We asked educators around the web about their thoughts and goals for balancing personal growth and learning with that much-needed recharge over the summer. Check out what they said below, and then start your learning journey with these recommended resource collections.
From Steven Anderson, Web 2.0 Classroom: 
From Ross Cooper, Cooper on Curriculum:
"The days of educators waiting for professional development to come to them is (or should be) long over! With the resources we have at our disposal—Facebook, Twitter, BloomBoard, blogs, search engines, etc.—there's no reason why we can't easily create our own customized learning that occurs wherever and whenever we want. If your only learning takes place on district professional development days, you are doing a disservice to your profession and your students."
From Jenn Adams, Teach. Love. Autism:
"Find some professional development books on topics that interest you or are about things you want to improve on in the next year and read them while you relax at the beach, pool, or lake. This is the time of year to get caught up on the reading that you didn't have time to do during the school year."
From Shametria Routt, The Routty Math Teacher:
"I always choose one topic on which to focus for summer learning, so that I still feel like I have time to relax. I usually find a topic-focused book to read or a couple resources to peruse as I travel and lounge around. This way, I can still enjoy my summer vacation and learn something new at the same time."
From Lindsey Petlak, It's Elementary, My Dear:
"I love browsing BloomBoard for ideas because it gives the teacher an experience like browsing through a magazine or Pinterest to snag ideas, save them, and then re-visit when it's closer to starting school. Finding the resources you need is easy, because the curating is done for you, and then it's all ready to go when you're refreshed and ready to start planning for a new school year."
From Kerry Gallagher, Start with a Question:
"I have three or four books set aside that I'm definitely going to read. Each one will be with a different group of colleagues, and we are going to use what we learn to plan and work together throughout the next school year. There will definitely be some blog posts that reflect what I'm learning as well. I'm also going to three conferences, and that's it. I know there are more that are valuable, but I need to be sure to schedule some lazy backyard time with the family. It's important to strike a balance of reading, writing, and relaxation."
Check out, 9 Resource Collections to Kick off Your Summer Learning or visit BloomBoard to start exploring topics that interest you.
