Let’s get your summer started with edTech Goals to put under your belt. If you haven’t done these already,  here are the top 5 PD opportunities for summer 2017. (And if you attend ISTE unplugged, you could do them all at home!)

1.  Become a Google Certified Educator. Google has an amazing suite of applications which boost the collaboration of your classroom. Every educator should Understand how to use these tools whether it is in your classroom, reaching out to parents, or networking with other educators on or off campus.
2. Attend a conference or ed-tech summer camp. ISTE has the largest ed tech conference in the world. The 2017 conference is in San Antonio, and the 2018 camp will be in Chicago. You will network with so many great educators and learn so much regarding implementing technology into your classroom. There are also summer camps which delve a bit deeper and give you more individual attention. If your district does not offer a workshop,  check out CUE Rockstar camps, 
3. Learn to Code. There are so many free places online that can teach you the fundamentals of coding and introduce you to an area that you may want to implement in the new school year. I have written a series of blogs on how I learned to code as well as some techniques I use in teaching coding. A few places that can start you on your journey are code.org, khan academy, CodeHS, and codecademy.
4. Get involved with a Twitter Chat. Twitter chats allow you to collaborate with amazing educators from all over the world.
   If you plan to attend, login to your Twitter account through Tweetdeck. The following chats are Pacific Standard Time:
   ♦Monday:
   5PM #edtechchat
   6PM #tlap (teach like a pirate chat)
   8 PM #tosachat teacher on special assignment chat
   ♦Tuesday:
   5PM #kidscancode
   ♦Wednesday:
   5PM #edbeat
   6PM #1to1techa
5. Start your own blog! While you are already checking out other blogs that exist (ahem, this one), start creating your own blogs of your journey in edTech. Not only will you share your knowledge with others, but it will help curate your resources, and provide a reflective journey of yourself. It will be interesting to see how far you delve into new strategies and how you implement tools differently throughout the years.

Categories: Pedagogy