I have finally succumbed to Facebook...

and have been fully sucked in.  

Not to mean that I just now created an account.  But rather I only used it for things pertaining to the kiddo, family, food, trips, whatever.  I never used it for dialogue and discourse as I think it is a poor medium for me.  Especially when I get uppity about the topic.

But then I joined the recently formed BTA.  And now I am totally engrossed in a conversation.  One conversation. I am literally thinking I need to cut myself off, leave the group never to return, go cold turkey.

And at the same time I am thankful for the opportunity to view my thoughts from the perspective of others via this dialogue!  Too often we are insulated within our departments and circles.  This has been a new and feisty circle to dance in! It is invigorating and exciting and it is keeping me from my real work.

Because while some feel that Facebook is a medium for their advocacy and those interactions produce a satisfactory outcome, it still is just not for me. The initial spark for me to go into education was the idea that I could make education different. So for me, and many others, teaching is not just a career, but also a medium for advocacy where I see the results of my efforts impact the community I serve in a positive way.  And tonight, while stimulating and thought provoking, my involvement in discourse with a group of educators resulted in me neglecting other work that could have been done, as well as my sleep.

Which in turn sent me to blog about this new phenomenon in my life. I am trying to understand why I suddenly took to "the streets", passionately stating my position.  I can theorize that it is a combination of pent up frustration in not having similar dialogues within my sphere of influence and very strong feelings about the topic discussed (something that regularly circumvents my attempts at progress within my ISD). I am intrigued and I want to explore these thoughts.  But at the same time I am drained and fried. 

At the very least I know my sharp and obsessive focus on what interests me is alive and well, despite a strong effort to lead a more balanced life. Guess I need to work on that, in a non-obsessive manner.

Inventor Smack Down! A randomly sparked idea.

Summer time for me is like dreaming.  I have less specific daily interactions and timelines to follow, so my mind can go on walk about, producing all sorts of sparked and connected ideas.

Today was one so awesome that I just had to share!

I used to teach history of invention through research projects, kinda basic.  But I would conspire to have the kids dress up as that inventor on Halloween (since costumes for Halloween were banned).  It was fun and the list of items that they researched had extremely interesting histories.  Did you know that the Ever-Sharp mechanical pencil was invented by a 21 yr old in Japan (who happened to later go on to start Sharp). And that the vending machine first appeared in the FIRST century and dispensed holy water!  And then I learned about Nikola Tesla and have forever held a grudge against my elementary teachers for allowing me to think that Thomas Edison was amazing.  So as many celebrate the birth of the man who brought us Alternating Current (Tesla) I came across this: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/tesla and started to think about how awesome it would be to have "Inventor vs Inventor" or "Inventor Smack Down"!  With each kid accepting a role, and defending their catalog of work against their arch nemesis to the class.

Think about it, Tesla vs Edison, Darwin vs Ussher, Jobs vs Gates vs Branson!  I think it would be fantastic!

Now I just need to find a teacher who wants to jump in!