It all started in late May, when I got my acceptance letter to join the Teachers for Global Classrooms Program a program sponsored by IREX. I was so excited to be accepted one of 80 out of 500 who applied.Teachers for Global Classrooms is an amazing program to bring global competencies into my classroom and get resources and knowledge to prepare my students for the 21st Century. The program consists of an eight week online course, followed by a symposium in Washington DC and then either a 2 or 3 week international field experience.
In early October, the online class began. I receive the syllabus and that's when my head started to spin, I wondered if I was going to be able to complete this in depth rigorous online class. There were challenges for me. My first challenge was to make a Pinterest board. I thought to myself a Pinterest board, I have no idea how to do a Pinterest board. I found someone who knew how to use the Pinterest board and boom! I loved it! I had a blast making boards and pinning topics and ideas to my board. Well, I took a deep breath and only looked at a week at a time and dug into it one topic/lesson at a time. Before I knew it the eight weeks were up I had unit plans, lesson plans, an informational power presentation on Global Education, and an idea of what my capstone project was going to entail. I did it! I had successfully completed the online course. To my surprise, I won $25 gift card to AMAZON for my Pinterest boad. _My Pinterest Boards
The suspense! Where would I be traveling? And when would I travel? It was about a week after the successful completion of the online class and I got my itinerary for the symposium in Washington DC. Found out then that one of my school administrators would be traveling with me to the symposium. The suspense was still there for another month. Now it was early January. I got my email! I was going to Rabat, Morocco in early March for two weeks. Now, I wait for my itinerary...and start getting ready for my trip. I must learn a few Arabic words, make sure I get my Hepatitis A and Typhoid vaccinations, go through my wardrobe to make sure I have appropriate clothes for my trip. Where to begin?
In early October, the online class began. I receive the syllabus and that's when my head started to spin, I wondered if I was going to be able to complete this in depth rigorous online class. There were challenges for me. My first challenge was to make a Pinterest board. I thought to myself a Pinterest board, I have no idea how to do a Pinterest board. I found someone who knew how to use the Pinterest board and boom! I loved it! I had a blast making boards and pinning topics and ideas to my board. Well, I took a deep breath and only looked at a week at a time and dug into it one topic/lesson at a time. Before I knew it the eight weeks were up I had unit plans, lesson plans, an informational power presentation on Global Education, and an idea of what my capstone project was going to entail. I did it! I had successfully completed the online course. To my surprise, I won $25 gift card to AMAZON for my Pinterest boad. _My Pinterest Boards
The suspense! Where would I be traveling? And when would I travel? It was about a week after the successful completion of the online class and I got my itinerary for the symposium in Washington DC. Found out then that one of my school administrators would be traveling with me to the symposium. The suspense was still there for another month. Now it was early January. I got my email! I was going to Rabat, Morocco in early March for two weeks. Now, I wait for my itinerary...and start getting ready for my trip. I must learn a few Arabic words, make sure I get my Hepatitis A and Typhoid vaccinations, go through my wardrobe to make sure I have appropriate clothes for my trip. Where to begin?