Engineer your future . . . Become a teacher!
On Tuesday, January 29, 2008, high school students from fifteen schools across DODDS packed their bags into cars and buses and made their way to the “Fifth Annual DoDDS-E Future Educators Association Conference” in Garmisch, Germany. Once they all made it to the lodge students checked in and selected which sessions they wanted. The following sessions were offered:
- Financing Your Dream
- Using Brain-Based Teaching Strategies
- Education Jeopardy
- Using Technology That Works
- Freshman Life 101
- The Truth About ADD/ADHD Students
- Teaching The Medically Involved Child
- Razzle and Dazzle Them And They'll Make You a Star
- Teaching Reading Comprehension
- Welcome To First Grade
- Survival Beyond The Freshman 15
- What Is Your Style?
- The Silent Minority
After choosing their sessions they settled into their rooms. Once all students settled into their rooms it was free time! Many chose to hit the hot-tub while others checked out the gym, game-room, gift shop, café, and all the other things offered by the hotel. Dinner was served at 5:30 pm. During dinner we met new people and made new friends.
At 7:30 pm we all gathered into the main room to be welcomed by our previous officers and to break the ice by describing what characteristics a teacher should have. We had to use our descriptions to draw our perfect teacher and share one characteristic with the entire room. Following the ice breaker we were informed the do's and don'ts of the conference from our Deans Mrs. Hooker and Mr. Swint. Then our first guest speaker Mr. Lucky Moore took the stage and told us the six things a teacher should have by using M&Ms. We all laughed and enjoyed his speech mostly because we got to eat the M&Ms at the end of his speech. At 11:00 pm it was time to shut your eyes and get a good night's sleep for the following day.
The next day Wednesday, January 30, 2008, began with breakfast at around 7:00 am. At 9:00 am we all headed into the main room for the first session of the day called “The Gift of Teaching” presented by Ms. Crissy Lauterbach and students from Cincinnati, Ohio. Their presentation involved slide shows, activities that required students to get up and move their body, speeches that lasted a minute, and many more exciting activities. The second session started around 10:30 am and lasted to 11:45 am. After the second session students rushed to lunch and relaxed before sessions continued.
At 1:00 pm the third session began then an hour-and-half later the fourth opened its doors to eager learners. A speed panel was constructed at 3:45 pm to give students the opportunity to spend some quality time with professionals from different educational fields. Once the speed panel was over it was study time or you could just relax and hang with friends. Dinner was at 5:30 like the day before, then right after supper we all gathered together to listen to Dr. Rick Burcham. He moved the crowd with his compelling life story. He urged future teachers to be true to themselves and teach with all the love and passion they had. Following Dr. Burcham's speech was the hopeful FEA Officers speeches. They moved us with their down to earth personalities, which made it easy to vote for whom we wanted to be the FEA Officers for 2008.
For the first time there was a talent show. FEA Chapters from different schools came up with a creative talents which related to education. Many made us laugh with their creative ways of making educational raps, in the end the Oscar went to Ramstein who gave the song Soldier Boy a new twist. The second day was long but fun and ended like the first with lights out promptly at 11:00 pm.
Thursday, January 31, 2008, began with breakfast followed by the fifth and sixth sessions. Lunch was like usual a time to socialize with new people and seemed to grow shorter each day. The seventh and eighth sessions were the final sessions of the day and conference. Before students could run off to dinner they watched the electronic scrapbook exhibition which showcased Hanau's and Mannheim's impressive skills with the computer.
After dinner it was time to listen to the final guest speaker Ms. Maureen Becker, who informed us on the different occupations rising in the education career field. She used cootie catchers to demonstrate how speech therapists helped students with speaking disabilities overcome their disabilities. Then came the moment everyone had been waiting for time to announce the new FEA Officers. The polls had opened at 9:00 am the same morning. Congratulations to the FEA Officers for 2008-2009.
Before everyone could make their way to bed it was “Fun Night”. Students had the choice to either go swimming or go ice-skating. Both proved to be equally exciting and created a happiness which proved to be contagious. Like all nights end, the “Fun Night” ended, but before everyone headed to bed they exchanged e-mails so they could chat whenever they wanted.
The morning of Friday, February 01, 2008, was filled with goodbyes, hugs, and “I'll miss you.” Even though we wanted to stay we dragged ourselves out of bed and made our way to breakfast. The goodbyes were the hardest part; we made friends with some of the most talented people known to mankind. However, painful it was we hauled our bags into buses and drove away from Edelweiss Lodge.
It was the end of the 2008 conference and everybody seemed to enjoy every second of it. We learned so many neat things like what a learning style was, how to razzle and dazzle a class, manage our finances, and much more. All in all we learned what it takes to be the best teacher we can be. Not only did we learn what it takes to be an awesome teacher, we made connections with people that will last a lifetime. The 2008 conference was hit with all. It motivated us to pursue our dreams of becoming a teacher. I personally look forward to the 2009 FEA Conference because with all the neat stuff I learned now who knows what I'll learn next year!
Teaching is not just a career…it's a lifestyle…no matter what there will always be teachers!
Destinee Baucum
Secretary, FEA European State Chapter |
