This is Eric Ljosenvoor. The BlueSky teacher that is so interesting, I had to feature him twice! And...I think I could go deeper if I had time...

Here is some more of our interview! Enjoy :)

Do you have any fun or interesting tidbits that you would like students and parents to know about you? 

Once upon a time, back in the early 2000s, I made a webcomic. It no longer exists digitally.

Also, thanks to my degree in technical theatre, I have mad sewing, painting, and lighting skillz. I used to direct plays when I worked at a brick and mortar school. It's one of the few things I miss now that I work online.

I'm also a big fan of cognitive science and gamification. The short version of that is, I like looking at how human thinking and machine learning overlap, and I like seeing how games can be used to improve people's lives. Things like SuperBetter.com and HabitRPG.com

Why did you become an Online teacher?

Many reasons. One, I've always been drawn to non-traditional settings. I cut my teeth at Sobriety High School, and moved from their to a project-based charter school. I spent one year in a "traditional" public school before moving to BlueSky. We fill an important need, and I like that.

Also, when I first started, my second child was only 6 months old, and my part-time position allowed me to be a stay-at-home dad, which was wonderful.

What ways do you like to interact with your students?

Live sessions and one-on-one work are my favorites. I particularly enjoy join.me sessions as a math teacher, because I can use the annotate function to draw math equations all over the student's screen. Saves time, AND I get to doodle.

What do you like most about teaching at BlueSky?

The toys, again. Though in all seriousness, one of my favorite parts of working here is the constant push to innovate. It can be exhausting at times, but I appreciate that our staff never says "eh, it's good enough." We're always asking "what can we do to improve this?" Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't, but I love it.

Looking for more about Eric? Check out last week's Teacher Tuesday Blog Post!