Google Glass Gets to SOAR

Today was the first planned all-day appearance at the School of Options and Applied Research (SOAR) in Land O Lakes.  I've been planning and waiting for the opportunity to work more closely with the students up there for quite a while.

The day I received Glass I was doing some tech work at SOAR so the students were aware it was coming, but only a few (my daughter included) had actually seen it before.  After all, I think I'm the only one around who has it.

My day started off with a pack of very excited 5th graders (non-SOAR) crowding around to get a look.  On the Explorers community page I answered the question "What is the first thing people say when they try it on?" with "OK Glass, take a picture."

Here's Proof

I guess this must be how I look to them.  I thought I had more hair.

When I got into the SOAR room I was flooded with questions and curiosity.  

What a wonderful day to spend with a group that is so excited and engaged in their learning.  I was able to allow them to try it on and then Glass disappeared.  My oldest was busy making sure it would work for learning at their school and proudly wore it, showed it off and let others experience what Glass was really like.

It's awesome to see how fearless they are with it and how willing they are to put it to use.  I don't know what the future of wearable technology will be in education, but this group certainly shows how willing they are to adapt to it.  As long as my approach was cool and collected ( I explained it was expensive, so just be careful) they quickly put it on and tried it out.

Without a doubt, if you want to see what possibilities a device has, give it to a bunch of kids.  They will come up with things you never imagined.  At one point, my daughter was filming her classmates working on a dance routine.  Makes me think about uses for coaches.

I've done tons with video and with cameras.  I've taped kids, adults, professional development and myself.  Google Glass is extremely unobtrusive; there wasn't the normal "I'm being filmed?!" hesitation (one student was a little embarrassed) that I usually get.  Sure, I look like a cyborg, but once they forget it's "game on."

These kids are growing up in a world filled with smart things.  SMART Boards, smart phones, smart TVs.  They adapt quickly, embrace new things and accept them as a part of their world.  We have no idea what they'll see in their lifetime and wearable technology like this may be as common as . . . the iPad.

Thanks again, SOAR, you made me smile, reflect and remember why I love education!