10 Reasons I'm Excited about #EdcampSTL


http://goo.gl/16Zut
 The past few days, @wmchamberlain  has been tweeting reasons to attend #EdcampSTL, a participant driven unconference.  As I have been reading and retweeting, I started thinking about why I can't wait for Edcamp to get here in19 days.

Here is my list of ten reasons I'm excited about #EdcampSTL.  

1.  Edcamp is a day of FREE learning.  Many educators are attracted to edcamps instead of traditional conferences for many reasons, but in my opinion, one of the most attractive aspects of #EdcampSTL is that it is totally free.  Edcamps do not advertise world-renowned speakers but sessions and professional discussions led and facilitated by the participants. 

2.  A chance to reconnect with educators I met at #METC_CSD and #EdcampKC.  Professional discussions and Twitter chats are a great way to stay connected with members of my PLN throughout the year, but it's always great to get to meet with like-minded educators face to face and continue our discussions from Twitter at Edcamp.

3.  I have a great chance to expand my PLN.  While much of any edcamp's publicity takes place on Twitter, Edcamp isn't all about Twitter.  Attending #EdcampSTL gives me and all the other participants an opportunity to meet a wide variety of stakeholders in the educational process: teachers, principals, superintendents, and even students and community members.  All of these people can help make us all better educators.  

4.  Amazing impromptu discussions and learning opportunities.  While conferences like #METC12 allow me to look forward to hearing from amazing speakers and presenters, #EdcampSTL allows participants to host sessions and facilitate discussions that are pertinent to the participants that day. 

5.  My Twitter account will see more action than it has in weeks.   Edcamp is sure to produce plenty of tweetable moments.  I will want to spread the Edcamp message to those not in attendance, help create the back-channel conversation that makes up one of the most beneficial parts of any conference, and share stories and jokes with other participants.  

6.  Friday night's tweet-up.  No edcamp would be complete with a tweet-up the night before.  Since I missed the #EdcampKC tweet-up in November, I'm twice as excited to get the #EdcampSTL weekend off to a great start by networking with participants at the tweet-up.  

7.  Sharing my knowledge with my face to face colleagues at work on Monday.  Unfortunately every educator in the area won't attend #EdcampSTL, but I will be sure to share everything I learned with my colleagues when I get back to work.


8.  Free stuff is great.  Not only is #EdcampSTL a free conference but the organizers (@cmcgee200 and @ideaguy42) have arranged giveaways at the end of the day.

9.  #EdcampSTL gives me a great excuse to wear my #coolshirtcrew shirt.  Be sure to look for me sporting the @jpprezz t-shirt.  You can even scan the QR code on my back to visit my blog while we talk.

10.  #EdcampSTL helps me remember that I'm not alone.  Edcamps give participants the opportunity to meet and talk with like-minded educators whose main goal is to have a positive impact on students' lives.


What are your favorite aspects of edcamps?  Use the comment section to share what you love about attending edcamps. 

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