Wow, what an experience! The 2.5 days in Vegas
were packed with fun events, learning, and lots of teacher talk!
My biggest takeaway is one word: GRATEFUL! I
have to say how appreciative I am to the presenters. Every presenter is
listened to shared valuable insights that made me think and gave me ideas. I am
so very grateful that they are willing to give out advice on what has helped
them be successful as a TPT Author. It looks easy to post something you made
for students, but there is so much more to selling it and providing value for
others. They gave me some clarity on what is most important for quality and
time well spent!
Walking through the halls of the Venetian, a
huge and very crowded hotel/casino/conference center/and more, it was pretty
obvious who was a part of the TPT Conference. There’s just something about us
as teachers – We are our own breed, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I was
feeling so grateful to feel connected to people through a shared passion and
very blessed that my career is a passion for me. So many people spend years and
years of their life jumping around searching for their passion and some never
find it. I am so grateful that God made my passion clear to me at a young age.
The TPT Conference was such a positive experience largely because of the energy
from the shared passion we teachers have! Now, I can grow my passion even
further as I grow as a TPT Seller.
(Finding some Chicago Bloggers at the first
meetup was so exciting and a little relief for a first timer like me!)
Another
big takeaway I had while feeling overwhelmed with tips and info in the
sessions, was to focus on my strengths. I’m going to focus on a few different
types of products that are really what I am best at! That way, I am sure that
what I am offering on TPT is my best. You will know what you’re hoping to find
when you come to my store. Same with social media, while I’m active on many
different social media platforms, I am going to really invest in a few for now
so I can offer more and connect more with my followers.
The best takeaway was feeling blessed by the
time with new friends and old friends that inspire me! The creativity and
dedication of the teachers I met is unique. We discussed life in our
cities, classrooms, and discussed products and resources we like to use. We
laughed A LOT. One of the TPT employees described the conference as summer camp
for teachers – sooo true! On Wednesday, I felt like I hardly knew anyone. But
by Friday, we were friends. I look forward to keeping in touch!
Though there are many more details to
share, I am going to end with a powerful reflection shared by Rachel Lynette.
She explained the IMPACT the creativity of TPT products is having on education,
instruction, and life in classrooms across the country/world. For example, she
talked about how she made task cards and so many other teachers started making
task cards too. Before we knew it, task cards began being used in so many
classrooms, improving differentiation and engagement! So, as we develop,
improve, and share our specialties, we are not only making an impact on
teachers and students, but also on the trends in education. Change is happening
so much faster by sharing what we create. I’m ready to team with other teachers
as we create and collaborate to improve education!
