Bonjour Montréal: A Conference, an Animation Workshop & So Much More
This month I was lucky enough to be invited to present at the recent Create, Collaborate, Innovate 2022 in Laval, Québec, A conference organized by the Sir Wilfred Laurier School Board, Lester B. Pearson School Board and LEARN Quebec which invites all English-speaking educators and pedagogical consultants working in Educational Technology to attend.
I jumped at the chance to present my workshop “The Power of Digital Literacy through Storytelling” about our on-going I Belong Digital Storytelling Workshop Series across Québec, meet old and new colleagues, and learn what tools and approaches other organizations & teachers are using in the Québec Ed Tech and Digital Literacy space.
And what a success it was!
CCI 2022 had a very positive, inspired and energetic feel to it, which is sadly not that common when it comes to conferences! It was the first time in several years that this event was held in-person, and you could literally feel and hear the happy connections as colleagues hugged, laughed, shared stories and space that happen only when we meet in-person. A highlight was keynote speaker and teacher Donnie Piercey who emphasized the power of creativity in the class, and how exciting, outside-the-box projects motivate students like no other. Another huge highlight was meeting the winner of our raffle prize - a teacher to 6 highschool students currently enrolled in a Drug Rehabilitation Program called Portage outside of Montreal won a free Digital Storytelling Workshop series with us. I also met some current and new project partners, plus secured a few new workshop series’ in Montréal which will begin in the Spring 2023.
Thank you to Ron and Tim for organizing such a powerful & awesome event!
While I was on the island of Montreal, I took the opportunity to meet up with some of our closest supporters for dinner - Zoe Wake Hyde, Roxanne Desforges, Charlotte Pivot and Tina Tenneriello — the women that make HOME what it is! I also took in a few classic Montreal sights, such as the wonderful Leonard Cohen mural downtown, a fantastic meal with friends at Salle Climatisée on St. Laurent (order everything on their menu!) and enjoyed 3 incredible new shows at the Musée des Beaux-Arts. Psst: Do not miss the Shary Boyle show in the lowest level!
But on my trip’s last day, I delivered a morning of in-person iPad Animation workshops with Special Needs students and teachers at Galileo Adult Learning Centre! What a treat to be able to meet everyone again, deepening our learning & relationships with each other. Teachers Vera and Vanessa were nervous to be using iPads in their classroom (since their usual tech-guru teacher Lisa Trotto is away on maternity leave) but they did a fantastic job in learning and using each new step. While there, we successfully completed the Production phase of each team’s project, with sound & titles being added this week with my virtual guidance from Vancouver.
Congrats to everyone at Galileo for their impressive creativity and projects, and I cannot wait to see the final projects at our Film Festival in a few weeks.