I don’t think I’m a total perfectionist – I’ve seen way worse – but there are some things that I can’t stand to leave uncorrected or unperfected. One of those things is design – I hate when fonts aren’t quite right, or the edges don’t quite line up correctly, or the space is uneven, or what have you. I’m taking a Technology for Teachers class at the high school and I’m learning a ton, but I’m really struggling with just playing around with apps and trying things out without making the end results really polished and clean. Then, when I am going to take the time to create something that takes a lot of time to do – like an infographic or an e-book – I want to make sure it’s something that I can use for my students rather than just playing around and creating content for the sake of creating it.

I know this might be the wrong way to look at it. I’m supposed to be playing around with the different technologies and considering different ways to use them with my students. I am doing that, for sure, and I’m learning a lot. It’s just, it takes so long to get something I’m satisfied with using the technology. I get frustrated with having a very short period of time to put something together, because I want to play with fonts, color, backgrounds, pictures, buttons… all that fun design stuff.

I think about this when I use the technology with my students. Some of them will be fine with just using the basic options and creating content, but I know there are some, like me, who want to try every single color, font, and background option to get the one that feels just right. I get that. I want them to play with that.

Therein lies the problem: if I want to use new technologies and apps, I need to build in enough time to use them. If I build in the time to let students play with them, then I lose time for other activities. It’s a tough balancing act. I’m still working on it.