fellows. 

One of our first assignments was to shoot a picture of something around Loyola's downtown campus that could reveal who we were to the other fellows.  I joined Twitter in '09 and from my now whopping 33 tweets, it wasn't for any real reason.  But lo and behold, I still have the account and am quickly seeing how it can be a useful tool in the classroom to connect people...and more importantly, to share!  Sharing is when the real learning takes place.  Here's me in a nutshell. 

So it's been one week since starting the MSU-Wipro STEM & Leadership Fellowship, and to say that I am not completely energized for school to start is an understatement.  Okay...that's a lie, especially because in this last week, my mind has been on overload^infinity about the possibilities of what my learning can mean for my students' understanding.  When the face-to-face time subsides, I feel as if I will then have the time to "settle" into creating a game plan for how I want to utilize technology with my new groups of students.  I especially want to see how technology can play a critical role in science and engineering understanding.  In the last twelve years of my teaching, I've strengthen my content and pedagogical skills immensely when it comes to science education. Content classes, workshops, notebooking seminars, cooperative learning strategies, blah, blah, blah.

Now comes the tech piece that I have been thirsty for!  Watch out...and I recognize that in all this designing, implementing, and evaluating my tech plan into my science and engineering classes, that it will be filled with failures.  I am completely okay with that.  How will I know what can bring more engagement with students unless I try?  Watch out world.  Here I come.