Technology---in a Spanish classroom!?

The love of technology.  I will be the first to admit that I was so far behind in the times with technology. Not even eight months ago I was not sure how I would incorporate what I have into my classroom.  If you had asked me then, what my classroom would like today, I would say just like last year, just older students!...and a computer in every student’s hands all day every day!  Sure I used technology---but my projects were far and few between that incorporated technology.  I think I did one a quarter per Spanish level! I thought it was a lot!  We were handed our lap tops as teachers in June. I took classes all summer learning about PLNS, wikis, diigo, delicious, twitter, Nings etc. I also took classes web 2.o tools, moodle and more.  I have taken 18 credits in less than 12 months through heartland!  Online classes are my passion!  Ironically I grew up in a technology friendly family.  My dad, owner of a Radio Shack in Northwest Iowa always would have the newest gadgets---still does! , my oldest sister is a programmer for Polaris Industries, and I married a programmer for Farmers Mutual Hail and Crop in West Des Moines.  I never would have imagined that in a few short months I would actually be the technology geek—trying to figure out how to do the same project I did which was such a fun and GREAT project---but incorporate some technology—and take away the paper trail!  Wow---it is February and my classroom does not look anything like it did---and my students are still learning! I had a student who struggles in Spanish tell me he did the most fun project he had ever done in Spanish when we learned reflexives!  And he understood it!  Who would have thought!?  I am curious to see how my teaching evolves and my classroom changes in the next 8 months—these past have been a roller coaster---wild, fun, busy, chaotic, stressful, but FUN... I feel like I am a new teacher again!  Remember what it felt like to teach a lesson and have it go GREAT! I am a new teacher without having to figure out how to learn what I am teaching ahead of time, rather I can “teach” I just have a bunch of new tools to teach with!  If only I can keep up with “learning”!  If one thinks they can teach without learning, I think they are wrong---we are educators we continually have to learn…however—I do wish we had a pause button on our remote so we can at least breathe in between the learning and teaching.  I have gotten to the point where I don’t even use my textbooks hardly!  My curriculum is being re-written as I teach…and although stressful and chaotic---in my own words: way NEAT to see the changes!