The Magic of an Unconference

I have heard a lot about the magic of the edCamp unconference, which promotes “organic, participant driven professional development for K12 educators worldwide,” and as a first timer I was really impressed. Sounds so simple– people show up, decide what they want to talk about, organize themselves in sessions throughout the day and begin. Yet as someone who has organized several events, especially for teachers, it is pretty crazy how smoothly the entire production unfolded given that a majority of the planning happens in real time. Massive shout-out to Diane Main and Bill Selak, with support from several amazing sponsors (like Remind101), on making the magic happen.

I was bummed I couldn’t attend the morning sessions but glad I got to connect with some of my favorite edu folks and enjoyed the smackdown. I think Storify is the best way to capture the highlights from the smackdown where attendees took turns coming up and sharing tips and tricks about the tools they love and new ones they plan on trying out. 

Lots of love for ImagineK12 alumni with mentions of Remind101, EdShelf, Educreations and more…

There were also shout-outs to usual suspects Edmodo and Quizlet. The one I’m going to try out is YouTube video editor to help with all my TeacherSquare videos.