Mrs. Schmidt Goes to Washington - Day Two

Nighttime view of the Capitol

In the subway tunnel

Traveling down under D.C. to ride the Metro, a meal at Union Station, and then a rainy walk to the Capitol at night – just something special about D.C.  It is overwhelming to think so any decisions made here that impact our lives across the nation especially when it comes to issues related to education. 

 

Today was filled with SMART Technology training.  We were engaged in a collaborative digital learning environment with lots of hands-on experience with this technology tool.  We were divided into teams and created interactive units related to the monuments.  Our group focused on the controversy surrounding the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Monument which leads us to the essential questions – What do monuments represent?  What symbolism is used?  Does the monument truly represent the ideals of the person it honors?

 We inserted visual learning through video and pictures, activities using Bloom’s taxonomy, and incorporated the Common Core to assure mastery of standards.  As we collaboratively developed our unit we experienced firsthand the power of collaboration – each of us completing part of the unit based upon our talents and interests.

The serenade to babies

The evening ended with a banquet provided by SMART Technology and a slide show of each TOY in their classroom and photos from their awards ceremony, all put to music.  A very touching presentation!  We also presented baby gifts to the three babies that were born since we last met in Arizona this past January.  Each received hand-made beaded moccasins, gift cards, and a quilt embroidered with:  My Daddy/Mommy is my Favorite TOY.  The OK Toy sang “Hush Little Baby” while the proud parents held their babies up for all to see.  Once the banquet was complete we lined up by height in preparation for our visit to the White House on Thursday.  We collected our TOY T-shirts which we will don after the White House for a flash mob dance at a local area in D.C.  

TOYS - KY, IA, WI, Virgin Islands

TOYS - RI, IA

Another very special day - each of us carrying with us the ideals of the teachers from our state.  We will strive to represent their voices!