Best Summer Ever!

I must say, this has been a very good summer at the Eighth Floor...and it's not even over yet.  We've seen 1000+ teachers, support staff, and administrators roll through our offices since the Summer session began.  The virtual email bag was bursting at the seams with enrollments.  As a result, we had to add offerings in August to accomodate the load.  With less than two weeks left in the session, we are looking at a record attendance for the consortium.

Out of this group we have seen many returning (we don't want to say old, do we) faces and new.  The Eighth Floor has welcomed many new districts into the fold this Summer.  You may have noticed this when you turned to the teacher next to you in a class.  The result of this is that many of you were able to network with old and new friends and in the process gain knowledge from not only what we have to offer, but from each other.  In my opinion, informal learning is a very beneficial part of the experience here.  Regardless of whether you are a K-12, Tech, or Higher Ed educator, there is always something new to learn from your peers. 

Hopefully, this summer has been a chance for many of you to re-charge.  I remember taking classes before I became an instructor with the Eighth Floor, and in addition to the new information I gained, I remember that feeling - that somehow I had been rebooted and was ready to go again in the Fall.  There is always something new on the Eighth Floor to help you re-charge. 

We have been fortunate that we have been able to add many new classes to our offerings this Spring and Summer.  One favorite is the SMART Subject-Specific  class we now offer.  If you get a chance, check out our Teacher Spotlight showcasing some of your fellow teachers and the SMARTBoard lessons they created during these sessions. The Google Workshop had a great turnout, as Scott and Lee Anne covered "everything Google".  Cyberbullying, Ed Tech II, Tech Tips for National Board Certification, Grant Writing - all of these classes as well as the rest were full and had great things to offer.

If you missed seeing us this Summer (we missed you)  we still have several classes and a few special offerings (Teaching All Kinds of Minds, Teaching with Moodle) left this Summer.  We'll also see some changes occurring to the look of the Eighth Floor, so stay tuned....