It's 3:00am! Can't sleep so I thought I'd see what awesome students I have and read their blogs.

I can't sleep so I decided to reflect on the whirlwind of events that have taken place since the beginning of this semester. 

I am so excited about this 21st century learning project that I am collaborating on with Mrs.Vessell, Ms. Conrad,Ms. Ross, and Ms. Drane (English teachers).  We've also had a great amount of help and support from Ms. Smith and Ms. Tamburello in the media center. Ms. Vessell is the one who introduced  20time to all of us after learning about it at the EdTech Conference we attended this past fall.  It is personalized learning at its finest and preparing all of the students for college and the 21st century by helping them to learn how to be responsible digital citizens. Every aspect of this journey has been mind blowing and each week has brought tears and extreme joy. 

So what is 20time? It involves allowing students 20% of their time to work on a project that is near and dear to them. The students have the autonomy to learn whatever they want to learn. They only have to do 3 things with that time...create something from an idea...and "pitch it", blog about their journey weekly and then present the process, including both successes and failures, at the end of the semester in a 5 minute TEDX style presentation. It requires them to explore, create, collaborate, communicate and think critically while documenting their journey. It really is incredible to watch as the students share their challenges, problem solving abilities, creative talents, individuality, etc. through this medium. 

20time is differentiation at its finest. The students differentiate themselves based on who needs what. It is quite easy to identify students who need remediation and/or encourage enrichment in this process whether they are struggling with technology, writing, problem solving,etc.  They will come and tell you and or show you through the process. The students do this naturally based on their level of understanding and can be as creative as their heart desires, even if they are not great at reading,writing, they may show they are proficient or exemplary in using technology together their point across. However, they are also able to demonstrate their effectiveness in writing to communicate with others their thoughts and ideas in the blog. It is hard to plagiarize your own thoughts and ideas.  They can use videos, pictures, montages, collages all to express and or communicate with society and each other.

On a deeper note, it is simply humans connecting with humans. Learning, communicating and sharing using the technology available. 

So far my class is off to a slow but good start.  

I've learned so much from my colleagues and even more from individual students about how to use specific technology resources, apps, shortcuts on the computer, etc. This journey has truly been powerfully overwhelming; sometimes in a good way, and sometimes well out of my comfort zone. 

The most challenging part has been getting ALL 180 of my students (plus or minus 10), to get of all of the same learning platforms. So far, we are about 99% paperless. I do not have access to technology ever day of the week, only Thursdays and Fridays. The other days I use my interactive white board and/or projector to teach.  

One of the biggest challenges so far has been trying to motivate the students to use their cell phones as learning tools rather than only for social media. 

Not organized but...it's now 4:00am ...and....feeling sleepy.