Day four of the Music and Multimedia Summer Institute was bittersweet....time to put the finishing touches on some of my different projects that I took on for the week and time to say goodbye. This was one of the best Summer Institutes I have ever attended!! Not only did learn some of the basics of the Finale software but I also walked away with a multitude of new tools that I can implement immediately. That makes me extremely happy. Time well spent for sure!
As I was packing up at the end of the day on Friday I found myself reflecting on the first VT MIDI Institute that I attended in 1999. That first institute was different in so many ways. First of all, the equipment that I brought to the week-long session was big, bulky, heavy and FILLED my car!! Yes, it filled my car!! Zoom ahead to present day and my clean-up and pack-up was no different than any other day of the week....Mac Book, iPad and I was ready to go. We've come a LONG way huh? Those former days of technology also brought along a huge learning curve for me. Those were the days when I had no computer skills to speak of and I was a digital immigrant in the true sense of the word. Today I would describe myself as much more tech savvy and bordering computer nerd and geek...wow! did I actually write that? I LOVE technology and I LOVE using it in my classroom. Does it replace the actual making of beautiful music together with children...no...but, it is another tool that I can use to enhance my teaching. It is also another way to reach the student that I haven't been able to make a connection with yet either...the student who is struggling in my classroom.....the student who needs that extra something.
Where am I going from here? Well, as a result of the Institute, I'm definitely beginning a blog for each of the elementary schools that I work in. I now see that the blog will fill the gap that I have felt for some time in the area of communication with parents and faculty. It is an easy way for me to "tell my story"...and a way to let others "look into my classroom". This is just one of the things that I hope to implement.
Yesterday I visited one of my elementary classrooms and I was pleased to find that tech support was already working in my classroom and making the preliminary connections for my new projector. This is something that I have wanted for a very long time and it is finally going to become a reality. It's very exciting!!!
Did the Institute meet my expectations? Absolutely YES!! Will I return for the 2014 session that will be offered again next summer? Of course I will!!! and...YOU should too!
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