Journal #7 Professional Learning Network

Reflecting on my professional learning network experience I must be honest and admit that I did not utilize the networks to the fullest.  I would often forget to log onto the blogs or Twitter to keep up with the latest posts and news/activities.

I have heard great things about Twitter and I did search hashtags that did lead to various educational professionals and resources but it was not as easy as I thought it would be.  When I set up my account Twitter suggested people and groups to follow based on my interests but it was still challenging for me to remember to check the Twitter feeds.  I do not use any social media so I think Twitter was not always an idea in my head to constantly check or utilize.

I did use the #DidYouKnow in my classroom.  I connected my phone to the document camera and used the Twitter app to search the hashtag.  Although my kindergarten students have heard of hashtags and Twitter they were not completely sure of what exactly it was.  They did like hearing random fun facts (the ones they could understand LOL).

I did find DIGG Reader very useful.  I found a few very useful kindergarten blogs that I used for resources.  I am only in my second year of teaching so it is useful to read and learn about ideas and strategies that have worked for experienced veteran teachers.  Many of the blog creators create their own resources to use in the classroom and I have used quite a few of those resources.

I do think that if I step out of my comfort zone a little bit more I can utilize Twitter for professional development.  I also think Twitter can be a great tool to use in the classroom.  I am not too sure how to use it as a tool in my kindergarten class but I do think it can be used by students in upper grades.  Although I would want to learn more about how to monitor and limit the feeds and posts that the students can access.  I would love to use Blogger as a tool in the classroom.  My students are just learning to read, write, and type but I think it would be a cool concept to have my students make video blog posts that could be accessed on a classroom blog.

I hope to achieve a lot of prep and planning during the summer break so I can hopefully start to use these tools in the classroom to engage my students and grow as an educator.