Mrs. Costello: The night before the Expo

This past week has been jam-packed.  A lot of teachers around the building gave up their free periods so I could clear my schedule for Startup Tech.  I had kids in my room half the day working.  On Saturday, at 1am, I woke up because my phone chimed to let me know I had an e-mail…from one of my students who was still trying to get a feature working.  I didn't get much sleep myself, because I had so much to do - communicate with the judges, make ballots, name tags, and award certificates, and on and on.   We had a film crew in the building most of the day Tuesday, so my classroom also had to get cleaned up from the disaster-mess of trifold board building!  My lesson plan for the day after the Expo read simply, "COLLAPSE."  Hey, it's measurable!

The best advice I can give a teacher who is doing Startup Tech is, have a Mock Judging.  Not only did it light a fire under some kids who NEEDED to be scared a little, but there were a lot of lessons learned for me as well.  For example, we discovered that we couldn't rely on our WiFi, so all apps had to be downloaded to devices.  We also discovered that the simplified judging rubric I made was still not user-friendly enough, so I had to re-design that.  These and a thousand other lessons were better learned at Mock Judging than at the real thing, in front of high profile guest judges!

We spent a lot of time this week polishing the "soft skills," like eye contact and delivery.  One student whispered, and another needed to "turn down the coffee."  I have to remember that they are 12 and 13.  They have never been in a professional environment.  These skills are completely new to them.  If they learn nothing else from Startup Tech but a professional voice and demeanor, they will have a vital skill for life success.

I was really proud of the way my students worked.  There was a lot of teamwork, both within individual groups and with other groups pitching in to help those who were behind or who were having trouble with a certain thing.  Students who couldn't come to school called in - at one point, I had 3 speaker phones in my face while I taught.  They really are taking this seriously, and I think it will show tomorrow.  Besides the judges, a lot of students have friends and family coming, and we have students from around the school who have earned guest passes to tour the Expo.  Most of my students are nervous but ready.

I'M nervous but ready.