Thing 8: Google Calendar

Since our school district uses iGoogle for our e-mail, I decided last school year to infuse Google Calendar with some of the things we do at school.  My primary focus for the elementary school was to get my schedule out to them, about the times I had classes and the times I was free to help them or their students with questions they may have. For the Jr.-Sr. high school, I went a little deeper and created calendars that the staff could look at for computer lab reservation times.  We now have a Google Form that teachers fill out and submit, and my para and I check it and then we have full access to these calendars along with the technology director and make the edits needed.  We are still fielding e-mails, and I hope to have that eliminated by the end of September. I do keep my personal calendar on it as well, setting it to private and I usually list those items as an all day event with the times in the titles.  I have my book club meeting times, my quiz bowl meeting times, the FCA meetings listed as well, along with our district calendar as well. I find it very easy to use, once you understand how to use it.  Is there a better calendar application out there? Probably, but I’m not going to fix something that works for our school district.

Thing 7: Face-to-face networks and professional organizations

When I was in  college I joined a group called ACEI (Association of Childhood Education International) and went to an International conference in San Antonio, Texas where a group of my college friends in the education department presented on different countries and how education was having an impact at the time. I also presented to a group of leaders in the organization about how to start a group at the college level. I was a member of the Student Education Association of Nebraska in college as well.
 
Right now, I am a member of school district’s association, a member of the National Education Association and the Nebraska State Education Association.  I currently have no library memberships, however I get information from  NEMA (Nebraska Educational Media Association) and have been considering joining the Nebraska Library Association. What I should have done was joined when I was in grad school (I’m still kicking myself for this two years after the fact). I would like to join a national organization as well, ALA or AASL. Determining factor for not joining: cost.  I have other things I need to take care of first, my family, a new house, purchasing a water softener, barn being built this fall. Some of that read this will be thinking excuses, excuses. This setting is teaching me that I need to take my profession more seriously, so I will post if I join any new organizations between now and the end of our program.