A Bit of Tech to Entice Folks to Embrace Literacy

The Red Carpet comes out for grand events like the Emmys or the Oscars so I thought why not for literacy events as well. 

You can view the 30 second video here.

Today, was the unveiling of the Summer Serenity Gallery, a project that I have worked on for several months as detailed in my post, The Evolution of a Thought on DigLit Sunday. There were many lead-ups to the event as one would expect when trying to showcase writing. I had to become conversant with digital tools, such as PicMonkey, Canva, Animoto, and emaze, sharpen my editing and revision skills, collaborate with writers around the globe, and embrace creativity. 

It has been an amazing adventure that likens itself to the classroom learning experience. Educators, as learners, have passions (mine being reading, writing, photography, and decorating). These passions should be exhibited in our interactions with our own learners and colleagues. We, ourselves, need to learn, practice new skills, try them out, and apply them to different settings. We also need to accept missteps as steppingstones to success. How many times during the past few months did I say to myself, "Back to the drawing board?" When asked why do I spend endless hours creating a gallery of artistic expressions, the answer always is, "This is what I enjoy. I am learning through the creation process." Isn't this what we want every learner to say?

Today, I opened a gallery of artistic expressions. I offer the site to all to peruse because writing is a an amazing gift to give learners. It is the releasing of the voice within to give rise to collaborative conversations and from those a new thought. It is transparent as William Zinsser said, "Writing is thinking on paper." What we say becomes a series of crafted words that spirals, eventually lands on paper, and lingers in our minds. 

Please peruse the Gallery of Summer Serenity as a visitor does when entering a museum. Let the vibrant visuals, written words, and composition of the site allow you to linger in summer moments and spur you on to dig deeper into the writing process.

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