Sweet, sweet summertime

Sweet, sweet summertime!  For me, summer is one of those magical times when I plan to cross everything off of my to do list and accomplish something amazing.  However, that is not always the case! We have officially been on summer break for one week! And it has flown.  My daughter and I, along with some amazing friends took a five hour bus ride to Chicago to visit American Girl Place.  We loved it!  During our two day visit we rode the Ferris Wheel on Navy Pier, played in the sprinklers at Millennium Park, visited the animals at Lincoln Park Zoo, and did some serious shopping on Michigan Avenue and State Street.

The past week I have accomplished nothing at home or professionally- seriously, nothing!  I'm going to post some of my summer plans on here to help keep me on task.  Hold me to it, okay!

• I've enrolled in my first ever Coursera class: Internet History, Technology, and Security through The University of Michigan. It starts on June 3rd, this is a 14 week class so it will spill into the beginning of the school year.  This is a free class, although they just added the option to get a verified certificate for $39.  
• I've also enrolled in Mapping with Google, a three week course that will enhance my understanding of Google Earth and Maps inside and outside of the classroom
• The Google Teacher Academy is now accepting applications for the next session in Chicago.  This requires not only an application but a one minute video that has to knock the judges socks off.  The pressure is on with this one!  I can seriously say this is one of my top three professional goals, if not the top goal.  With the application due June 10th I need an idea for the video quick!
• I'm enrolled in the INFOhio Building Coach Program and will learn about new resources unique to Ohio and how they will impact teachers implementing the Common Core.
• In May, I completed a three week introduction couse to Quality Matters from eTech Ohio- this class gives educators the tools that they need to evaluate online classes and curriculum.  I learned so much!  Now, I need to decide if I should proceed with the next part of the training and become a course reviewer.  It is around $500, and requires a lot of work!  I know that I would gain some amazing information but I'm not sure if this is where I should focus my effort.  Any thoughts?
• I'm facilitating several professional development workshops this summer that I am very much looking forward to- if you are in the area I'd LOVE to see you there!  I'm preparing all of the materials, which is a tad overwhelming.  I try so hard to make sure that everyone attending will walk away with some amazing information. 

Sometimes, I feel that I'm a little bit addicted to learning.  I LOVE discovering something new- especially the ideas that once you have heard them you can never look at something the same way again.  Is there a job out there that I can be a professional student???  Anyone, Anyone?

What are you summer goals?  Any that I should add to my list?  Hopefully mid-August I can look back at this list and cross some items off!  :-D  Happy summer!

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