MAGIC MAGIC day

Not sure how I can do today justice.... 
I kept a bucket load of notes in the wonderful evernote only to be let down with it disappearing when I did the required change of password...
So I have MAGICal memories as opposed to notes...
The day began at a high school in Christchurch with Kevin Honeycutt!  Session one was with an auditorium packed full of year 11-13s.  I was in the unique position of being able to sit on the side and watch the faces, the expressions, the body language of the learners as they engaged with Kevin and climbed onboard his story.  I saw the pain in their connections and the joy, I saw the learners seeing themselves in Kevin's story.  I felt the buzz, the connection, the celebration and acknowledgement of their potential....
Starting the day with the message "want to be great, then make no excuses, work hard and make a better song"!  What a powerful message.  We all have MAGIC inside - we must choose how to use it, how to maximise our potential...
What opportunities do we give our learners, or do we take ourselves to share our voice?  Why not try lulu.com?  The power of this is revolutionary...
The seniors were mesmerised... 
The session peaked with learners taking the stage to play the drums on the ipad, to collaborate and make music...
At the end of the hour they did not want to leave.... How often does that happen I wonder?  What does it take to hook and engage our learners?  How can we use these tools as onramps for all our learners?

The juniors arrived and again I watched them arrive, eyes widening viewing the 'tools' on display on stage... 
For me, as a primary teacher, it was fascinating to view the distinct differences between the senior and the junior group!  I am in awe of Kevin's was to 'read' and engage with the audience... The juniors laughing and learning and engaging with the challenge "how do you want to spend your heartbeats?"  
I am feeling the realisation of the learners, identifying themselves in the story... as the question is asked - do we take the time to think before we post online?  I love the chance to view this story....

Are we teaching our learners to think before we put our finger back in the danger zone?  Are we teaching them to think before they post or txt?
Are we challenging our learners to identify their legacy?
Are we being what our learners need?
Are we there for them?
Are we rewindable?
Are we free of judgement?
A jamming session with the juniors ending with woof whistles and cheers and a reluctance to leave the auditorium by this next bunch....

The third session of the day was incredibly powerful!  A group of music and drama students came together for a much more intimate, hands on session...  Ohhhh truly a goosebump session!  There were really three groups within the session: the singers and band, the backers and dancers, the audience... Each group had its ultimate respect and together the auditorium rocked out an incredibly powerful, extremely emotional version of 'Stand by me'!  

I will link this later...
I love the learning of iteration - a new version of a new version of a new version!  The learners are so engaged in this message... "What is my potential?" 
"Park next to excellent until you're excellent."  
... part two tomorrow...