Reflecting On the Year

As the school year comes to an end, it's easy to get caught up in the stress of the end of the year and just being ready to have a break. I know my last few months have been completely insane and I am certainly ready to have a chance to breathe. But I think it is important to reflect back on your successes. It could be a project that went well, a student who finally understood something after struggling, something new you learned at a professional development session, a new relationship you developed over the year, or really just anything that made you smile this year.

I'll start.

• In the last few days, we've had a whole bunch of seniors coming to the library and thanking us for supporting them over the last four years. They comment on appreciating how much we have done for them. Just like anyone else in a school, we don't do anything for recognition. We just do what is right and what is best for everyone in the building. But to hear the students comment on how sweet our staff is or how much we have helped them...it warms our hearts and shows us that the things we've worked for are actually making a difference.

• Continuing on the library trend...we've jumped into a bunch of new projects/initiatives this year. We did March Book Madness, we did the Read-a-Thon, we did a variety of crafting events both during and after school, and we did valentines for nursing home residents. I'm sure we did more, but those are the ones that stand out right now. Again, we did these things because we thought they would be fun, but we didn't necessarily expect them to be popular. Every single one of those events was incredibly successful. We got buy-in from students and teachers and at the end of the day, we all just had a blast.

• Moving on to something more personal...I am never one to shy away from new technology. I've always been an "early adopter". But in the last few years, I think I might have learned more than I did in the rest of my career combined! This year, I pushed myself to learn how to use a new tool so I could make things easier for the people in this district. It was a ton of work. I gave up a lot of my own time (nights, weekends, vacations, etc.) but I had SO MUCH fun doing it. I love to learn new things and I feel really good about what I produced. I don't often say this, but I was proud of myself.

• Finally...I decided to make it a goal of mine this year to get outside of the building a bit more. I love supporting the teachers at Londonderry High School and I have no intention of leaving any time soon, but I did think it would help me grow as a Digital Learning Specialist if I started presenting at conferences. This year, I was lucky enough to be accepted as a presenter at a total of 7 outside locations...including my upcoming session at the ISTE conference (which is BIG deal in the technology world!) Each opportunity has given me a chance to collaborate with others from around the state, region, and country and to interact with a variety of different teachers at all levels. I feel really good about pushing myself to do this. I've come a long way from turning beet red and sweating any time I was forced to speak in front of others!

I don't usually ask for comments on my posts, but I'd love it if anyone would be willing to share their own successes for this year. What are you proud of? What made you smile this year?

Have a great summer!!