Social Networking

I have been focused on trying to use Twitter and becoming more comfortable with tweeting and dabbling in the world of Twitter chats.  This week the reading and sources provided turned our attention to the other social networking sites that are out there to help build our PLN.  I already have a Facebook account which I primarily use for my personal use instead of professional, however it is easy for me to understand, having used it since 2005, how you can use it for PD or building your PLN.  I am also very familiar with using Pinterest, so  I wanted to try something new. Hello, Instagram! My friends use it, and some of my previous students always talked about it, but much like Twitter, I didn't really see the purpose.  At this point, I haven't had much time to play on it.  I signed up for an account and have been doing some research about ways that teachers utilize Instagram.

Since Instagram is a picture sharing site, I was thinking that would be perfect for  displaying pictures of a project my students just started working on today.  Each group selected a song that is rich in figurative language, and they are creating posters that show how they can identify figurative language along with imagery, mood, main idea. I also gave them the added task of creating a QR code that is linked to their song. That way when their classmates, teachers or parents are viewing their work they can scan the code and listen to the song.  I decided that I wasn't going to teach them how to do it.  I let them know that there are resources out there and they could do a little research and problem solving.  I teach 6th graders...the panic on some of there faces was priceless.  How dare I ask them to do something, but not take them by the hand and show them step by step how to do it?  After the initial shock wore off, they jumped right in.  I had several kids that wanted to start with that first because they wanted to know how to do it and they saw it as a challenge.  I actually had a student email me this evening to let me know she figured it out and she gave me step by step directions of what she did. 

In the reading this week there was a chart of digital skills that come from using digital tools. The cognitive skills really stuck out to me:multitasking, logical thinking, problem solving, and trial and error learning. These are some of the skills that it seems my students have been lacking.  It was nice to see them utilizing these skills when given the task of figuring how to create a QR code for their song.

Slowly but surely my PLN is starting to build.  I'm encouraged to keep finding information about using social networking sites to connect with other educators and find great ideas to bring into the classroom.  Here are a few extra resources I found about using Instagram.

7 Ways Innovative Teachers can use Instagram