Although I’ve already mentioned and posted about Twitter and its usefulness when connecting with fellow educators, there are oh so many uses for it. Some basics of using Twitter and conversing with others:
- Use @ to tag a Twitter handle, or person in your post, assuring that they will see your “tweet”
- Use # to tag your tweet based on the topic, so that others will easily be able to find it
- Remember specific etiquette when participating in a twitter chat:
- Always use the chat hashtag, so others can find your tweets
- Answer questions using the format A1: … , A2: … , etc so others can easily follow your participation in the discussion
- Engage! Don’t just answer questions, but engage in a dialogue with others
Twitter is a great way to keep up with educational policy, changes and strategies that other teachers are using. Many include photos of classrooms, activities, students, field trips, or other ways in which they are showcasing their teaching. Join in! Don’t limit yourself to text only.
Take time to cultivate your PLN on Twitter. Choose carefully those who you follow, so that your feed is filled with high quality content that feeds and engages you as a professional. Take time occasionally to manage those you follow, unfollowing those who you no longer find relevant (they’ll never know you unfollowed), and following new members of the growing community.
Amanda M. Orozco 