Already on Twitter for professional learning?
Congrats, skip to part two below.
Part One:
Not on Twitter yet? Now is the time to dip your foot in.
Be honest. How often has your recent school/district professional development really met your needs? Have you sat in the back of a one-size-fits-all training thinking, “I could have led this myself?” There are schools leading great PD, and then some (just like our classrooms) are having a hard time meeting the needs of all teachers. It’s tough- you have the new teacher who needs training in the fundamentals, another teacher who has their routines down, and a few others in the mix who already have researched and tried a lot on their own. Enter the Twittersphere. The most up-to-date form of ongoing professional collaboration that will push you to think beyond your classroom/school/circumstances.
When I first started using Twitter at the encouragement of a district tech coach, I did it resentfully as I didn’t want to get sucked into the trap of meaningless social media of people posting about their every daily move… (no I don’t care about the Kardashians in 140 characters or less). But boy was I wrong. There was a whole playground of teachers “meeting” and “chatting” about really exciting ideas! It was the professional development I’d been searching for, all at my fingertips. If you’re just getting started, you can decide your role on Twitter. Will you be a “PD Detective” (only looking for others ideas), will you be a “Classroom Poster” (sharing your lessons for others to check out), or a “Frequent Reply-er” (quick to comment and start #TwitterChats), or a combination! Start small and comment on a few chats and you’ll be gaining momentum in no time.
HOW TO:
Many people have posted how-to resources for getting started with Twitter. I suggest checking out Twitter for Teachers: A Beginner’s Guide from Scholastic. It explains the common lingo (“what’s the difference between a Twitter handle and a hashtag?”) as well as how to get started.
Part Two:
Already using Twitter or ready to start finding people to follow? One of the easiest ways to begin is by simply following people who inspire you.
Here are some of my favorites to get you started:
@burgessdave– Dave Burgess. Author of Teach Like A Pirate. A strong Twitter participant who has helped a lot of teacher-authors get published!
@jmattmiller– Matt Miller. Author of Ditch That Textbook. One of my favorite teacher authors for authentic ways to make learning engaging. Matt is very responsive on Twitter and I appreciate how he’ll reply and retweet posts! He’s helped me connect with other educators online.
@gcouros– George Couros. Author of The Innovator’s Mindset.
@Teacher2Teacher– Teacher 2 Teacher online community. Whoever is behind this site has one of the quickest response times I’ve seen on Twitter. Tag Teacher2Teacher and they’ll connect you with other educators for fantastic discussions! It is an easy online space to be vulnerable, ask questions, and share ideas.
@sylviaduckworth– Sylvia Duckworth. #Sketchnote master. She’s sketchnoted more Ted Talks and current research than most. I’ve used her presentations in getting started with Sketchnoting for Students. Enjoy her fantastic resource here–> Sketchnoting for Beginners
@TeachThoughtPD– Teach Thought PD. A comprehensive professional development resource highlighting some of the latest research in education.
@coolcatteacher– Vicki Davis. Tech guide central! Fantastic website for tech resources by device and grade level.
@kathyschrock– Kathy Schrock. Another leader in EdTech.
@TaraMartinEDU– Tara Martin. Creator of #BookSnaps, a way to reflect about books using Snapchat, Bitmoji, and other engaging tech tools.
@mburnsmath– Marilyn Burns. Math guru. Retweets a lot of teacher applications of lessons from the “math bible”: About Teaching Mathematics
…and don’t forget to follow me!
Want more specific suggestions for a topic or grade level- contact me or leave a comment below!
