#EduWin-ners Circle 12/19/11 — The “F-word”
Posting an #EduWin had two notable mentions outside of Twitter and EdReach this past week. First, Candace Shively of TeachersFirst, listed whatisyoureduwin.com as a “Featured Site” and IowaFuture.org wrote a short article called Spreading good news with Twitter highlighting the #EduWin concept and inviting educators “to share the good news about what is happening in education everyday”.
Thank you to TeachersFirst and IowaFuture for getting the word out about #EduWin.
Some #EduWin tweets that caught my attention this week focused on the F-word. You know the one….FUN!! Two actually mentioned the word:
In this example, students even uttered the word!!
A few hinted at fun when students exclaimed with cheers and joy at the thought of tackling an exciting project:
Fun can come in many ways and isn’t the same for all students, teachers, or age levels. Fun is easily attainable. It can be as simple as giving students choice or just doing something different in the classroom. In the above mentioned instances, fun was not the primary objective. What these teachers have figured out, is when students are excited, motivated, and engaged, they are going to learn more! When my students are having fun, the learning environment is more alive. They reach greater heights and push themselves further. They are more willing to try new things and take risks.
The theme of the recent K12 Online Conference was Purposeful Play. Many of these short presentations from educators around the world magnify ways to bring play and fun back into the classroom. These are not frivolous ideas, but concrete, thought-provoking pedagogically sound ideas that remind us all that learning can be (and should be) enjoyable. It is easy to get consumed by AYP and bubble tests.
While many of the world’s educators have a break from their students beginning this week; either for holiday break or the start of their summer vacation, we hope you’ll continue to share your #EduWins. What planning are you doing? What have you learned that got you excited? How is time away from students helping you to become a more effective educator or leader?
~ Wishing you and those you love all the best during the holidays!
Spread the word about the best things happening in education….What is your #EduWin? Post daily at: whatisyoureduwin.com. Not sure what to say? Some ideas for an #EduWin post can be found here.
