The White Elephant- One man's trash is another man's treasure!


Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary says that a white elephant is a property requiring much care and expense, and while it may not be of value to its present owner, the object may have value to others. That exactly describes a gift at a white elephant party.

My White Elephant-

With the ever changing climate in education and the integration of technology, often technology can be the White Elephant in the Room.  For some it is a treasure they can't wait to open. For others, they pass it to the next person not quite ready for the gift that it is. However, just like any white elephant gift, there is a curiosity when it is opened from those sitting nearby.  They begin to wonder and think, what is that for? Why would someone want that? Who thought that was a good gift?
  
You may laugh at this comparison, but I'm sure it got you thinking.  No matter where you are on integrating technology, the gift of knowledge using it effectively can not be measured. The amount of engagement, curiosity, wow factor, aha moments, and captured learning moments are a sign of the transformation taking place in and out of the classroom.

For my students integrating technology has changed my classroom culture. I use a rotation method and link technology to learning.  Often when asked how I plan, it's pretty much the same as I always have. I start with the end in mind.  What do I expect my students to learn, how can I facilitate and nurture that, and what will the end result be?  I often take units that I love and restructure them to include a technology component.  I have favorites I like to use, but they vary from unit to unit depending on the purpose. Not everything I do requires students to be on devices all the time. I am a huge advocate for hands on integrated learning, as are many teachers.  The difference is technology is now one of the ways I integrate and connect learning.

I decided to start to write about my classroom because I have learned so much from others.  The idea of the white elephant  in reference to technology popped into my thinking, especially when you see someone open a gift that you want.  I WANTED this gift and have been fortunate enough to be in a district that has embraced it wholeheartedly! When I first started my head was swimming: how can I use that device? How do I manage it? I only have 5 how will I provide opportunity for all students?  What can I do with that? I wonder how it we can connect content with others? Can we ask experts? Can we explore the world? Rotations saved me and I learned as I went. So many things have changed in the two years I've done this, and I just feel like technology is the gift that keeps on giving!

The power and magnitude behind technology is a treasure still waiting to be found.  If you think of explorers and how they searched to find lost treasures that would open the doors for them, technology is very much the treasure in a child's hands.  It can be a tool rich with learning.  The creativity it unleashes is endless.  It is today's white elephant gift.