My #GoodReads stats for 2013 (a slight #humblebrag )

Here are my reading stats from 2013 - 73 books and 18,000+ pages. I feel good about this. Real good.

I submitted my Google Certified Trainer application today! #edtech #gct

So. Last January, I started a journey to become a Google Certified Teacher. I passed the necessary tests and became a Qualified Individual on January 18, 2013. I was told then that I had one year before the tests expired.

Today, January 13, 2014, I submitted my application to become a GCT. 5 days before my tests expired. I never thought it would come down to the wire like this, but then I thought back to the previous year. An interesting moment of reflection, from the birth of my second son to broken sewer lines, it's been a wild, crazy, and wonderful ride.

I'm glad to have submitted the application, but I don't regret the procrastination: a lot of good living has happened in the interim.

If you'd like to view the application materials, you can peruse them here. Cross your fingers!

#TheScottishPlay, done Twitter style

Yesterday, my juniors and I tried an experiment: what would happen if Macbeth had Twitter? I wanted them to review the major events of the play, which we watched before our 2-week break, before returning to analyze particular speeches. 

Here is the assignment I came up with: http://goo.gl/BwPTzQ . In brief, groups were assigned Acts from the play and had to apply Twitter conventions to the major moments from each act. I created a form that students used their phones to complete, and then sorted the results by act and scene in the responses spreadsheet (see attached sheet - you can click the tabs at the bottom to see the different sorts).

We read through the results today (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/tBuP_wTRFr7-bEMtOGvO90Q/htmlview), and it was fun. The students were engaged, and I believe they captured the spirit of the play fairly well (even if I don't quite understand every hastag... #ohwell).