What Dreams Do We Have for Our Students?

Over the past three weeks I helped our high school principal, Loren Dockins, with a vision setting activity that has been encouraging. I say that based on the responses we received and the excitement we have at continuing the work. We still have a lot to sort through and much work ahead on the overall plan.

I'll share the document we used and describe how we ran it below. I'll also explain why I think the starting point is so powerful. First, here's some brief background.

It's coming up on two years since our district first shut down due to COVID-19. Like nearly every school, the ups and downs of dealing with the virus has made it very difficult to focus on long term goals and overall direction. We wanted a course correction.

Loren and I met with Dr. Scott McLeod at the end of 2021. That led to some rough plans for activities to involve teachers in setting a vision for our high school. Dr. McLeod suggested we look at the Portrait of a Graduate website for ideas. I was particularly inspired by this article, Dream, Don't Fix, which I found on that site.

The article talked about starting with a dream instead of a problem we want to fix. That was interesting enough to me, but what really caught my attention was that dream was not our dream for us. It suggested starting with what teachers dream for their students.

For all the talk I've done the past 15 years about what's right for students, I don't think I ever articulated the dream I had for them. What do I want for the students who go through our school? Not just in some vague sense, but what would I say if I had to state it concisely? What do my colleagues and my administrators dream for them?

So from that article and all our discussion, I drafted three questions and ran them by Loren. We fleshed it out more together, then sent it to Dr. McLeod for feedback. He thought the questions were excellent. He reminded us that whatever we get back from teachers, their answers would help us know where we are at and what our next steps should be.

My suggestion for this activity was to require every teacher to work on it alone. We had discussed similar questions before in groups, but in retrospect, I didn't see much impact of those meetings. Loren agreed we needed to let each of them work alone. He sent this Google Doc (through Google Classroom) to teachers with very little additional information. Loren he only urged them to take their responses seriously. It was important to us that no one felt compelled to give the answer Loren wanted to hear. 

See the document for the exact wording of this questions, but here's a summary of what we asked:

1. What is your dream for the students who will graduate from our high school?
2. Considering the state of the world and changes ahead, what skills and knowledge will our students need to achieve that dream? (We asked them to list these things in specific areas, like academics or training, jobs and careers, etc.)
3. Looking at your lists from Question 2, choose 5 - 10 traits that you think our students need.
4. Rate how apparent each of those skills are in the members of our current senior class.
5. What comments do you have about this topic or this activity?

Loren told me he was encouraged and excited by the results he received. I suspect teachers will also be very interested to see what everyone wrote. A lot more discussion is needed, but we plan to use the responses to define work for a committee tasked with setting a fresh vision for the school.

I passed the questions along to our middle school and elementary principals as well. The question will look different for them, but we all agreed it will be beneficial for similar work to be done there. 

I'll follow up with more resources and what we learned as our work continues.

8 Years of Teaching Like an Artist

 

In 2013 I started writing about teaching like an artist. It was such a time of refreshing for me. As I wrote in my previous post (which is several months old now) it has been more of a struggle to maintain the vision and keep this blog alive lately. 

The Way of the Artist, which I so often lifted up, is to dream big, do the work and share it. Looking at my creative pursuits, I haven't abandoned that. I just have lost the vision for teaching like an artist. 

Somewhat that's true because I have found some promising pursuits in other areas. I'm actually having a little success with game designs again. I've been writing fiction and loving it.

But I also have less vision for teaching like an artist because I don't know that it ever panned out. In terms of inspiring students and teachers, it didn't pan out in any big way. I wanted so badly to see that. I worked for it and expected it, just like you'd expect fire to spread if you dropped a match on a pile of newspaper. 

Instead, the routine of what school has always been won out. A year and a half of COVID didn't help, of course. But even before the virus gained attention on the horizon, I had nearly given up hope.

Last week I was talking to a friend about this. We were discussing just how much we can influence the drive that our students have to succeed. She told me she can't be that kind of person who gives up on trying. That's nice, I guess, but I'd really like to know. I like to be motivated by more than just my chemical make-up. Is it worth holding on, trying again, and giving up other things to do the work?

I told her that in the moment I usually find the energy to keep the dream alive. At school, when it's time to talk to students, yes, I try to inspire. It's much harder to get excited about that outside of school, though. I'm more likely to look back on 27 years of teaching and wonder if the others were right. Those teachers who lived by the contract, tried mostly to just meet the bare minimum, and spent every free minute doing what they liked outside of school, were they the smart ones?

I haven't given up. I look forward to some opportunities I know are coming in this new school year. But I have to consciously do that. I have to will it. Hopefully by year nine I'll have better stories to tell.

Is It Worth Giving Up a Weekend?

"Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, you ought to set up a life you don’t need to escape from." -Seth Godin

I've worked as an instructional tech trainer for ten years now. I've learned many people just assume technology should save us time. It's so obvious to them that it goes without saying. The automatic question in their mind is How can this thing help me save time or make my job easier?

When the tool looks complicated instead, or if the resulting project we could complete with it seems too daunting, well, why would anyone bother with that?

Of course, a lot of tech does make life easier and it gets jobs done faster. But for all those people using tech to save time and make it easy, there are a few who see what amazing things can be accomplished with tech plus hard work.

Why settle for average?

The most memorable projects I've done exhausted me. They surprised me with how much work they involved. Like the time I gave up most of my holiday break editing the music videos I made with fifth graders, they can make me wonder if I'm crazy.

But that's what it takes to accomplish something amazing.

And we do all want amazing, don't we?

Five Thought Provoking Questions for Teacher PD, PLCs or Personal Reflection

Image by Bart Everson from here.

If you’re interested more about good questions for reflection and PD, please see:

• My free daily journal, 31 Days of Teaching Like an Artist.
• Finding the Strength to Do the Real Work of Teaching
• A Note to Myself as a First Year Teacher

________________________

Asking questions is probably my favorite part of teaching. Whether it's in the classroom, at a conference for teachers or just while talking with friends, I love giving people something to think about. (I even made a party game about asking one really BIG question.)

My math students weren't always thrilled with my idea of a good question in that subject! From my career and college class to my teacher professional development sessions, though, I've received a lot of thanks and appreciation for thought provoking questions I've raised.

Good questions at the right moment can make a tremendous impact on our lives. In searching out the answers, we experience the excitement of discovery. They help us see the wonder that is around and within us.

I like to ask teachers questions that remind them why they chose a career in education. I want to awaken dreams and that vision they once had of making a big difference. Questions can draw us back to those moments and give us a fresh perspective on the daily challenges we face.

So here are some of my favorite questions for teachers. With each one I'm also including followup questions for further reflection or discussion. For all of them, keep in mind:

• You should alter the wording and list of followup questions to fit the specific needs of time and the purpose of the meeting or activity. (As worded here, some of these could be too personal or time consuming for some settings.)
• Some of these are suitable for small group discussion or sharing in pairs. Others are probably best for each teacher to write a response individually that no one else will read. 

1)  What is your favorite advice that you share with students? 

This might be something you have told students for years or something you recently started saying. It might be that thing that they say in a mocking voice, to make their classmates laugh when you're not in the room.

• Is there a particular way you say it (or otherwise present it) to help them remember it?
• Why is this advice particularly meaningful to you or how did you come up with it?
• Do you have a story to tell about how students have received it or what difference you have seen it make?

2)  When did you first realize you wanted to be a teacher?

• What do you remember about that moment? Explain it in detail.
• What appealed to you about the job?
• Who did you first share that dream with and what was their reaction?
• How does the vision of yourself that you had in your mind then compare to the reality that you see in your classroom each day?
• Did you believe that those early moments of the dream to teacher were, in some sense, a calling? Explain.

3)  Imagine writing a letter to yourself as a first year teacher. Knowing what you know now, what advice would you give yourself?

I thought of this question after reading Austin Kleon's book Steal Like an Artist. See my own letter to myself here.

• What struggles and successes did you experience that first year that relate to this advice?
• Would you try to talk yourself out of the job (maybe even just a little) or encourage yourself to stay in it?
• Did this activity bring back a memory or make you think about your work in a new way? Explain.

4)  What are your three favorite books and why?

• When did you read these? If it was years ago, do you think they'd affect you the same way if you read them now for the first time?
• Do you recommend them to your students or colleagues?
• What is the most recent book you've read that had a big impact on you? Explain.

5)  Imagine your retirement party. Three people stand up to pay a tribute to you and your work. Who would these people probably be and what would they say? 

This is a spin on Stephen Covey's excellent Funeral Exercise in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. One of the most memorable, emotional moments that took place in my classroom was the day I had high school seniors work through that exercise.

• Also imagine you give a closing speech to the friends and colleagues in attendance. What message would you most want to leave them with? What story would you almost certainly share?
• The purpose of this type of exercise is to know what you're aiming for. What did the activity reveal about the mark you want to leave?
• How well have you done so far at making that mark?
• What changes could you make in the remaining years of your career to be sure you have this desired impact on your students and colleagues?

You can get a link to download your free copy of my journal 31 Days of Teaching Like an Artist by subscribing to my monthly newsletter. 

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A note to myself as a first year teacher

This is a slightly edited version of a post I wrote a few years ago for my other blog. The original was inspired by Austin Kleon's book Steal Like an Artist.  In it he gives advice about creativity by thinking of what he would tell his younger self.

If you’re interested more about good activities or questions for reflection, please see:

• My free daily journal, 31 Days of Teaching Like an Artist.
• Five Thought Provoking Questions for Teacher PD, PLCs or Reflection
• Finding Strength to Do the Real Work of Teaching

______________

After 21 years in public education, what would be the most important tips I'd tell myself?  I boiled it down to the list of six things below.  They're personal, but I think others can find some application in them for their own situations.

To set the scene I have to admit that the first half of my teaching experience was rough for me.  I did not enjoy much about teaching high school math.  There was plenty to be thankful for and a lot of students liked my classes, but dealing with difficult students and seeing my inability to reach all of them was tough. I felt like a failure many days.

Here's my list of what I'd tell my 25-years-old self, in that first year.

1)  Be realistic about what you're getting into.  The students you will be asked to teach are coming in with poor math skills and a poor attitude toward the subject.  Very few of them will see math class as the positive experience that you did.  Be prepared for this!  Set realistic goals of what you can accomplish in those first years as you are learning to be a good teacher.

2)  Take the work seriously, but don't forget about the relationships you are building everyday with your students.  You tend to get focused on the job and forget about people, but they are most important.  Even the difficult ones will respect you for your hard work if they also know you care about them.

Years after the class is over you'll see some of them.  They'll remember that you cared and worked hard more than they ever will the details of lessons, rough days, all those assignments or the grades they got.

3)  Start a game club right away.  That love you always had for games will be a highlight of your time working with students.  A lot of them won't fit in anywhere else, but they'll hang out with you at lunch.  Buy a few more of those games no one else has heard of and use them to connect with the students as much as you can.  Meet every couple weeks or so after school for gaming.  You'll like that extra-curricular work a lot more than organizing the prom.  (For the good of all, tell them you don't want to be a class sponsor!)

4)  Keep up on the technology.  You're kind of a traditionalist and in the debate of calculators versus no calculators you'll be tempted to keep it old school.  Instead, remember that many kids can learn the concept better if they come at it differently than you did.  It doesn't have to be all pencil and paper and a ton of steps.

Keep an open mind on that and use technology to give them a conceptual understanding useful for problem solving. When the principal asks you to try more with technology, do it.  Doors will open for you and you'll enjoy the change as the best years of your career.

5)  Assign creative projects, even in math.  Your department will focus almost exclusively on the state MEAP test, but don't let that drain your classroom of creativity.  You'll be busy and it will be easier to just keep it simple and routine, but things like the video assignment, personalized story problems and the artistic projects are vital.  Keep developing those assignments.  Add a new one every semester so that when students think back to your class, they remember those things they made.  You'll like it best when students say you're not like the other math teachers.

6)  Remember that you felt called to teach.  In frustrating times you'll think you should have gone into programming instead of working with kids who don't want to be there.

All those visions of being an amazing teacher will be shattered by reality and you'll think you misunderstood what you were supposed to do with your life.  But just like you did that day when you got the unexpected call and they offered you the job, trust that God knows what he's doing.  You are supposed to be there.

You won't reach everyone personally or with the math, but you'll connect with many students.  You'll remind them that life is exciting when chasing a dream.  They'll take notes when you talk about what true success looks like and many will thank you.  Among other things, you were called to pass on those messages.  Let them flow through all aspects of your work.

Here's the key to success you'll eventually share with them:

Always do your best

At what's most important

Whether you feel like it or not

You and many others will be thankful for the lesson.

Finding Your Place

When I talk about The Way of the Artist, it's easy to see it in terms of the students' work and the teacher's work. Maybe it's a class project the students dream up. Then work on it and share it. Maybe it's the work of art is the lesson or activity that the teacher created.

But on another level, we can look at our very lives as the work of art. Day by day we move closer to a vision of what we could be. We do the work and, hopefully, we share the story.

With any creative work, it is fascinating to me how that initial vision develops in the artist's mind and makes its way into reality. It's more fascinating to see how my life or periods of my life, such as my career or my marriage, emerged from that journey over the slow passing of time.

We set out with a picture in our mind of how our lives will look. We work for it, adjust to frustrations and surprises of what real life hands us and ultimately end up as we are, where we are.

It's worth taking a long look at ourselves from time to time, to see how close or how far we are from the initial vision.

Like almost anyone, when I graduated from high school nearly 30 years ago I had some big dreams. The big ones were to make movies and to play in a rock band. Over the years I moved close to and far from those goals. I even gave up on them more than once, but I or they would eventually circle back again.

It was amazing to me last year when I stopped to think about those dreams and I realized how much my music and my desire to make movies had crept into what I was doing almost daily. I still play music nearly every week in our church. I work at the high school and middle school directing and editing as I help the students complete video announcements. 

Had I seen myself doing those tasks 30 years ago, I certainly would have said they were not what I had in mind. Where is the glamour and fame?! Still, I find it rewarding now. I don't think I gave up on the dream and settled for less. I'd say instead that I found my place. 

The dream was important, but there was more to it I didn't know. Finding that "more" and being grateful for it is the gift of seeing life as art.

Our lives are the ultimate work of art. They are a collaboration with chance, other people and (as some of us believe) with God. We can't see the end result or know fully what it is we should become. We get hints though, through our passions, talents and dreams. 

The trick is to keep working at it when it's tough and to know when to let go. Sometimes the specifics of our dreams just aren't meant to be.

Wherever we end up, whether close to or light-years away from our original dreams, it's important to marvel at the art of it and to be thankful for it. It's important to share the vision and the end result with others, so they can see art unfolding in their own lives.

_________________________

I'm doing a challenge this month to post on one of my blogs every day. It's in preparation for my conference session, The Way of the Google Drive. Be sure to follow me on Twitter or on either blog to keep up with the "thoughts and tools to inspire". 

Click here to see all the posts from this blog with the tag The Way of the Google Drive.

photo credit: Throwing 4 via photopin (license)

Art and Risk

I've heard it said if there is no risk, there is no art.

The juggler has to take on just one more pin than he's completely comfortable with. The big song has to include the highest note the vocalist can hit. The performance has to take the performer and the audience to the edge of certainty.

I always refer to The Way of the Artist as dreaming big, doing the work and sharing the result.

After that big dream, when the work starts, risk is always present. There is always the possibility that it won't come together. Maybe you misjudged the value of the original idea or the level of your talent. Maybe there isn't enough time to make it happen.

Along with the work required to create, there is the battle within against doubt and uncertainty.

The bigger the risk, the bigger the chance for amazing art.

It's funny how easy it is nowadays for me to commit myself to something and then spend a good number of hours terrified that it won't come together. I'm referring specifically to email or other online communication. I send out messages way too soon after I get my big ideas.

This conference session feels like that sometimes. In the slow pace of a summer morning I read the call for proposals for miGoogle 2015. It was easy to dream up something big. I imagined the session I always wanted to attend and wrote and submitted a nice sounding description in no time. Within minutes, I also wrote three colleagues asking them to join me. I was pumped.

I'm still looking forward to the session, don't get me wrong. I still think it will be amazing.

But some unexpected things came up in the district this week. I've been busy with other projects. It all adds up to distraction. When I sit down now to work on the conference or to write this blog, it's way too easy to start to wonder what I got myself into. I wonder if it's going to work.

I admit that in weak moments, it scares me to the point where I want to bail. I start thinking of ways out. (I know by now there are no good options for escape from this one!)

When I stop to think about it, though, I'm glad for the doubt and the risk. It's a sign that it could be every bit the work of art I envisioned that morning. It's the possibility of failure that makes it exciting to give it a try. It's the anticipation that builds friendship among those of us presenting.

We're in it together and if it works, it will be something to tell about.

Just thinking about school...

When is the last time you experienced something like this with a lesson? What would it take to make more learning experiences like this?

_________________

I'm doing a challenge this month to post on one of my blogs every day. It's in preparation for my conference session, The Way of the Google Drive. Be sure to follow me on Twitter or on either blog to keep up with the "thoughts and tools to inspire". 

Click here to see all the posts from this blog with the tag The Way of the Google Drive.

 photo credit: Karl Saliter via photopin (license)

The Way of the Google Drive

I'm wrapping up a short series of posts about an upcoming conference session at miGoogle 2015. (And I was thrilled to find out today we'll be presenting it at the Michigan State University College of Education Technology conference too!)

The first two posts in the series were:

• Starting at the Crossroads between The Way of the Artist and The Way of the Google Drive
• The Way of the Artist

Now it's time to look at The Way of the Google Drive, which happens to be the name of the conference session.

I'll start at the end of the story, when I first heard the phrase. 

I had just finished introducing a class of fifth graders and their teacher to Google Apps. They all wrote to me about it shortly after. 

The teacher thanked me for opening her eyes to technology as a tool. Many students thanked me for encouraging them to use technology wisely. I loved hearing from all of them, but one touched me in a special way. A boy wrote, 

"Mr. Petty, Thank you for teaching us the way of the Google Drive."

Now, I always start my presentations with the big picture, far beyond the "click here" and "follow these steps". But I loved how weighty that student made it sound--"The Way of the Google Drive".

So what did I tell them? What is this "Way"?

I gave them what I call my Tools talk. Using the example of digging holes with hands, toy shovels, real shovels and then enormous digging machines, we talk about how better tools always help us do more. 

Of course, so many people think tools are here to make things easier or to save time. They do those things, but there's always some innovative thinker who can see beyond saving time and he or she accomplishes something with the tool that blows away the competition.

I remind students that the computers on their desks or the phones in their pockets are the most powerful tools the world has known. 

So what "more" could these tools help us do in school? 

Here are three ways in which technology can do more amazing things:

• More learning
• More connecting
• More creating

That is where technology can shine in school. Or I should say teachers and students can shine by using the tools. We can learn, connect (collaborate) with others and create in amazing ways that were never before possible. 

I connect it with their dreams. How much further could they go? 

With most classes, I can feel the life returning when I tell them this. I see it in their eyes. Their thank-you notes are evidence.

In reflecting on that student's nearly spiritual expression of what I had presented--this "Way of the Google Drive--I have added one more thought. I love the Google tools because they are so simple and accessible that they get out of the way and let the good ideas come through.

Google tools are not the only ones that do this, but they do it incredibly well. I'd say Twitter and even Facebook are good examples of this Way as well. What the users care about comes through loud and clear.

And like any good tool, the ideas become something more. They are amplified.

A note about the conference

We will not dwell on these big picture ideas in the session. Instead we will see how they play out through practical examples. 

What have we seen happen when the inspiration of art meets the power of technology in school? Which tools lead to amazing learning or impressive creations? How are students and teachers changed? Those answers will be the real focus of our presentation.

_________________________

I'm doing a challenge this month to post on one of my blogs every day. It's in preparation for my conference session, The Way of the Google Drive. Be sure to follow me on Twitter or on either blog to keep up with the "thoughts and tools to inspire". 

Click here to see all the posts from this blog with the tag The Way of the Google Drive.

photo credit: Beach Shovel via photopin (license)

Dreams Matter

I was reminded this past school year how dreams matter. I love to tell students that because they don't hear it enough. When I say it, they listen and it's like watering a garden. Life starts cropping up.

I try to be realistic when I talk about dreams. They don't all come true exactly like we envisioned they would be. Part of the beauty of it is how that initial dream takes shape over time.

When I was young I wanted to make movies. In my late teens I started wanting to have a band. I dreamed of writing songs and recording. I envisioned doing both on a huge scale, being famous for it.

Instead I ended up as a tech coordinator in a small, rural school district. But all those years of playing around with instruments, songs and videos have paid off. I had a great time this year helping teachers and students in Music and Communications. The Music class was at our lower elementary and Communications was at the high school.

I loved how seriously everyone took their job and no one ever asked me how it would affect their grade.

What I've learned is the dream isn't about me. As a teen, I didn't consider that. Now I see the dream was planted then, but ultimately it was meant to inspire the people I'd meet over two decades later.

When I started working with the elementary students I got an idea for a project about dreams. I asked my daughter, age 16, to write a short chorus about following dreams. She wants to be a songwriter.

After she wrote some lyrics, I fleshed it out and taught it to the students.

They loved it. I had them draw some pictures of their dreams and we made this music video.

Like Never Before

"I am not a teacher, but an awakener." - Robert Frost

I have an introduction I give before introducing Google Apps to students. Before I get to the various apps themselves or how to sign in, I point out the power of digital tools. I want to wake the students and their teacher up to the why before talking about the how.

I noticed a spark in the room when I first did this. I had the students' attention at a deeper level. We knew something different was happening in the room. I’ve honed my message over the last year and a half and now when I’m done with my 15 minute intro, I see signs of life more clearly. They ask questions related to their dreams. They start thinking about doing things they care about.

This ed-tech stuff is far bigger than time saving tips or ways to increase test scores.

Last week I spoke to a fifth grade class. The next day I got a note from three of them who wanted to make a comic book about a novel they just finished. The teacher (a hard worker who has been slow to integrate tech tools) said the talk changed her outlook toward technology.

Teaching them the how of the Google tools is going to be a lot easier from here out.

So here’s the short outline of what I say in the first few slides. This is it, but it makes a big difference.

1) Tools help us do more. Consider a task like digging a hole by hand, using a shovel and using a backhoe. The best tools make an amazing difference.

2) The computers on our desks, in our bags or in our pockets are the most powerful tools known to man for many things.

3) What do digital tools help us do more of? There are many things, but for school:

• Connect like never before.
• Create like never before.
• Learn like never before.

4) Many people use technology to play like never before. Some use it to do something big. Which will you choose?

The Spark of Life

One time I was told by an older, very successful game publisher that he looked for "the spark of life" when people would show him their game ideas. Talk was one thing, but he wanted to see the game being played and he looked for the spark.

It was hard to define, but unmistakable when he saw it. 

Now I spend more time teaching than making games, but everyday I see a similar phenomenon as I craft learning experiences. To me, education is about helping people reach their potential. In the span between physical death and achieving one's life purpose there are various levels of existence. I want to help others get closer to the end of fulfillment, to becoming fully alive.

As with games being played, there is a spark I've seen. It's the moment of vision, when the learner sees what isn't there, but what could be. 

Whether I'm training teachers or helping with a lesson in class, I notice the spark. I introduce someone to a new tech tool and they realize how it can be used to bring out something they love about life.

I showed some students how to edit movies last week. One student realized his iPhone could be used for this and I heard him telling his friends how he wanted to make movies at home. He would like to be an actor. I asked him to share any movies he makes with me. I try to blow gently on the spark, hoping to make a flame that will spread.

I show teachers how to do something with Google Apps. Several are in the room and they go through the motions, but some move ahead and go further than what I asked. I talk to them and they can hardly contain the excitement of the learning experience they are planning.

Say what you will about what sets us apart on our journey toward success. It might look like grit, intelligence or a lottery involving DNA and opportunity. I think it is simply the ability to see the spark and to know what to do with it once recognized.

This goes for seeing it in my own life or recognizing when someone else catches a glimpse.

I don't believe this ability to see it should be viewed only as a gift. I don't think the failure to see it is like blindness, as if something just isn't working and could never work.

I have to hope we all can see the spark of what could be. It's just that many forces in life have made it more or less likely that we'll notice it. Some have learned to recognize it. Even once they see it, some have learned to fan ideas of what could be into flame while others were taught to smother them out.

The art of staying inspired so we can inspire is nothing more than looking for the sparks and letting them burn as long as as far as possible.

Our Motivational Song for School

Here's a song I put together with Crystal Owen, the music teacher in my district. It represents so much of what I've been learning and trying to practice the past two school years.

Bono - Dreams, Doing and the Digital Age

I'm a big fan of U2 and Bono in particular. I've followed his work for almost 30 years. I love his thoughts, his faith and how they come out through his art. Here's a great quote from him that speaks to what I'm trying to do with my students:

"What turns me on about the digital age, what excited me personally, is that you have closed the gap between dreaming and doing. You see, it used to be that if you wanted to make a record of a song, you needed a studio and a producer. Now, you need a laptop."

Last summer I was on a mission trip with the youth group from my church. We were in a small city in West Virginia working with poor children. Of course, I had my iPad with me. I was showing an art program to some young girls and they were making pictures. These other kids came up and asked right away what they were playing.

Just like in school, when there's a computer nearby and five minutes to kill, most children see the computer as an entertainment device. Some see it as the tool that shortens the gap between dreaming and doing. I try to open their eyes to that possibility.

People tell me their kids are good with technology. Kids tell me they're good with technology. I like to ask one simple thing - what do they make with it?

No matter what it is you want to do with your time, digital technology is the tool that can help you do it better. If you want to play, sit and stare at mindless entertainment or just chat with friends, you can use technology to do it in ways that were never before imagined.

Whatever you want to do, you can do it big. 

Now more than ever the future belongs to those who want to dream.