Reality

All of us who are "of an age" remember that late 1970s/early 1980s commercial featuring the chorus of the Carly Simon song "Anticipation" for Heinz ketchup.  While the lyrics have absolutely nothing to do with ketchup (and yet most of us associate the song with the product), it does serve as a fitting opening for that start of a new school year.  For the past few days, I have found myself alternately dreading the arrival of this day (for fear that I am not ready, the students won't like the things that I have planned, etc.) or hurrying it along (so excited that I get to share some of the things that I want to share with my students, colleagues, etc.), and Carly Simon has been running around in my head.  (I know, I am not particularly happy with it either).

But, whether dreading it or hurrying it, today came and went with what was probably the amount of fanfare expected for the first day of school with sophomores.  I guess that is the reality of all things.  By the end of the day, my head was going 'round and 'round, but I hope I got my basic message across to the students who crossed my threshold today.  That collaboration is OK and that often the person sitting next to them has the right answer.  That technology is going to be their friend and that they are going to be exposed to new ways to do some of the same old things.  And that just because they haven't experienced something before, they shouldn't be afraid of what is to come.

Tomorrow my students will register for the web 2.0 tools that we are going to use during the year.  Only time will tell what the reality is that will come of that.