Over the years I have kept a couple of blogs primarily for communicating with parents of my students. I have never had a “professional blog.” I’m exciting for this chance to learn and grow through reflection and writing. ( Here are a couple links to my classroom blogs for parents mrsvsspace.weebly.com & bt6thgrade.weebly.com)
As a Teacher I have taken on many roles. First and foremost I am a leader for my students. Over the years I have developed a style of teaching that focuses on relationships with students first and content second. In my classroom we learn and grow together, while having fun.
In my building I have grown into a leader in the area of technology. I am the place that people go to when they have a tech question or need help with tech in their classroom. I love finding ways to help others use and grow their tech use in their classroom, but I am an ELA teacher first. This makes being this leader at school very difficult because I am not able to help all the time. This love of tech has grown into a passion for bringing a tech specialist to our building. I see my future as being someone who gets to help all teachers bring more authentic technology into their classrooms. I only hope I can learn and grow in a way that benefits all in our building.
As a leader I am still learning and growing. I am figuring out how to balance my love for tech and my job as an ELA teacher and that can be difficult at times. To communicate tech tips or ideas I have tried to connect people in my building using Instagram and Twitter. We have more people on board each day and we’re growing a network just within our building. This is great because we have made connections we didn’t have tow years ago, and we can now see inside so many classrooms with just the click of a finger. I also use our bi-weekly middle school newsletter to communicate tips and ideas with colleagues.
I’m looking forward to using this class as a “starting point” for me on my journey down a new career path. I know technology is my future, I’m just not sure where it will bring me.
Reflection and Learning in Teaching 
Identifying a need and working on a way to fix it is precisely why you are a leader in your school. I’m glad that you can see the growth from your work already. I can tell that your school is very lucky to have you.
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I see you emerging as a leader from the ranks! I was also that person who tried to navigate my full time job as a classroom teacher and an increasing flood of colleagues coming to me for support and help with technology. There will be times when it feels like its too much! I remember the feeling of shrinking amounts of prep time and breaking down during one of those moments when I needed my prep time and could not find it in myself to say no to a call for help. Keep an eye out for when it might be the time to transition from the more informal to a more formal leader in this role — and of course also tune into your needs as you tend to the needs of others who will increasingly see you as their leader of all things tech.
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