As much as I would like to think that I have complete control of my life and what takes place, I know it is an illusion. I am too busy to be sick and can’t possibly schedule a day off. Most of us can’t. Last Thursday, after fighting a horrible kidney infection, I was admitted to the hospital. I had finally given in, reluctantly. Mostly, because I didn’t want to miss school and my husband was scheduled to leave for Japan on Sunday. Well, here I am and I miss my students. As I sit, reading through the home-made cards that they made, I had a great idea! Just because I am not there physically, why can’t I be there virtually? Enter my fantastic networking circle, which comprises Webcast Academy, Twitter, Second Life, Skype, and various others. I sent out a message to many people about the simplest and best way to still interact with my students while lying in a hospital bed. My friends and I decided upon UStreamTV and Slideshare. We figured the ease of producing and sharing would be easiest for those who would need to show it to my students. I am able to place the productions on my class web site, MrsLykowski, and they will be able to view them in the tech lab, on the classroom monitor, with a projector, or at home. Now some teachers I am sure, will ask, “why go to all of this trouble?” My answer? I have based my classroom on making connections and to always treasure learning experiences. I truly miss my students and the joy they bring me every day. (No. This is not the medications talking.) I can tell that since I began the Global Explorers project with my students, they are hungry and thirsty for more. They are excited about the connections we are making across the globe. Some have even downloaded Audacity at home, and played around with it. They excitedly check out our wiki, they tell everyone that their podcasts are in iTunes, and they can’t wait to learn more; do more; teach others more. Below is the first video I uploaded to my site. Now I am off to create a Slideshare about our upcoming Adventure book report. My students are waiting!

I think I have discovered a new disease (and what a fun one it is!). I call it Technology ADD or TADD. It occurs when your learning network has grown by leaps and bounds in a short amount of time. Symptoms to be aware of are: Mulitasking using such tools as Twitter, Skype, Bloglines, UStream, and many others. Trying to obtain as much knowledge and connections from various sources such as k12 Online Conference , and finding yourself trying to explain to people who have not been afflicted with this wonderful disease, only to have the ‘deer-in-the-headlight’ look staring at you.

Last night, I participated in several wonderful connection and learning opportunities, and at one point I felt as though I had ADD - my mind, eyes, and fingers were flying in so many different directions. David Warlick presented a fantastic Fireside Chat for k12 Online Conference. At one point there 111 people in the Elluminate room! From there, I headed over to Will Richardson’s tv channel (odd that we can now have our own channel). After that, I spent time with friend and co-presenter of Teacher Talk Webcast, Susan van Gelder on a Skype call and a practice run-through of streaming for our upcoming show next week.

All of this took place within 3 hours. WOW! The possibilities of connection still astound me. A link to the Fireside chat video has not been posted yet, but you will find the Fireside chat below.

fireside-chat.txt

And now off to work!

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I just finished watching David Warlick and his keynote presentation, “Inventing the New Boundaries”.  His discussion about the need to re-invent the boundaries of classroom walls, textbooks, and education in general was a very timely message. 

Over the summer, I had many great experiences with my connections and professional development made through various networks such as, Second Life, Twitter, Webcast Academy, Discovery Educator Network, These connections I made became a highpoint in my professional learning. I was able to connect and learn at anytime, and the world literally became within reach of my fingertips. (It still boggles my mind at times)

I know that my own students have their own learning networks – IM’ing, cell phones, online games, and social networks such as MatMice  and Club Penguin as well as f2f connections. With my students help, we are beginning to redefine the boundaries of my classroom. We are collaborating (through podcasting and Skype) with a class in Bucaramanga, Colombia in a project we call, Global Explorers. We are also connecting with several online projects. Nowadays, it is so easy to step outside the classroom and find yourself on an entirely new continent. All you need to do is take the first step and knock down the traditional classroom walls and move the boundary lines a little further out!

K12 Online Conference promises to be a fantastic and awesome learning experience. Won’t you join me?

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The Global Explorers is in full swing! Four of my students presented this project to state government officials last week in Lansing, Michigan at the AT&T/MACUL Student Technology Showcase. We have 3 podcasts posted, 2 from Michigan and 1 from Colombia. These should be available in iTunes soon. If you are interested in checking out this project and following us, please go to the Global Explorers wiki.

Drop us a line at globalexplorers2.0@gmail.com