TAP Into Learning Day Goes UNconference!

For the third year in a row, the Le Jardin Academy "Schools of the Future" Committee is hosting a full day of professional development for our staff on February 18th, 2014.  Our "Tap into Learning" day is designed to allow the faculty and staff to invest precious time into learning and growing in a number of areas.  TAP, or Teachers as Professionals, is an ongoing program designed to provide in-house professional development opportunities spaced out throughout the year.  Our teachers use this day as an an opportunity to practice and model "lifelong learning" skills.

The first half of the day is comprised of 3 rounds of 45 minute sessions hosted by our faculty and staff.  With over 30 presentations on a great variety of topics, there is truly a session for everyone.  This year, we have a few tracks to help teachers out who want to concentrate and focus on a topic.  These tracks include iPad Apps for Early Education, iPad Apps for Creativity in the Classroom, Google Apps for Education, Differentiated Learning and Inquiry.  What is exciting is that many of the presentations being given are by teachers who are presenting in a TAP session for the very first time.  We're hoping that many of the days sessions will also evolve into an after-school TAP session going forward.

After lunch, teachers will then participate in an an unstructured learning opportunity...  Taking our lead from the EdCamp Honolulu Session held at Iolani school in October last year, our Schools of the Future Planning Committee will provide a mini-UNconference on our campus.  The purpose of this activity is to give our teachers an opportunity to bring forth their own ideas for discussion.  Ideas that need to be addressed, plans thought about but never acted on, programs from other schools... all are open for discussion as the days participants create their own session based on the topics and ideas that matter most to them.  Those who propose topics will not be required to present, but instead facilitate a conversation on the topic.

Back by popular demand is the hosted ice cream social where we'll raffle off a $100 dollars in cash and other great prizes to those who participate by filling out our post-session reflections.  Each reflection results in an entry to the prize drawings.

Information about our sessions from last year and 2012 can be found here: LJA TAP Into Learning Day 2013 & "LJA Express 2012."

Here's what's on TAP for Today!

Time	What	Where
8:00	Coffee  and Continental Breakfast	Wang Eave
8:30	Welcome	Wang
8:45-9:35	Session 1	TAP Into Learning Session Descriptions
	Online Reflection and Passing Time
9:50-10:40	Session 2
	Online Reflection and Passing Time
10:55-11:45	Session 3
	Online Reflection and Passing Time
12:00-1:00	Lunch	MS Courtyard
1:00-1:20	UNconference Planning	The Harold
1:30-2:05	UNconference Session 1
	Online Reflection and Passing Time
2:20-2:55	UNconference Session 2
2:55-3:00	Ice-Cream Social (provided!) Raffle Drawing and Wrap Up Grand Prize $100 Cash (Remember: Your reflections are your tickets!)	MS Courtyard

Image Credits:

• Mini-UNconference Wall by Sean Connors
•  GrapeNut IceCream by Kristen Taylor