Saturday, Brian, Carl, Paula, Tiffany and I threw a party for some of our PLN friends.
We had door prizes, snacks, drinks, sandwiches, good conversations, entertainment and great guests.
The ‘party’ idea came to me as a read some of @amandacdykes posts about her edcamp Birmingham experiences. She kept talking about the conversations that were going on between the campers.
That prompted me to think about the comfortable networking that happens at good parties. People mingle and talk to one another and mingle and talk to one another. The talk is often polite meaningless talk but every so often you get really lucky and strike up conversations with people who are funny, interesting and helpful. That is what I wanted for EdCamp Louisiana. A party where like minded people could spend time talking, sharing and networking.
I realized that because our party guests would be coming out to have meaningful conversations about topics that interested them, some of the burden and pressure of hosting a great party was lifted from my shoulders. I didn’t have to create silly party games to try to entertain people. We all wanted to be at the party. We all wanted to talk to one another. That sounded like the beginning of a great party. So I went out and got some snacks, drinks and door prizes. I shifted my thinking from having a conference to having a party. I wanted us to have fun and mingle as we talked about educational things. Party with a Purpose. Whoo Hoo
At our EdCamp Louisiana party, We …
- ate danishes
- talked about working with parents
- exchanged numbers
- drank coffee and/or soft drinks
- talked about iPads
- showed off digital storytelling tools
- linked up QR codes
- added each other to Google + circles
- shared ideas about wikis and blogs
- listened to tips and suggestions
- heard from students and future teacher leaders
- made contact with World War II Museum officials
- created vodcasts
- published 6 word memoirs
I had a great time and can’t wait until next year.
I did not know how many people would come but I am pleased with our numbers.
Our small numbers were manageable and comfortable, 30 out of the 69 registered. I am satisfied. I am pleased with it all and wouldn’t change a thing.
Well, that’s not true. I would change 2 things.
1. We did the sign up board Saturday morning and created our schedules and then let the campers loose. Next year I want to have more pre-EdCamp conversations to feel out the most popular sessions so that campers don’t miss one trying to make it to another. I want us to be able to repeat some of the most popular topics so that everyone has a chance to experience everything that they want to see and hear and do.
2. I want the final sessions to be BYOL sessions. My hope is that our earlier conversations spark so much interest and enthusiasm that we are all driven to continue our learning and connecting. I want us to share resources, get ideas and then spend the last session of the day DOING what we learned. I want us to create wikis, blogs, twitter accounts, delicious bookmarks, google forms, collaborative projects, etc.
All in All, I am wrapping up my EdCamp experience until next year. @EdCampLa will not be tweeting for much longer. I will be working on our Resource Wiki, uploading videos and pictures.
@EdCampLa has been a huge part of my focus and will be missed…
