ECI 832 - Post 1 - Hello my Major Project is...

     Hello there, I will re-introduce myself for this winter semester of 2022.  My name is Dylan Johns, I am a father of 2 (14 and 11), husband, coach, volunteer and high school teacher and learning leader.  I love building, the outdoors, sports and travel.  I am good with people and technology but often prefer to be with a small knit crew of solid folks and disconnected!  I, like most, am ready for this pandemic to end and am excited about no masks and travel.  But enough about me, let me tell you about the major project I have been struggling to pin down to an exact usable idea...

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    Admittedly, I have been very busy lately, so taking a bunch of time to think about and decide on a major project for a class I just started has been challenging.  Teaching feels like its a train off the tracks, my volunteer work is going nuts because of Covid, my childrens sports have my wife and I going different directions almost daily and winter storms seem to make hockey road trips and the morning commute not the relaxing event it can sometimes be.  But in all this busyness I know I must enjoy one of the most special times in life, my healthy children and my middle age of adulthood with most of my health and abilites.  I must extract every ounce of joy and memory I can now, it takes reminders, but I truly know this, as one of my favourite blogs reminds me, our time is limited: Wait but Why - the Tail End.  I also feel like the adolescents I teach truly do not know how precious their time is, and what they could achieve if they really focused and embraced opportunities. 
    The reason I tell you this is that when I read the options for our major project (no offense to others) I saw Option 1 - Curriculum something something, Option 2 - play with apps that kids spend most their time on, Option 3 - Try to make a positive change using social media, or Option 4 - make something up.  So by process of elimination I think I must choose Option 3, with the topic of trying to inspire youth to live life to the fullest, or to not waste their time, or to embrace all the abundance surrounding them or all of these things.  Pretty big idea I know, but I am guilty of this often.  I had a few conversations with colleagues about this idea and many think it is a large concept and will likely need narrowing down.  So I asked a student what they thought and they thought it was a good idea, even to ask kids what is holding them back and then helping them move forward.  So I guess that is my choice, Option 3 - Internet based social activism project.  At this point the idea is wide open but I would like to compile and create resources to inspire and help youth to live a good life regardless of where they are at.  So maybe a website with different paths for inspiration, or a Venn Diagram (or flower) showing the many things that make you appreciate your limited time on this planet.
   What I would love from classmates or others, is any ideas or suggestions as to what you think would work, how you like the idea (I actually don't mind constructive criticism), a hashtag that might make it viral or other input and inspirations!  Thank you and best wishes on the beginning of your journey.