Waffle Bytes

The MACUL Conference is only a week away! (This is the third in a series of 4 to help you get ready and excited about going to the conference. Tipsheet #1 contains information about hydration, food considerations and special happenings at the conference. Tipsheet #2 contains information about planning for your conference - the conference app, speakers, session information. Tipsheet #3 contains information about registration, getting help, networking, and wearing comfortable shoes!) Here are some other tidbits that might help you out as you arrive at the conference next week: COBO Layout : COBO is now basically a big “L” with sessions dispersed over 3 or 4 levels on both sides of the L; the left side of the L faces the river.   The renovations are pretty near to full completion.  The end hallway overlooks the river since it has been renovated. They have added escalators and a huge staircase which help with traffic flow.  Long time confe...

The MACUL Conference is only a couple weeks away! (This is the third in a series of 4 to help you get ready and excited about going to the conference. Tipsheet #1 contains information about hydration, food considerations and special happenings at the conference. Tipsheet #2 contains information about planning for your conference - the conference app, speakers, session information.) Today I'm sharing some general tips for getting the most out of the conference. Checking In : Checking in on Thursday morning can be overwhelming when there are several thousand people around!  Here are some bits of advice to avoid missing the opening keynote session (you don’t want to miss Sir Ken Robinson !): If you come into Detroit Wednesday prior to 5pm, go to registration then instead of waiting until Thursday If you come into Detriot Thursday morning, registration opens at 7 am Thursday Again this year there will be "self-check" registration where you check in at ...

The 2017 MACUL Conference is now less than a month away! (This is the second in a series of 4 to help you get ready and excited about going to the conference. Tipsheet #1 contains information about hydration, food considerations and special happenings at the conference. ) The conference sessions are all locked and loaded...meaning you can peruse the list at your leisure.  Here are some suggestions that may help you better come to the the conference feeling more prepared- Know What You Want : have some idea(s) of what you want to walk away from the conference with.  Use these ideas to help you plan your time so you meet those goals. It's easy to become overwhelmed with all the options, and identifying YOUR walk-aways will make sure you take back meaningful learning.   For example, you are looking for new uses of Google Apps in your classroom, look for sessions about that.  Or, if you are involved in looking for new school purchases make sur...

(This is 1 in a series of 4 to help you get ready and excited about going to this year's conference.) Yes, you are attending the conference for all the great learning and networking.  However, eating is still a necessity and it is important to know where to find food while in Detroit...especially food that you can get quickly, without waiting in long lines!  Here are some tips and hints for dealing with that while at Cobo, along with some other tidbits you should know about: Staying Hydrated : make sure you stay hydrated! there are several fountains and water coolers provided throughout the venue to get water - bring along a refillable cup/mug and keep filling it all day instead of purchasing expensive bottles of water Food at Cobo : there are several food vendors right in COBO; some tips about these: there will be around 4000 attendees AND hundreds of additional vendors at the venue, and everyone will be taking about the same meal breaks - either pi...

The #macul17 MOBILE APP is now available!   Download for your iOS or Android device .  (Or you can also visit the app store of choosing and search for MACUL 2017.) Session information has already been loaded into the app - get a sneak pe a k at the great session line up for the upcoming conference within the app!   Some additional conference news -  Volunteers Needed Take your conference attendance to a new level - volunteer! Get a t-shirt and help make the conference the best ever - sign-up  now.   Keynote Speakers   If you haven't heard yet, our keynote speakers are: Sir Ken Robinson, Jane McGonigal, & Jennie Magiera - a stellar group focused on learning.  Featured Speakers this year include: Barbara Chamberlin, Hall Davidson, Steve Dembo, Leslie Fisher, Matt Miller and Kyle Pace.  If you don't recognize these names, Google them - they are all people worth knowing and following!   ...

If you have already registered for the 2017 MACUL Conference, and would like to add a preconference session on Wednesday to your registration, use the following steps: 1. Go to the registration site . 2. Login with the account you used previously to register for the conference.  You must use the same account! 3. Note a new window at the top will tell you that you are already registered for the conference, but you may add workshops (pre-conference sessions) by going through the process again.  (You would use these same steps to make any modifications to your registration.)  4. Click Next on the first screen with your contact information  5. Click Next on the next screen about Membership  6. On the next screen, pre-conference workshops are now an option  7. When you click on the blue bar, it will display the pre-conference sessions.  Each one has the following: Registration box for that workshop Name of the workshop session S...

Planning on submitting a proposal to speak at the 2017 MACUL Conference?  The deadline is quickly approaching! Last year we had nearly twice as many proposals as sessions held - with the process becoming more competitive, you are encouraged to review the guide and rubric, and use the worksheet to ensure you submit a quality proposal.  Speaker Proposal Information: Resourcs (including link to submit) Deadline - September 9 at 11:59pm