I just went through the list of folks heading to Google Teacher Academy in Austin, and realized that I’m going to be learning from these people..with these people… and meet these people. Feeling a sense of luck, excitement, and geek-out learning joy that only a trip to Google can inspire. This was my third time applying to Google Teacher Academy, and finally, on the third try, I got the email that said it all…. I was going. I am going. For me, Google has always been about creativity. The workspaces. The colorful chairs. The bold colored bikes. The great Google Doodle of the day, and the contest inspiring kids to create. The Google Science Fair. The 20% Time Phenomenon that has made educators rethink the value of play. So many things. The heart of innovation and what learning is about. Thinking beyond the search engine.
When I think about being there, surrounded by other educators who share an intense passion for creative teaching, nonstop learning, and innovation in our schools? I’m so ready to go tomorrow. Except I won’t, because I’d be almost a month early and have to sleep outside.
So, I’m going to try really hard to prepare for December to take the two days and make the very most of them. Learning as much as I can to share with my colleagues and students back in my school. Soaking in the new friends and seeing old friends. And feasting my eyes on the creative spaces that Google is famous for. I’m ready to grow, learn, and be totally inspired… the Google way.
My application video. I created it with ordinary tools. Sharpies. Paper. My iphone to take photos of the robots I drew. Photoshop to create digital versions of the robots. Keynote to make them come alive. And iMovie to add the music and voice overs. It took many hours of work, and a lot of Sharpies. To me, this is what innovation is about. Ordinary tools to create new ways of doing things. And we all know how I feel about Sharpies. I enjoyed every second of creating this video, and I have a feeling I will enjoy this experience, too.