Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Grinch Day Technology Glitch

The other day Kelly and I joined our classes together for "Grinch Day".  

With Kelly teaching 2nd grade and having 1/2 of her 1st grade class last year we had to come up with a whole new day of activities.  Particularly if we wanted to avoid the dreaded 
                              "We did this last year".

So after a week of e-mailing, texting, pinning, and chatting about our ideas during recess we had a plan.  The plan involved me creating a 42 page SMART Board day to anchor our lesson, read the story, and show some video clips.  If I do say so myself, it was pretty cool.

Two days prior to this lesson my mounted projector was acting a little weird.  The tech was notified and then it stopped.  (Can you sense where this is going?)

Fast forward to Grinch Day where Kelly's students arrive and I have 43 students in the room awaiting a great day filled with Merry/Grinchy activities.  I turn the projector on and...

               -buzzing!

                              -blinking!

                                             -flashing red lights!

                                                                            -Nothing!

My projector light bulb blew.  I had no way of conducting the days lessons and had 43 kids staring at me.  The tech guy, a nice guy who is thoroughly overstretched by our district, was nowhere to be found.  When the custodian called he said he couldn't be to my room until much later in the day.  We have no spare bulbs (though I requested them many times) and no one has ever been taught how to change the bulb. 

So I did what any resourceful teacher with 43 kids would have done-took matters into my own hands.  With 43 kids watching (and Kelly snapping pictures) I stole a projector bulb from the computer lab.  I climbed up on chairs and desks (in my Grinch Day attire-complete with PJ pants) and started taking apart my mounted projector.  Within a few minutes I had figured out how to take out the old bulb, replace a new one, and put my projector back together.  


Notice how annoyed I look in this picture. 

Just a normal day for a teacher .
Thoroughly stressed out and annoyed, Grinch Day was ready to begin. 

Anyone ever have any serious technology glitches that you had to solve yourself-PLEASE SHARE!

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