I don’t know where to begin to sum up the amazing weekend I just spent in Washington, DC. It was fabulous, somewhat like an awakaing creative spirits.
After all the mental strain, the sleepless nights, the packing, the lesson planning it was all worth it, every single minute. The fellows hailed from as far north as Quebec, to as far south as Louisiana. Our backgrounds varied, and while the bulk of us were classroom teachers, some of us were instructional coaches, or educational camp directors. The room was full of power and we were ready to change the world.
I must admit, I felt a little special, almost everyone knew my name. Not because of my skin tone or the uniqueness of my name, but rather because prior to this trip to DC, I’d made a conscious effort to get to know as many people as I could. I started to form little networks with the other people selected: the Ohioans, the Montessorians, and the Cincinnatians. And then everyone one else, well we found each other on Facebook, the google plus site, and through email.
I share in everyone’s sentiments when I say, these people are amazing. The entire experience placed us all in a state of gratitude. So here are the highlights of my week:
a) Meeting Nina, Amy, and Kim. Wow…they were jewels to our hearts.
b) Listening to Juan Valdez speak bout the process he went through to create the map of CUBA. As if his life story wasn’t enough.
c) Rooming with Paola. And the adventure begins…
d) Our one-one talk with naturalist, Karen Copeland. I will admit, I felt so special that she reached out to us.
e) We met Mark Thessian, a National Geographic Photographer. He did an entire spread on the wildfires in California. He was amazing and spoke so passionately about his work.
f) Skyping with Eric Guth our Expedition leader/naturalist on our ship.
g) Skyping and meeting with past fellows.
h) Brainstorming our lessons and how we will use this experience in our classrooms.
i) Brainstorming our outreach within our communities.
j) Collaboration from across the nation…these moments alone were priceless.
After all the mental strain, the sleepless nights, the packing, the lesson planning it was all worth it, every single minute. The fellows hailed from as far north as Quebec, to as far south as Louisiana. Our backgrounds varied, and while the bulk of us were classroom teachers, some of us were instructional coaches, or educational camp directors. The room was full of power and we were ready to change the world.
I must admit, I felt a little special, almost everyone knew my name. Not because of my skin tone or the uniqueness of my name, but rather because prior to this trip to DC, I’d made a conscious effort to get to know as many people as I could. I started to form little networks with the other people selected: the Ohioans, the Montessorians, and the Cincinnatians. And then everyone one else, well we found each other on Facebook, the google plus site, and through email.
I share in everyone’s sentiments when I say, these people are amazing. The entire experience placed us all in a state of gratitude. So here are the highlights of my week:
a) Meeting Nina, Amy, and Kim. Wow…they were jewels to our hearts.
b) Listening to Juan Valdez speak bout the process he went through to create the map of CUBA. As if his life story wasn’t enough.
c) Rooming with Paola. And the adventure begins…
d) Our one-one talk with naturalist, Karen Copeland. I will admit, I felt so special that she reached out to us.
e) We met Mark Thessian, a National Geographic Photographer. He did an entire spread on the wildfires in California. He was amazing and spoke so passionately about his work.
f) Skyping with Eric Guth our Expedition leader/naturalist on our ship.
g) Skyping and meeting with past fellows.
h) Brainstorming our lessons and how we will use this experience in our classrooms.
i) Brainstorming our outreach within our communities.
j) Collaboration from across the nation…these moments alone were priceless.
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