@sunshinytech Blasting Off to New Adventures!

Hello and HAPPY SUMMER!  I know that summer is coming to a close for some of us.  I have been back at work for over a week and a half already!  Speaking of work... I thought it was a good time to mention that I have accepted a new position in our school district!  I am now the Instructional Coordinator at Glenn Elementary School!  Yes, I am now an astronaut!!

If you are wondering what an Instructional Coordinator does, take a look at the image below.  I made a little word cloud out of the duties and responsibilities of this role and this is what I came up with...

This sounds about right!  Notice the largest words... support, teachers, instruction.  YES!  I definitely feel like my experience as a tech coach has thoroughly prepared me for this adventure!  In this day and age, I don't feel like you MUST have the word "technology" in your title to promote technology rich instruction.  And this year is definitely going to be all about...

...meaning, we will use technology when it best fits into the classroom and the instruction, not all day, every day, as we had to use it last year.  

As you may have noticed last school year, many of my posts were about high impact instructional models and influences on student achievement such as the jigsaw method, classroom discussion, and blended learning.  There are moments when technology can and should be integrated into these strategies, and times when it might not be the best fit.  Like I said, it's all about a good balance!

I am not EXACTLY sure what the future holds for The Sunshiny Tech Spot.  As I see it now, I'm hoping to continue to share ideas, best practices and the best part about it is that I may be better able to show strategies and ideas IN ACTION.  We will have to see how this goes!  I will still continue to be @sunshinytech on Twitter!  Be sure to follow me if you haven't already!  I hope you all have a fabulous, sunshiny start to the school year!