Ms. Diem's Room: EdCampDetroit

I love EdCamps!

If you've never been to an EdCamp, you are missing out. Yeah, they all happen on Saturdays, but you know what? There were over 300 educators registered for yesterday's event. 300 educators eager to give up a Saturday to go to PD.

Saturday + PD + 300 educators = come again?!

Oh, did I mention that EdCamps are FREE? Yep. That they are.

With all that, how can you not at least give it a try?

The session board for the day. SO many choices!

The format is generally the same - morning registration and brainstorming the day, followed by a brief kick-off given by one of the volunteers (no keynotes!) before everyone scatters off into one of the session rooms for the first slot.

Sessions. Created for the attendees, by the attendees. This is why even though #edcampdetroit was my fourth EdCamp, they're never dull! The sessions are created by those in attendance who want to share. Some sessions may be created by those who want to learn about a specific topic. There are panel discussions, round tables, traditional sessions, and everything in between. There are no vendors trying to sell the latest craze, no solicitors, just educators sharing what we like, and learning from each other.

Here are my highlights from #edcampdetroit:

Kahoot is even more fun than I thought it would be!
I. Love. Plickers. All you need is one handheld device (apple/droid) to make it work!
There is so much more to Augmented Reality than I realized!
I need to reconsider using Edmodo - thanks @TeamBond!
Cardboard Challenge. SO amazing! (read more about it here)
I love EdCamps. I love them more when my BFF goes with me!

Twitter is an amazing resource for connecting with educators. Face to Face meetings with said educators make it even more amazing!
(Pictures: top - exploring genius hour with Jennifer Bond, bottom- Playing with AR with Drew Minock and Erin Klein)