KHES Tech Confernce 2006

The conference is almost over. This afternoon we are being treated to the awards banquet luncheon along with a dance show by Wavelength. The highlight of this was Cape Hatteras Elementary School recieving the 2006 IMPACT Model School Award presented by the Department of Public Instruction of North Carolina. This a very prestgious award bestowed on Cape Hatteras ES. Their Operation Tropical Storm conist of 5 steps where the IMPACT model was started at Cape Hatteras. Considering all the elementary schools in the state and they were choosen is an awesome accomplishment. Congradualtions to Diane Brown and her great staff down in Hatteras. Well we will be in the car in a few moments for the 300 mile drive home and we look forward to getting back to school tomorrow morning. Look out for all the buzz we hope to bring back to you.

Got a chance to sit in with Patrick Crispin and take a sneak peak at the new Office 2007. WOW!!! To start off with, no more file button and no more edit button, that was enough to take my breath away. My whole thing of telling the students to click file and save in out the window. There is a new way much easier, but to change the students and the teachers that have been doing it this way for years is going to be a headache. There is also a built in way to give credit to all of your resources you use, bibliography, etc. This was very cool. We are profile two to three years out from getting it at school, but home computers will start to ship with it in January. Problem with this that it is not the easiest thing to be backwards compatible. What this means if students save something at home, it will be different at school. If you have been around for a few years and remember what happened time this happened when Microsoft upgraded to 2003 from 2000. We got through it then and we will do it again. Lots of new bells and whistles. Technology is always changing.......

This is Mrs. Whitehurst.....I have taken over Mr. Brian's computer. I have had a wonderful time here at the Technology Conference. I am overwhelmed with the amount of information I have consumed and I can't wait to pass on everything to you!

Right now I am eating breakfast with Mr. Brian and Mrs. Potter. We have had a great time at the conference and we have had many discussions about how we can use what we've learned. We went to game night last night and had a wonderful time; we got to act like kids again! We won a lot of raffle tickets and entered a contest to win amazing prizes. Unfortunately, we walked away empty handed but we kept our spirits up! Parity, smarity!

I have an exciting day ahead of me. First, I am going to listen to Patrick Crispin talk about how to integrate Powerpoint in the classroom. I went to one of his sessions yeterday and he was OUTSTANDING!! Next, I am going to a session by Tammy Worchester; she is talking about how to use technology to engage students with math. Last, I am attending another session by Patrick Crispin...it is going to be a wonderful way to end the conference.


Well, I have to go and check out of the hotel. I have missed everyone and I can't wait to see you tomorrow!

Love, Mrs. Whitehurst

This afternoon I am finishing the conference for the day with a bang. A session with the master, David Warlick, about Video games in the classroom. This was great because this was his first time delivering this session and it really made be think of all the possibilities. The ideas of his really made me open up my mind and think what we could do with profile the number one things that most of our students enjoy doing in there free time. Do you think we should have video games in the classrooms? Think of the possibilities..... They are endless.... Isn't technology awesome......

It has been awesome reading all of your comments made on the blog. I am currently sitting in a class learning about Kidsiration and Inspiration. Ealrier I got a class on a new typing program, look for this in January. I have also sat in a class on What is new and next and technology. Let me say.....you aint seen nothing yet. In this class we got to see the new Playstation 3 and XBOX 360. Well, I better pay attention and I still have two more classes to attend this afternoon. I will write more later, keep up those comments. What a day.......

Did you get here by seeing my Camtasia presentation? If you did, leave a comment and show me some proof you could do it. Thanks for checking this out.

Mrs. Potter, Mrs. Whitehurst, and Mr. Wehner went to dinner tonight at Bonefish grill with the Soundfiled man, Dan from Audio Enhancement. It was great. It was a delcious dinner. We have a long day tomorrow, so this is it, will try and find time tomorrow to blog some more.

I am attending a pre-conference class on using Camtasia today. This is a program that allows me to record what occurs on the computer and replay it again. The possibilities are endless. What could you record on the computer for other people to see? Good questions for students as well as teachers. Leave me your comments. (I took the picture with my phone camera.)

This is Mr. Wehner blogging you from the road. I am on my way to Greensboro. Check back and see what I have learned on my trip. What are some new things you think we should learn in technology class? Leave a comment, will check them when I get to Greensboro. Be back on Friday!!!

After a few bumps in the road, the team is ready to go. Not as big of team as we had hoped, but still a very powerful team. Mr. Wehner will be departing on Monday to take advantage of some preconference seminars. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Whitehurst will be departing Tuesday afternoon and meet up with Mr. Wehner in Greensboro. Here is the link to their website: http://www.ncetc.org/ Look forward to bringing some awesome information back to Kitty Hawk ES.