Day 25 #CELI17 #SOL17

Today I had the chance to participate in the Connected Educators Long Island Summit (#CELI17), sponsored in my district, Farmingdale. It was an honor to be asked to be part of the panel that was the opening conversation for the day. The panel included education leaders (Superintendent and Principal), teachers, and students! The students were middle schoolers who spoke articulately and with conviction about how schools should look and feel. Their driving message was "Let students follow their passions." 

 At the end of the Summit, this video was shared:

The difference between the adult answers and the kid answers was startling and revealing. Why do we go to our flaws first? The kids in the video thought of ways to improve upon their already fabulous selves. The adults thought of all the ways their self needed to change. What if we saw ourselves through a lens of possibility and positivity? How might we be able to create a better life if that is the lens we use?

Thoughts are still percolating, but I am grateful to have been part of a day of learning, innovation and inspiration. 

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