Why I Love Twitter Chats

What is Twitter chat? A Twitter chat is a live Twitter event, usually moderated and focused around a general topic. To filter all the chatter on Twitter into a single conversation a hashtag is used. A set time is also established so that the moderator, guest or host is available to engage in the conversation.

Why should you participate in a Twitter chat? Twitter chats can be a fun way to talk about a topic, meet some people interested in the same thing as you are, grow your own network and have some fun learning. "The word from educators in the trenches is that these chats are making a profound difference in how educators are improving their professional practice, providing ideas, resources and inspiration in ways never thought possible."

Interesting in giving Twitter chats a try? Here are a few tips to help you get started:

1. Use a tool like Tweetdeck or Tweetchat to follow the chat.
• Before the chat begins, it is useful to warn your followers about an upcoming unusual number of tweets, so they are not surprised and don't unfollow you.
2. It's okay to lurk (which means to follow the discussion, but not participate) at first. Lurking is learning!
3. When participating in a chat, don't forget to include the chat hashtag, 
• When you answer a question (Q1), tweet with the appropriate number (A1) so people know to what you are answering..  
4. Some chats move very quickly and it can be difficult to keep up with all the chatter. Don't be intimidated or feel that you have to read everything! Just catch what you can. Many chats are archived afterwards.
5. Don't go off topic. If you want to start a different discussion with a member of the chat, do so separately.
6. If you answer to a specific tweet, tag the original author with the @ sign.
7. Don't hesitate to favorite and/or retweet posts that you find interesting, smart and useful.

Check out this list and infographic of my favorite Educational Twitter Chats:

• Educational Chat Calendar by Jerry Cybraryman (be sure to click through the calendar to change the date)
• Link to Infographic

Resources:

13 Great Twitter Chats Every Educator Should Check Out -- THE Journal
Thejournal.com, '13 Great Twitter Chats Every Educator Should Check Out -- THE Journal'. N. p., 2015. Web. 11 May 2015.

Why You Should Participate In Twitter Chats
Social Media Today, 'Why You Should Participate In Twitter Chats'. N. p., 2014. Web. 11 May 2015.

Building a PLN with Pinterest and/or Twitter

Ever find yourself in a situation where you need classroom ideas, need help finding technology tools for the classroom, or interested in learning what other teachers in your content area are doing in their classrooms? Then maybe you should consider building a Personal Learning Network. Let's look at two great sites to use as a PLN.

Pinterest, a virtual corkboard, is a great place to collect ideas. With Pinterest, you create PINS. which are virtual bookmarks from various websites, on your board. One can create multiple boards that help organize the pins. Twitter is a social media site where users share short 140 character messages called "tweets". With Twitter users can follow educational hashtags, join in on chats, and follow others in their educational field. Let's look at the pros and cons of both and which one works best for you or is a combination of both the best choice.

PROS/CONS of Using Pinterest:

• Pro - Pinterest is well organized, hence an easy way to find resources with the search feature.
• Pro - Pinterest is great for curating content with boards and pins for specific topics.
• Con - Pinterest lends itself to a female audience therefore losing the male perspective of classroom ideas/content.
• Con - Pinterest does not promote personal connections to other colleagues. (Example: no chat feature so therefore there's no real connection to other educators.)

PROS/CONS of Using Twitter:

• Pro - Twitter has (as of 2013) approximately 645 million active users.
• Pro - Twitter chats are a great way to meet and learn for those in your same content area. 
• Pro - With Twitter you develop a personal connection to people, possibly even meet them in real life.
• Pro - Follow hashtags for current information.
• Con - Twitter limits itself when searching for specific topics.
• Con - Twitter can be overwhelming when trying to read the timeline of tweets.

How I use Both Twitter and Pinterest as My PLN:

• I use Twitter to...
• ask questions of my followers.
• join in on weekly chats. (List of Educational Twitter Chats)
• tweet out articles I find relevant to the classroom.
• follow those who have the same professional/educational interests as myself.
• I use Pinterest to...
• store my ideas and resources for teachers/students via content boards.
• follow other boards that have the same professional/educational interests as myself.
• search for classroom ideas.
• pin other ideas/resources for later use. 

Although I learn from both sources, Twitter has a bigger draw for me over Pinterest. Twitter offers me the opportunity to connect with other educators. With Pinterest one misses that connection. In the article, "The Profound Impact of Human Connection" it says "Human connection brings complex values to our lives: relationships give us a sense of belonging in the group, a sense of identity in contrast to others in that group, an almost therapeutic-support system, and reason not to feel lonely. We learn from others’ experiences and insight, and we learn together by pursuing new experiences alongside those we befriend." Why I use Twitter...a sense of belonging, a sense of support system, to learn from others' experiences, we learn together. What a better way to start the year, than building your Personal Learning Network. 

Resources:

Pinterest Versus Twitter
Pinterest for Educators
10 Ways Teachers Can Use Twitter for Professional Development
A List of All Educational Twitter Chats Teachers Should Know About
The Profound Impact of Human Connection

Key Strategies for an Epic Win: Using YouTube in Your Classroom!

Open, open, open… remember the commercial where the shopper stands at the front of the store with her nose pressed to the window? Like the woman in the commercial, many of us are very excited about having access to YouTube at school.So, when it's open will you be ready? Can you navigate YouTube?

Getting Started:

• Create an account. When you create an account, you can save and organize videos using playlists. 
• How to create a playlist
• Using favorites and the “watch later” feature
• Preview before you hit play. Always, always, always preview videos before using them in your lessons. 
• Download videos for offline viewing. For Curriculum Night, evaluations, and other important presentations always download the video just in case there are network issues.
• One method for downloading videos can be found here.

A Few Advanced Tips:

• Annotate your videos. (ones you upload) Directions. 
• Add Captions. Directions
• Edit videos using the YouTube Video Editor. With the editor you can combine multiple videos, add music and transitions, or trim the video to the most important part of the video. Directions

Some Classroom Applications:

• Flip your class using YouTube’s web cam feature. Here’s my test video and directions.
• Testing, testing...
• Directions
• Create playlists for reviews and tutorials. You don’t have to create everything. Use existing videos from Smithsonian, PBS, Khan Academy, etc.

For more ideas, check out The Teacher’s Guide To Using YouTube In The Classroom.

Grow Your Professional Learning Network:

• You can follow channels just as you follow colleagues on twitter.
• The 10 Most Important Educational YouTube Channels For Teachers


• Explore YouTube channels created just for educators.
• YouTube for Teachers
• YouTube for Schools
• YouTube for Education

How will you use YouTube in your classroom? Post your comments and ideas. We’d love to hear from you.