Staying Up-to-Date this Summer

Ahh...summer! What a time to relax and refresh. Summer is also my time to read all of my back professional journal copies that I never had a chance to read, play around with that list of websites that I never got around to, and browse for some fresh teaching ideas. You don't have to take a college course to learn something new and stay current. Below is my list of easy, free, and painless ideas for gaining some quick summer professional development.

1. Subscribe to and browse other educator blogs. There are some amazing bloggers out there who are willing to share a wealth of ideas! Here are my favorites:

• Free Technology for Teachers
• iLearn Technology
• Tech Transformation
• Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day

It doesn't take a lot of time to browse a blog.  When I have fifteen minutes here or there, I read a post or two.  I often bookmark interesting links into my Delicious account and then go back when I have more time to test those.

2.  Join an educator group on a social networking site.  Pinterest has many interesting educators and educational organizations who share their links and clever ideas.  I'm also a member of the Classroom 2.0 Ning, which offers a great social network to connect with other educators.  I encourage everyone to also become members of Skype in the Classroom and browse through the many different connections and project ideas available there.  While I find Twitter overwhelming at times, it is just an incredible source of ideas!  There are so many amazing educators out there to follow, willing to share all of their knowledge at any given moment.

3.  Check out a conference website.  The K-12 Online Conference is an annual online only event, but the past conference videos and presentations are archived on their website. 

4.  Visit iTunes.  iTunes has "iTunes U" which allows users to create and upload educational content.  Searching iTunes will give you access to great professional growth opportunities that you can listen to at your leisure.

5.  Listen to TED Talks.  TED Talks are a collection of interesting videos on a variety of different topics.  

6.  Steal ideas from your colleagues.  I publish on another blog called What's Up in Your LMC.  I have used this blog not only to share information about the library, but also as a portfolio of student technology-related projects that I have worked with this year.  Take some time to browse through my blog and see what others have done.  Maybe it will give you a fresh idea to try next school  year.

Thanks for another great year!  Happy summer vacation!