Day 1 of #ISTE 24: Finding Purpose, Celebrations, Collaboration, & Joy

A child's drawing on a puppy pad created by participants in our ISTE 24 session. It is placed on a dark surface. The drawing features a mountainous landscape with a river flowing through it, labeled "Colorado-ish" at the bottom. On the left side, there's a triangular tent with a campfire in front of it. The river has a small boat with a person paddling. On the right side, there's a sun in the sky, birds flying, and a person standing near a flower. Next to the drawing is the book "Ish" by Peter H. Reynolds, with some craft supplies like beads and string visible at the top. Alt text generated by Chat GPT and edited on June 24, 2024.

Today was the first full day at #ISTE24 in Denver. The temperatures were hot, but the transformative learning and networking at the Colorado Convention Center were even hotter! Day 1 did not disappoint.
My day opened with several of my colleagues and myself attending the ISTE Certified Educators Appreciation Meeting. I cannot express my gratitude enough for the amazing work that Carmelita, Daisy, and others did to create a gathering with purpose and meaning. In talking with several other ISTE Certified Educators throughout the day, we all agreed that we felt authentically honored and recognized. Several of us were given our ISTE Certified plaques, and we all received amazing celebration gifts. While all these things were incredible, the intentional thought of creating a space for us to join as one in community was electrifying. This experience will definitely serve as an incredible memory for years to come, and I love that I was able to celebrate it with many amazing North Carolina educators. A big thank you to Dr. Ashley McBride, whose incredible vision of seeing North Carolina become a leader in ISTE Certified Educators is definitely paying dividends for the teachers and students in the Old North State.
Later in the morning, I had one of those remarkable experiences that will forever serve as a milestone in my career in public education. My extraordinary colleague, Meredith Ward Hill, and I shared a session called “Transforming Literacy Through STEAM.” In preparation for this session, we carried a suitcase full of children’s literature books and Makerspace materials halfway across the country to Denver. Meredith and I were extremely humbled to share this session but had no idea how it would go. This session was inspired with encouragement from Mrs. Leslie Pope in Craven County Schools, who is an incredible STEM and Literacy connector.
Meredith’s background in all things School Libraries and Media Center was critical in connecting the importance of literacy in this session. I was able to bring over 20 years of STEM educator experience to create a session that was plain and simple - SYNERGISTIC! This synergy, though, was created not just by Meredith and me, but by those who attended our session.
In over 25 years of public education, I have never seen a more robust group of educators come together and collaborate to solve a problem from a children’s literature book. Meredith and I were blown away by the mutual cooperation, sharing of ideas and resources, and transformational learning that our participants demonstrated. We had well over 80 educators from all over the world who were eager to learn, share, and grow. My teacher heart has NEVER been so proud to help facilitate a professional learning experience as this.
I learned so much from those in attendance. I am pretty certain that this group, if given time and resources, could solve many of the world’s problems. The way that these educators exhibited critical and creative thinking even blew my mind. Many of them used the limited Makerspace materials in new and innovative ways that I would never have imagined. One group used a puppy pad to create a “COLORADO-ISH” painting to show their “ISH” based on the book by Peter Reynolds. Other groups designed traps to capture Unicorns, Leprechauns, and Yetis.
As I reflect on both of these experiences, I am forever changed, much like the Grinch whose heart grew three sizes. I am always amazed at the power of educators to create experiences that transform others. Later in the day, I met two educators who work in Southern California with a nonprofit where they provide support to educators in Orange and Los Angeles counties. This group works on creating a community at select schools led by experienced mentors who coordinate small groups of fellows. They receive high-quality professional development throughout the year and provide ongoing coaching to ensure that these educators make a difference in their students' lives. There is definitely nothing more noble than this.
Day 1 of ISTE definitely did not disappoint. I am inspired and reminded why education is one of the best professions ever. I found so much joy in today’s experience, and I cannot express my gratitude enough to North Carolina’s Department of Public Instruction and our Office of Digital Teaching and Learning for supporting educators with high-quality professional learning experiences. Many of the ISTE attendees that I spoke with about what we are doing in North Carolina were really impressed by the support that DPI provides to our educators. One attendee shared, “I wish my state would do this. It would be nice to have these experiences so we could grow and help our students like North Carolina does.”

• Access the presentation "Transforming Literacy Through STEAM" licensed under this Creative Commons License.
• Original draft revised using feedback from Chat GPT on June 24, 2024.

Check out the creations on our Padlet that our participants shared from the session.

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