The classroom can be a challenging place for the novice or the most expert learner.

As teachers we need to remember to make the classroom a creative space while challenging our students to be creative.

My takeaways is to make sure that my lessons going forward ignite the imagination and creativity in my students while helping them learn.

In my classroom there will be more to leaning than just memorization. There will be hands on, peer to peer teaching, and a chance to showcase their creativity.

As teachers we need to remember that learning new things can be frustrating. Frustrations make students look for other ways to come to the final answer.
We need to find a way to encourage our students that to try and fail is to succeed unlike not trying at all.

The best moment in a teachers life is to see that lightbulb moment. Over the last thirteen weeks I have had many of them. There have been frustrations with every project by trying to be different ot to be to creative. Then the light bulb will turn on and I am able to pull it together. It may be perfect, but with practice it could be amazing.

Practice, practice, practice. This is what we try to instill in out students whether it is in the classroom or on the sports field. As teachers we need to remember to give plenty of time for practice. Give the lesson, teach the project, then have students practice the project giving them time to make it amazing.

Another takeaway is the knowledge that I have gained over the last few weeks.
I am not a teacher by trade, I fell into it. Being that I fell into it it seems that everytime I join a new class, conference, or online course I find that there are more resources out there then one can imagine.
I have created a bookmark and folder on my computer to put things so that when there is time I can experiment and practice something new for my students.

Knowing the WHY we teach is the only way students will believe in the lesson.
Always ask:
Why do I teach?
Why am I teaching this lesson?
and Why will my students need to know this lesson?

There must always be an end to the journey. I hope that your end is a positive one and that like me you are ready to help students Create, Imagine, and Learn.