Not all that Glitters is Gold

Twitter. 

What is it? See this video for a brief introduction.

My love to hate, relationship with Twitter.

So the first thing that you should know about me is that I am a very old millennial. I was born in 81 putting me right on the edge between the Gen X and millennial.  Which means that by all rights I should love Twitter. But I don't.  I'm not going to lie, I hate Twitter. I know I shouldn't, but I do. I hate the limited characters, I hate the interface and I hate the way the people use it.  140 characters, really? Who can say anything in that amount of time worth saying. I'm not saying that everything you have to say should be a dissertation but really 140 characters? I know, I know we are all supposed to write like this "Thx ur my BBF. Luv u!" but I just can't bring myself to do it.  And it is not just the character limitation that annoys me, it is the way people use Twitter. I recently tried, once again, to follow an event on Twitter, and once again became more confused and frustrated then if I hadn't tried at all.  Can we just established a few rules of etiquette for using Twitter, at least amongst educators and professionals during a Twitter conversation.

My top ten list of how to use Twitter in a PLN


1. Don't be Vague.
Saying things like "Crazy day today" and "time to get wild" or "lets do this"  out of context and without any background tells me nothing. Either add context or don't say anything at all.

2. Add links or pictures (you get an extra thousand words that way) to explain
You can add both pictures and video in your post and you should do both.  This usually helps get a lot of context and explanation to your post.

3. If you don't have anything to say, then don't say anything at all.
No, really.  Nobody like inane chatter, in real life or online.

4. Good for you, nobody cares.
Don't post pictures of your dinner, ever.  If you aren't going to write an artist statement don't post your art. And if you aren't going to link your art project then don't post the cool new project you just invented.

5. Save the drama for your mamma.
I'm sorry your principal is an a**hat, or your husband didn't buy organic eggs but really does it serve the world for us all to know that?

6. Your hashtag and links leads me no where - you lose
If you spent all your precious characters on linking to different hashtags, then at least have them go somewhere to better explain your original post

7. And your point is?
If you can't make your point in this pointless character restriction then link me to somewhere else

8. Online means Public++++, 
If your worst enemy shouldn't know it then don't post it. Also if you wouldn't say it to someone's face then again don't post it.

9. This is supposed to be a conversation.
Contributing doesn't mean just talking about yourself, it means sharing valuable or uniqe information and insight, not playing tag-I-went-here-and-took-selfie-to-prove-it.  If you are sharing a travel exprence then post picture of what you see, not of yourself

10. Tell me something I didn't know. 
We all know that the kindergartners are crazy the hour after their Valentine's Day party.  So give me an effective trick or technique that you used to calm them down, don't just state the obvious.

So why should we all get on the Twitter Bandwagon.  Well here are what others are say about the great benefits of Twitter.

And finally I'll leave you with this parting thought.
If great minds of the past tried to use Twitter...

cut off at 140 characters
"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by t"
or in text speak
"I've a dream dat my 4 ltl chldrn wiL 1 dA live n a n8tN whr dey wiL not b judged by d colR of thR skin, bt by d content of thR character."

How about this one
"Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposi"
or in text speak
"4 scor & 7 years ago our fathers brawt forth on DIS continent, a nu nation, conceived n Liberty, & dedicated 2 d propositN dat aL men R creatD =."

Doesn't quiet have the same effect, does it?

Personal Learning Network

Building your Personal(or Professional) Learning Network aka PLN.  

There are lots of tools and sites online to inspire, organize and share all that there is to learn about.  In fact if this blog has shown you anything there is too much to remember all that you have learned.  Here is a great tool to help you keep track of all your new online discoveries.  This is an especially great tool in conjunction with Feedly and Pintrest.  All those great blog articles and lesson ideas you discover, this is a tool that allows you to collect, and organize them.   I love, love, love Diigo.  Below is a video to show you all the cool feature of this tool.  First sign up at Diigo.com , be sure to sign up with your teacher email and fill out the teacher application for extra special teacher features.  Then if you are using Chrome (and really why wouldn't you be, because Chrome is awesome) go to the Chrome store and get the Diigo Extension.

It is like a cross between Pintrest and the Bookmark Bar This is a perfect tool to use in conjunction with Feedly.  With so many new articles and idea this is a great way to read, highlight, make notes and then file it away for later (like next year later).   I really like that I can keyword search for my bookmarks using the tag feature and can search for my bookmarked pages using keywords.  It is a lot like Pintrest, but has the extra features of highlighting, sticky notes and more sharing options, so Diigo can be great to use while getting lost in Pintrest (which I do with a shameful about to frequency).  Also like Pintrest this is a collaborative tool as well.  Share with friend, the world or no one, and like Pintrest others can contribute to your folders.  So for all that stuff you find online here is another really great tool for you to stay orginized and be able find your cool finds later. 

Google Custom Search Engine

Google Custom Search Engine

Google, the most popular search engine in the world, enables us to build our own search tool. What does this mean for you, your class and your school? It means that you can build a search engine customized with content for your grade level, for a particular unit of study or with material for families in your school community.

What makes this tool even more powerful is that once you start building this search engine, you can invite collaborators from within your school or around the world to help your search engine grow. Now, you’re not building a tool that will just be used for a week or two and then forgotten. You’re building a tool that students can contribute to and learn from for the entire school year and beyond.

About Google Custom Search

Google Custom Search provides anyone with a Google account the opportunity to build a search engine targeting his or her own collection of sites. This search engine can then be shared through a link or by embedding into a blog or wiki. Once created, it can be used by you or your students—whether at school, at home or halfway around the world.

Let’s take a look at one user-created search engine. Visit http://tinyurl.com/2e25qz . This is a custom search engine was created for the sole purpose of helping to “...nurture girls' interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).” At the top of this page, you can see Google’s traditional search box. But look down the page, and you will see a section which says:

Searches sites including: www.binarygirl.com, www.computergirl.us, www2.lv.psu.edu/jkl1/sisters/,www.engineergirl.org, www.thefutureschannel.com

These sites, and some others, were chosen by the creator of this custom search engine and are the only sites searched when you enter a query.

Try it. Type chemistry into the search box. When you receive your results, the page you are viewing looks just like any other Google results page. The difference is that these results consist entirely of pages from the sites the creator chose.

Review this step by step tutorial on creating your own custom Google Search Engine or watch this video (only need to watch the first 5 minutes.)

Staying up to date by creating a RSS Feed

There is soooooo much out there!  Sooooo much information, great ideas and new trends in eduction. How can we possibly keep up?   Feedly is one great way to stay up-to-date will all your favorite subjects, especially art education.  If you have a google or Facebook account it is supper easy to sign up, if not you can still sign up too.  Once you are signed up just type in the subject of the thing you want to follow, such as "art education."   Feedly will suggest blogs related to your keyword search.  Then click the add button to add it to your feed.  Then when you log onto Feedly it is like a customize only magazine offering articles you are interested in.  Just be carful you aren't too trigger happy when adding blogs or you might get over whelmed.  Feedly.com also has apps for almost every device.  I personally really like the iPad app because the interface is a lot like a magazine.  The app also has an easy share feature that allows you to post cool articles to your Facebook, g+, Pintrest, Twitter, etc.

Here are a couple of video tutorials if you think you need them, but honestly this is a very easy to use site.

Transforming the Classroom for Collaborative Learning in the 21st Century

Transforming the Classroom for Collaborative Learning in the 21st Century

ABSTRACT
Today's hyper-connected students live in a world of instant interpersonal communications and virtually infinite access to information and educational resources. But this networked world, and the powerful learning tools it offers, has yet to penetrate the typical classroom. In many ways educational institutions are spinning their curricular wheels, falling behind the evolving needs of students, communities and future employers. In general, schools are not taking full advantage of 21st century learning technologies, and they are failing to reach out to the public- and private-sector organizations that can provide them with support and fresh approaches. In this article, the author advocates for an educational transformation that aligns the "how" and "what" of learning with the learners themselves and the world of work that awaits them after they leave school. That means: (1) Instruction must be synchronized more closely with the ways students live and interact outside the classroom; (2) Curricula must address the soft skills required in today's global, information-driven workforce; (3) Technology and pedagogy must be better integrated; and (4) Educational institutions must look for partners that can add to their pedagogical strengths and help shore up their weaknesses. Networking in all its forms is key to bringing about such a transformation. The author describes the Cisco Networking Academy, an educational program that has partnered with a broad range of organizations worldwide to create an e-learning environment aimed specifically at 21st century students and their instructional needs. [Click Here] for full article

Building a Google Site

Google Sites

In addition to Blogger YouTube and Google+ you can also increase your digital presence using Google Sites.  Google Sites is a great platform to build your own classroom website as a way to communicate with parents, students or even fellow teachers.   Also if you teach a High School Portfolio Class this is wonderful free way for students create their digital portfolio.

Using Google sites is a little more advance than  but there are lots of tutorials to help you along the way.  The trade off is the flexibility and vast amount of content you can add to the site.  Basically if you can make it using a Google tool your can add it to your Google Site.   To help get you started there are lots of templets that you can use, rather than starting from scratch.  I recommend that you use the "art room" templet, which can be found under browse more templets and then under the subcategory of school & education.  Although I have not explored all the templets, I found this one to be a good one for art teachers.

If you would like to check out my new Google Site as example please Click Here. 

Below are several video tutorials that will help get you started.

Creating Your Own Google Site is Easy!

Here is a quick 2 minute tutorial - watch it to see just how easy it is to get started.

Additional Useful Resources

Beginner's Guide to Creating a Site

Google Sites Tutorials

Google Sites: Creating, Editing and Sharing a Google Site