#HiveSummit 2018 (part 1)

#HiveSummit is a digital conference for educators that kicked off on August 1st 2018 and will continue until August 14th. The first four days have been inspiring and thought-provoking. It’s not too late to sign up and it’s completely free, so I encourage you to get involved.

Throughout the conference, teachers (the “busy bees”) gather at the hive to watch daily discussions with Michael Matera and a guest speaker from his fantastic lineup. Helpfully, each video is accompanied by Ashley Nesbit‘s notes and a sketchnote by Monica Spillman. PD certificates are also available. The discussions continue on Twitter as participants are encouraged to share their written and/or visual responses. Even if you’re late to the party, the links to the previous videos will be included in your welcome email after you sign up. There’s plenty of time to catch up on what you have missed.

Watch Michael’s introductory video below. Then, click here to sign up.

Below is a summary of the first four days and a peek at what’s to come.

Day 1: Michael Cohen (@TheTechRabbi)

This video mainly explores the concept of creativity. Michael Cohen (also known as the Tech Rabbi) reminds us that creativity is not reserved for a select few. Nor do we achieve it overnight. Rather, creativity is revealed over time through practise, endurance, small victories, reflection and “failing forwards”. Michael suggests ways to cultivate creativity in our students through design thinking and 20% time, for example. Both Michaels suggest that passive consumption in classrooms should, where possible, lead to some sort of creative application.

Day 2: Carrie Baughcum (@HeckAwesome)

In this video, Carrie outlines the benefits of visual notetaking and shares her passion for sketchnotes. As she explains, sketchnotes are not about being an artist or creating a perfect product. Therefore, we don’t need to be intimidated by the professional-looking ones that often circulate online. Rather, sketchnotes are about capturing ideas, visualising and making connections. Carrie suggests some ways to introduce sketchnoting to students in fun, calming and supportive ways. The video will hopefully inspire you to get doodling, like it did me. My sketchnote below might not look like much, but I’m reliably informed by Carrie that it is, in fact, “awsomesauce”.

Day 3: Rick Wormeli (@rickwormeli2)

So many big ideas are explored in this video! Rick encourages us to rethink our traditional approaches to teaching and to challenge the status quo. To highlight just a few of these topics, the discussions explore grading, teacher observations, professionalism, how to bring about change and taking charge of our own PD. Interestingly, Rick observes that most teachers don’t publicly articulate their beliefs or invite critique. For this reason, ideas often go unchallenged and complacency kicks in. “An unexamined pedagogy limits kids,” he explains.

Day 4: Tara Martin (@TaraMartinEDU)

Tara is the author of Be REAL: Educate from the Heart (a book that I highly recommend) and the brains behind #BookSnaps. In this video, she shares some key messages from the book about being REAL (Relatable, Expose vulnerability, Approachable and Learning through life). She also explains the origin and benefits of #BookSnaps. In particular, I enjoyed listening to her and Michael discuss her cannonball-in mantra. Although we occasionally belly-flop, our risk-taking makes splashes and waves. As Tara states, we shouldn’t listen to the critical dabblers on the side. Instead, we can drench them with our splashes and make them want to join! Whatever your goals are, cannonball in!

Upcoming speakers:

Day 5: Matt Miller (@jmattmiller)

Day 6: Michael Matera (@mmatera)

Day 7: Sarah Thomas (@sarahdateechur)

Day 8: Joe Sanfelippo (@Joe_Sanfelippo)

Day 9: Dave Burgess (@burgessdave)

As you enjoy these videos, don’t forget to join the discussions on Twitter. Share your thoughts using the hashtag (#HiveSummit) and see what others are sharing too. Let’s keep the discussions and the learning going.

“My goal here at the #HiveSummit is to introduce you to people and ideas that will help launch your school year. Together by watching, tweeting and connecting we are building a positive PLN that will produce some sweet results.”

Michael Matera

If you feel guilty about having such high-quality PD without paying anything, participants are welcome to “BEE the change” by donating to non-profit organisation Kiva (although it’s entirely optional). Click here for more information.

Once again, here’s the signup link. Remember, you’ll receive links to all of the previous videos when you join. Welcome to the hive!

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