Response to the Year Two's Sources Conference Presentations

It was very exciting getting to see the year twos present their projects at the conference! I was struck at how legitimate they seemed and how impressive they were up in front of a group like that. It filled me with wonderment about my own trajectory: will I REALLY ever be able to put something like this together, and what's more, present my thinking as a respected, valued voice? It sends a delightful shiver of anticipation, slight nervousness, but also excitement all the way through me. The scope of the projects had me daydreaming on the many paths I would love to explore when it's my turn to think about these things.

All of the presentations under "Taking Action for Change: Kids and Teachers Reshaping Aspects of School Communities" helped me to really envision the directions I might take in elevating my students' thinking about social justice issues. I could tell the presenters were very passionate about the topics and could only imagine the infectious effect this must have on their learning community. It makes me take to heart the importance of finding my voice in this learning experience and making sure to honor what ignites me personally. I am specifically looking more deeply into the U.N. Rights of a Child that Joy Harrison focused on with her students. I think this might fit in very nicely for what I am already contemplating for my curriculum design. I was also really moved by Laura Arce's clear passion for providing her students with a user-friendly and exciting library, and got lots of ideas for how to incorporate the community in kid-centered action plans. I thought it was too bad that we didn't get to see Margaret Dantzler present her project "Working Towards School Wide Happiness and Safety: First Graders Take Action" because she has inspired me in the past when she has spoken to our group, and I think many of us would have benefited from seeing how these critical pedagogical ideas can be implemented in early grades.

All in all I thought the year twos did a fantastic job and held their own at this very professional conference! I can hardly believe I will be standing in that position in a year from now. I have a lot of work to do if I am going to be able to compare with these awesome projects.