I hope you had a great Christmas break. I am sparing a thought for the teachers in the northern hemisphere that are already back at work while I enjoy my summer of blue sky and 28 degrees (Celsius that is…)
I am really looking forward to a great 2012! There are a lot of changes happening this year for me personally and for Teachers Training.
2011 was a great year of teaching a 0.8 load as well as being on the road speaking in schools and running my own seminars. By the end of the year I had the privilege of working face to face with 79 schools and approximately 2000 teachers.
So what’s in store for 2012?
1. I’ve finished up at the school I have been at for the last 3 1/2 years and am going to concentrate on working with teachers to help them better motivate, manage and engage their students. My plan is to teach casually from time to time to keep me fresh and relevant. One of the most consistent feedback comments I receive from teachers is that they appreciate the fact that I am a classroom teacher not a ‘professional’ who hasn’t taught for years. I am looking forward to still being able to test my ideas at the coal face so to speak.
2. I will be concentrating on being more available to travel this year. Last year I had numerous requests to come to a region or area but just wasn’t able to do it with my teaching commitments. I am really looking forward to been able to travel to rural areas and work with teachers in these scenarios. I am also looking forward to being able to travel and speak internationally. There are a few school districts that are starting the process of seeing if I am a good fit for the direction they are heading (if you teach in an exotic location or a tropical island please give me a call! 
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3. Liza Maloney is joining the team this year. I am really excited about this. Liza is an expert on children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Research suggests that by 2020 as many as 1 in 6 children will be on the spectrum. This staggering statistic means that in any class there could be 5 students on the spectrum. Liza is a dynamic teacher and brings with her a wealth of experience having a child who is highly autistic. She comes recommended by experts such as Tony Attwood and will be able to make a real and practical difference in the lives of teachers.. If you would more information about how Liza can work with you and your school simply fill out the contact form on the about us page
4. I am researching how to provide online training to a community of teachers. I have now connected with tens of thousands of teachers in over 150 countries. I am dreaming about what it would be like to bring different nations together in an online community. This wouldn’t just be about me providing training but rather learning from one another, having enough people together to gain the attention and time of some of the world leaders and thinkers (imagine having an hour with Daniel Pink or Sir Ken Robinson). If anyone knows some technology that will make this happen that won’t require me to take out a second mortgage please let me know.
5. I will be more consistent with my interaction and communication. I am developing a system for my workflow at the moment (if you’ve done my course you will know that 95-99% of success and failure is built on your routine). My aim is to blog everyday Monday to Friday as well as start up my short tips and thoughts again on twitter (you can follow me @mikereading). There might be a podcast in the pipeline where I interview different experts in various areas, and maybe a free weekly webinar where we can get together via video chat and look at particular topics and teaching strategies. Stay tuned for more information. If there is anything you would like me to cover in this blog or other medium please just let me know in the comment section below.
Tomorrow I am going to share what I learnt about rest from a world renowned counsellor that will change your life (no I’m not over hyping it – it is just that good)
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