Finally, I am on summer vacation, and as many of you in the education setting knows, that means we have a few days on and off to refresh and then... back to the grind. Planning, learning, designing, etc. I have decided that even though I don't have a lot of planning and things to do this summer, I am going to spend a great bit of my time researching things for the library and for my staff. I tried in 2013-14 school year to do Tech Tuesdays. I had very few visitors and felt let's do it again in 14-15. Then, we decided to migrate to PowerSchool and I got to be the migrator/data manager. That took so much of my time on a daily and weekly basis that there was no way I would be able to spend time evaluating and researching tech tools for my staff. On top of that, I was asked to coach a swim team and that took my evenings. That whole scenario made my blog almost non-existent. I have decided to spend a lot of the summer working on things for blog posts so I can get back to the grind and again do my blog on a weekly basis.
Starting June 26th, I will be posting a blog a week regarding something libraryish or technology. I hope some of my readers will return and check things out again. I am going to work ahead so I have a nice collection of posts to refer to. I will also be maintaining my school library blog with weekly updates about new releases and things going on in the learning commons. I invite you all to visit there as well. You can visit through this link: HHS Library
I also established a blog for my teachers with tips and things that are relevant to our school. While some of it isn't going to help everyone, maybe someone can benefit from it. You can visit it here: TTL Tech Help
Again, I thank all of you for your patience as I work on rebuilding my PLN and my blog. I miss my twitter friends and my Google + things and I hope the school year to come opens up more doors for me so I can enjoy them all a little bit.
Showing posts with label PLN. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PLN. Show all posts
Friday, June 19, 2015
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
My PLN to the rescue
For the last three weeks, my library has been trying to win a contest through Follett learning company. Last week, I decided to tap into the powers of my PLN and see if I could get some more votes. I had no idea how much impact that could have on what I was doing. My PLN has totally come to the rescue. Though I don't suspect we will win, my PLN has helped us move from the last page of the rankings to the top of the third page. I couldn't have done it without them.
I never realized how many people I can impact with just a quick message. I posted a comment on the Indiana Learning Connections site, which is the state of Indiana's list-serv. It took off. I gained over 500 votes in one day. For a small school of my size, that is huge. I continued to use social media sites to add more votes. I posted something on twitter, Facebook and google +. Then, it all started rolling. I had retweets, personal messages and comments. It was amazing.
My point is this, a PLN can be a lifesaver for anything you do. If you are a hesitant teacher and haven't started establishing a PLN, do it. Join the millions of other educators who have interests similar to yours, you will not be disappointed.
I never realized how many people I can impact with just a quick message. I posted a comment on the Indiana Learning Connections site, which is the state of Indiana's list-serv. It took off. I gained over 500 votes in one day. For a small school of my size, that is huge. I continued to use social media sites to add more votes. I posted something on twitter, Facebook and google +. Then, it all started rolling. I had retweets, personal messages and comments. It was amazing.
My point is this, a PLN can be a lifesaver for anything you do. If you are a hesitant teacher and haven't started establishing a PLN, do it. Join the millions of other educators who have interests similar to yours, you will not be disappointed.
Friday, September 20, 2013
My Tech Life
I often get asked at school how I manage to do so many tech things with my time. I tweet, Facebook, Pin, text, blog and manage to read a few books PLUS, be a full time mom. My answer is simple: Prioritize. I spend only a little bit of time each day doing the tech stuff. I have to have time for me. (Afterall, I have to be able to play Ruzzle and Candy Crush a little bit!)
A colleague once said she spends 10 minutes a day on twitter and that is all. She schedules posts and tweets and also prewrites her blog. That got me thinking. I need to focus my time the same way.
On a daily basis, I spend a little time on twitter, unless there is an chat I am interested in attending, I merely look and scan for about ten minutes. If I strike a conversation, I stay on longer. If I come across a link on twitter that I want for later, for my blog or to use in class, I retweet it and add it to my pocket. It will be there when I need it.
I also do the same on Pinterest. I admit, it can be addicting, so I only spend a few minutes each day looking while I watch TV at night. Sometimes, I skip Pinterest. (Makes me look like less of an addict that way.)
As for my blog, I work ahead. Blogger is WONDERFUL because I can schedule and organize ahead. I use my google calendar, plan and decide what I am doing and then preschedule my blogs. If I have a day when I have nothing planned, I type my posts. If I find I am running behind on my posts, I use the archives and repost articles from the past.
Checking out tech stuff??? Well, I do that a lot while the kids are at the pool. You see, both of my kids swim competitively and when I am not subbing in as an assistant coach, I check out tech stuff. I sometimes take the laptop, sometimes stay at home, depends on the day. I refer to my Pocket or Diigo account and look over what I have saved and investigate, sample, check out. Then I take some notes and keep track. If I think it will help my teachers, I add it to my Tech Tuesday one note file and voila, I am done. I get ahead a lot this way.
I also started listening to audio books. That has helped me stay in the game with books and manage the tech. I don't overdo the technology, but, sometimes, with grading, being a mom and needing a rest, I don't have time to sit and focus on a book. Audio books allow me to be Suzy Homemaker and still listen to a great read.
Yes, I am a little crazy. Yes, I am a geek. Yes, I manage my time well because I don't let the tech take over my life. I put limits on what I do. This is how I do it.... plus, I think I have ADHD :)
A colleague once said she spends 10 minutes a day on twitter and that is all. She schedules posts and tweets and also prewrites her blog. That got me thinking. I need to focus my time the same way.
On a daily basis, I spend a little time on twitter, unless there is an chat I am interested in attending, I merely look and scan for about ten minutes. If I strike a conversation, I stay on longer. If I come across a link on twitter that I want for later, for my blog or to use in class, I retweet it and add it to my pocket. It will be there when I need it.
I also do the same on Pinterest. I admit, it can be addicting, so I only spend a few minutes each day looking while I watch TV at night. Sometimes, I skip Pinterest. (Makes me look like less of an addict that way.)
As for my blog, I work ahead. Blogger is WONDERFUL because I can schedule and organize ahead. I use my google calendar, plan and decide what I am doing and then preschedule my blogs. If I have a day when I have nothing planned, I type my posts. If I find I am running behind on my posts, I use the archives and repost articles from the past.
Checking out tech stuff??? Well, I do that a lot while the kids are at the pool. You see, both of my kids swim competitively and when I am not subbing in as an assistant coach, I check out tech stuff. I sometimes take the laptop, sometimes stay at home, depends on the day. I refer to my Pocket or Diigo account and look over what I have saved and investigate, sample, check out. Then I take some notes and keep track. If I think it will help my teachers, I add it to my Tech Tuesday one note file and voila, I am done. I get ahead a lot this way.
I also started listening to audio books. That has helped me stay in the game with books and manage the tech. I don't overdo the technology, but, sometimes, with grading, being a mom and needing a rest, I don't have time to sit and focus on a book. Audio books allow me to be Suzy Homemaker and still listen to a great read.
Yes, I am a little crazy. Yes, I am a geek. Yes, I manage my time well because I don't let the tech take over my life. I put limits on what I do. This is how I do it.... plus, I think I have ADHD :)
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Tips for Twitter Newbies
One of my goals this school year is to get some of my co-workers to jump into the Twitter realm and try to build a PLN (Personal Learning Network). I don't know if they realize how awesome it is to gain a plethora of information from so many people who are just like them. I decided the best way to get them started it to share some quick and easy tips.
1). Start off following a few people who have similar interests as you. (Ex: If you are a SS teacher, find a few social studies teachers and follow them, read profiles and look for subject matter similarities or interest similarities.) Look for tweeps who have more than a few hundred posts and scan some of the things they have posted. If you notice most of their posts are super personal and don't focus on education, they may not be the person for you. It's okay to follow someone and change your follow later if they really don't cater to what you are looking for.
2) Set up a diigo account and a pocket account because you will want to save some of the links people post. Diigo has a place in the settings where you can connect twitter to Diigo. Once you favorite a post, it saves it as a Diigo bookmark for later reference. Pocket does the same, but it is a visual bookmark. *I use both because sometimes so much gets saved in Diigo that I get behind. With pocket, the visual helps me refer to what I need.
3) Don't tweet immediately unless you feel ready. Start off following feeds, get a feel. Remember, 140 characters. Keep it short and simple. Ask questions, people will help you. Don't be afraid to retweet something that interests you and don't be afraid to tweet something and join a conversation. Some of your best learning experiences will be with people you don't know and you will find that eventually these people you meet will be some of your best motivators, idea bouncer-offers (yep, made up a word) and best encouragement.
4) NEVER open direct messages that tell you that someone said bad stuff about you. Unless someone asks you a question dealing with your conversation, avoid the DM. It seems like there are a lot of spammers out there.
5) Learn how to list and use hashtags. Creating lists helps you develop connections with other people in your content. You can add people and communicate and collaborate with them when you need to work on a project. Using Hashtags (which is the # sign before a text) will help you follow a specific topic. You can refer back to that topic or build a news feed of it (A Later lesson).
6) Finally, ask for help. People on twitter will help guide you. Don't be afraid to ask questions.
1). Start off following a few people who have similar interests as you. (Ex: If you are a SS teacher, find a few social studies teachers and follow them, read profiles and look for subject matter similarities or interest similarities.) Look for tweeps who have more than a few hundred posts and scan some of the things they have posted. If you notice most of their posts are super personal and don't focus on education, they may not be the person for you. It's okay to follow someone and change your follow later if they really don't cater to what you are looking for.
2) Set up a diigo account and a pocket account because you will want to save some of the links people post. Diigo has a place in the settings where you can connect twitter to Diigo. Once you favorite a post, it saves it as a Diigo bookmark for later reference. Pocket does the same, but it is a visual bookmark. *I use both because sometimes so much gets saved in Diigo that I get behind. With pocket, the visual helps me refer to what I need.
3) Don't tweet immediately unless you feel ready. Start off following feeds, get a feel. Remember, 140 characters. Keep it short and simple. Ask questions, people will help you. Don't be afraid to retweet something that interests you and don't be afraid to tweet something and join a conversation. Some of your best learning experiences will be with people you don't know and you will find that eventually these people you meet will be some of your best motivators, idea bouncer-offers (yep, made up a word) and best encouragement.
4) NEVER open direct messages that tell you that someone said bad stuff about you. Unless someone asks you a question dealing with your conversation, avoid the DM. It seems like there are a lot of spammers out there.
5) Learn how to list and use hashtags. Creating lists helps you develop connections with other people in your content. You can add people and communicate and collaborate with them when you need to work on a project. Using Hashtags (which is the # sign before a text) will help you follow a specific topic. You can refer back to that topic or build a news feed of it (A Later lesson).
6) Finally, ask for help. People on twitter will help guide you. Don't be afraid to ask questions.
Friday, August 30, 2013
How I am and became a Connected Educator
The term connected educator has been hopping around the edusphere a lot lately. Teachers of all grade levels, librarians and even professors are jumping on board and becoming connected. What is it? What does it look like to be a connected educator? It is what you make it!
Connected educators are open minded about using technology. They collaborate, build a personal learning network (PLN) and attend conferences regarding tech. They tweet, use social media, create blogs and do lessons with co-workers. Connected educators are "CONNECTED" to the world around them through social media and technology; Period. I am a connected educator, and here is how.
Several years ago, I was scared to tweet. I was afraid of sounding stupid, looking like a fool and maybe appear unaware of things. I started my first account and started following a few people a friend of mine recommended. I spent my first month on twitter stalking people. I occasionally would say something, but not often. After a bit, I got more daring. I started attending a chat session. I chose #edchat by a fluke as one of the people I followed was doing it one day and I started joining in. I felt so rewarded, seeing people in my profession have the same issues, concerns and questions I had.
I began to grow my PLN. I started following librarians, edtech people, and authors. (I follow authors for book updates, information about what they are thinking and because some of them write the best tweets ever!) After awhile, I started tweeting about all kinds of things: tools for web 2.0, ideas, book chats with librarians. I have connected with some fantastic people and I have learned more from them than I will ever learn from a staff development and I am sure someone has learned something from me.
I started implementing tools into my classroom and the library. I started organizing my thoughts on these products and started sharing the thoughts with others, that is how I started my blog. I started joining different sites that connect teachers and offer webinars and lessons. I have been asked by a few to do webinars and lessons (Due to my schedule, it hasn't worked, but I anticipate some of my lessons popping out into the net someday). I attend edcamps and tech conferences. I chat with edtech people, and I have learned it's okay to ask questions. I don't have to know everything. I just have to make an attempt to try something new.
This school year, I am going to attempt to make some co-workers a little connected by offering Tech Tuesdays each week. I plan to teach twitter, google+, and Facebook. I hope to show them the power these tools can have with them professionally. I also decided to do mini web lessons (the flipped model) for those who want to attend a Tech Tuesday but aren't available.
Hopefully, my attempts will encourage someone from my school to realize how awesome it is to be Connected.
Connected educators are open minded about using technology. They collaborate, build a personal learning network (PLN) and attend conferences regarding tech. They tweet, use social media, create blogs and do lessons with co-workers. Connected educators are "CONNECTED" to the world around them through social media and technology; Period. I am a connected educator, and here is how.
Several years ago, I was scared to tweet. I was afraid of sounding stupid, looking like a fool and maybe appear unaware of things. I started my first account and started following a few people a friend of mine recommended. I spent my first month on twitter stalking people. I occasionally would say something, but not often. After a bit, I got more daring. I started attending a chat session. I chose #edchat by a fluke as one of the people I followed was doing it one day and I started joining in. I felt so rewarded, seeing people in my profession have the same issues, concerns and questions I had.
I began to grow my PLN. I started following librarians, edtech people, and authors. (I follow authors for book updates, information about what they are thinking and because some of them write the best tweets ever!) After awhile, I started tweeting about all kinds of things: tools for web 2.0, ideas, book chats with librarians. I have connected with some fantastic people and I have learned more from them than I will ever learn from a staff development and I am sure someone has learned something from me.
I started implementing tools into my classroom and the library. I started organizing my thoughts on these products and started sharing the thoughts with others, that is how I started my blog. I started joining different sites that connect teachers and offer webinars and lessons. I have been asked by a few to do webinars and lessons (Due to my schedule, it hasn't worked, but I anticipate some of my lessons popping out into the net someday). I attend edcamps and tech conferences. I chat with edtech people, and I have learned it's okay to ask questions. I don't have to know everything. I just have to make an attempt to try something new.
This school year, I am going to attempt to make some co-workers a little connected by offering Tech Tuesdays each week. I plan to teach twitter, google+, and Facebook. I hope to show them the power these tools can have with them professionally. I also decided to do mini web lessons (the flipped model) for those who want to attend a Tech Tuesday but aren't available.
Hopefully, my attempts will encourage someone from my school to realize how awesome it is to be Connected.
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Graphite for Product Reviews
Graphite is divided into both age groups and content areas. One can search a lot of criteria to find everything from apps to PC programs and games that are student appropriate. I found three sites immediately I have never seen that were relevant to my content area and my goals. I love how it allows you to search FREE, FREE TO TRY and PAID apps. It covers everyone that way. Some teachers are willing to shell out some money for apps, I believe if I can't work with the free stuff, then there is a problem. Graphite shares with teachers information about all of the payment forms available.
I added graphite to my pocket immediately because I find a lot of worth in the things Common Sense Media is doing. The focus of the organization is to promote sites, movies, TV shows and games (etc., etc.) that are appropriate for kids. As a mom of two, I appreciate it. The program has guided me to deter from specific movies and games because of content. The Graphite site does the same. It promotes sites, games and apps that lack violence, sex, and language. It filters everything into programming that is appropriate. I appreciate that.
I also like the fact that graphite has developed a PLN. You create an account and can find teachers with similar experiences as you. I love it!
I suggest you take a look. There really are a lot of great sites listed here and the method they are presented is really easy and user friendly.
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