I had a couple of informative session this morning on GoogleEarth and Pixie. Some of the 11 a.m. sessions I wanted to visit were either standing room only (and here I am with my cane…) or no more room. So, I found a nice quiet spot near the Cyber Cafe where there’s plenty of coffee, a few things to snack on (yes, honey, I just ate the fruit),  and a chance to recharge the laptop and my Palm.

I think lunch will be starting in a few minutes, and sometime today, I will be going through the exhibit hall, which seems to have spilled into all the hallways around the conference center. There are several dozen kiosks set up all over the place.  I’ll snap a few shots for posterity as the day progresses.

Check back in a bit for more! Thanks!

Well, good morning, world!

After a decent night’s sleep, we’re up and ready to tackle the day. Rich K. and I caught the VSTE bus and took the short trip back to the conference center. We decided to park the car at the conference center since we had to pay for it anyway, and just take the bus back and forth.  The bus was packed, and the trip takes about 10 minutes or so.

Once at the conference center, we joined the mad rush to the continental breakfast. Fruit, coffee, pastries, coffee, quiches, coffee, coffee and coffee. (Spam, spam, spam, spam – sing along!) I zipped into the exhibit hall, which was still waking up, and grabbed a couple of NETS-T in Progress buttons for Rich and me. Apparently if you are caught wearing a NETS-T button, there is cash involved.

After reviewing the schedule for today, I decided to hit the Google Earth session first thing, and I’ll sit in on the Pixie class next.  I’m still deciding what my schedule will look like for the rest of the day.

Also we have been told that if we hit the merchandising booth at 2:22 today and spend at least $22, there will be a special gift – could have something to do with the 22nd anniversary of the conference.

Along the way today, I will be taking more photos, and hopefully be posting them by the end of the day. 

That’s all for now. I will be posting as time (and my battery) permits.

Well, the Hillbilly Hoedown is still going, or at least the band, the Carpenter Ants, is still playing. They are more of a faux hillbilly band, playing a lot of songs that, frankly, I’ve never heard. (Daddy Was A Biggun, Momma Was A Biggun, Too – no kidding).

We enjoyed a meal of roast beef, fried (sort of) chicken, ham, green beans, corn bread, grits, and biscuits. Photos of the VB crew enjoying themselves should be available soon – Janene is going to NING hers, and perhaps I will do the same, then link them to the blog.

Speaking of things we’ve enjoyed today, the presentation by Hall Davidson of Discovery was both entertaining AND informative. Hopefully there will be links to his presentation through the NING site at some point.

Rich and I finally checked into our room early this evening, so we are not homeless this trip.

Okay, here are the photos I have uploaded to the VSTEOnline NING website.

A group of us are sitting together at the keynote – Rich, Katie, Kristie and me!  Hopefully later I can post a picture or two.

It’s amazing all of the twittering that has been going on this afternoon.

Right now, we are listening to information about Thinkfinity, who is giving a grant of almost $54,000 to VDOE for technology training for teachers. Cool.

The head of Discovery Education is about to speak, so I am just gonna shut down and save my batteries. Keep checking back.

Looking forward to getting more resources of integrating Internet Safety into our curriculum. The presenters have provided this link as a starting point for this session. 

In other good news, Rich and I now have a room confirmation. Hopefully we will get to the hotel between the keynote and the Hillbilly Hoedown. Otherwise, I am still in my traveling sweats.  I REALLY would like to change clothes at some point.

At some point, when I have a little down time, I want to work on the look of the blog’s front page. May get to do that sometime after the hoedown.

See you in a few!

Good afternoon, everyone! Rich and I left the Beach at about 8 a.m. today, and made the trip (with one stop for gas and soda) in just over 4 hours. A pleasant ride, as Rich and I spent the time talking about school, family, technology, and so forth.  We arrived at the hotel we are (supposed to be) staying at for the next couple of days. First little snag– they cannot find either of our names on the registration list. Fortunately, there’s a problem solver booth, and we are supposed to be meeting with a gentleman who can help us, so we’ll see. I’ll let you know. Otherwise, Janene may have a couple of guests in her room

Speaking of the conference center, this place is huge and CROWDED. Rich and I parked the company car in overnight parking (we plan to take the bus back and forth, once we get into a hotel),  and took the million stairs up and around to the entrance. We checked in with registration after saying Hi to Janene (she’s looking for a Dell charger, BTW, if you happen to bring one).  Got a nice VSTE bag with CDs, maps, books, brochures, etc. 

 Rich headed off in one direction, and I am sitting in the First-timers session. Dan, the presenter, is very entertaining, and is giving away a lot of memorabilia to many of the attendees.  I’ll meet up with Rich after my session, and hopefully we’ll be getting the hotel situation straightened out.

Signing off for now. I’ll check back in a bit later. 

Hello, everyone. This will be the first time I have attended the Virginia Society for Technology in Education. Since I did not start this blog back in August like I wanted to, I have decided to begin it now. My mentor, Rich K., and I will be leaving the Beach in a division car early Sunday morning, with hopes of arriving in Roanoke, Va., around 1 p.m. I’m really looking forward to having a good time, meeting a lot of like-minded educators, and working with the latest in technology for the classroom.  In the meantime, I need to finish packing (what WILL I wear to the Hillbilly Hoedown?), make sure all my gadgets are charged (do they make a notebook bag with a built-in power strip?) and finish converting a few of my favorite movies to travel friendly formats, in case I have the time to catch a flick or two. 

Keep an eye out for updates. Until then, back to packing!