Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Use the power of social media to connect with educators around the world with similar interests with EduMatch. Sign up to be the #edtech Person of the Day and enroll in EduMatch. EduMatch also provides podcasts with discussions on educational issues. Access previous podcast archives or view the calendar for upcoming sessions. Previous topics include issues such as encouraging colleagues to take risks with technology and educator perspectives on grading policies.

tag(s): podcasts (74), professional development (395), social networking (67), twitter (19)

TPS Teachers Network is a social networking site for social studies and history teachers. The Library of Congress funded this as part of their Teaching With Primary Sources Program. Create an account to begin using features on the site (email and password required). Once enrolled, options include participating in a chat, adding friends, and searching using keywords. Use the search from the top right menu after logging in on the main page to find specific information topics such as primary source sets or political cartoons. Create albums on the site, including primary and secondary sources, and videos to easily share with students or fellow teachers. Be sure to check out the Help section by clicking the question mark at on the top menu bar when you first get started for Quick Tips to all sections of the site.

tag(s): bookmarks (47), primary sources (117), professional development (395), social networking (67), Teacher Utilities (146)

Create a real-time chat room based on an X (formerly Twitter) hashtag. Invite users to TwChat to participate in an online presentation without additional programs. Assign others to assist you with moderation. View a list of the Latest Chats and Upcoming Chats. Click "Create own room" to begin. Sign in with X (formerly Twitter) to participate, and then create your first room. Enter the time and schedule for the chat. X (formerly Tweets) appear in the room from all participants. Your X (formerly tweets) appear in the mentor column. Use this tool to follow new X (formerly Twitter) users or block participants.

tag(s): chat (42), communication (136), microblogging (18), PLN (6), social networking (67), twitter (19)

Learn what you need to do and know to start using X (formerly Twitter). Sign up to get a X (formerly Twitter) mentor or BE a mentor! Find out what to do before creating an X (formerly Twitter) account, get advice about whom to follow, explore programs to use to help you manage your X (formerly Twitter) account, and read how to keep track of everything. Learn about all the terms needed to be successful using X (formerly Twitter) as a teacher. This site is clean, simple, and very helpful!

tag(s): chat (42), microblogging (18), social networking (67), twitter (19)

Learning Front is a free online community of tools for social, professional learning. Tools for professional development aim to improve teaching and learning in the 21st century online platform. Connect and collaborate with individuals or teams. Programs offers the AD682 Technology for Leaders of Learning with Webinars and Coaching Sessions on many professional development tasks for teachers, new or experienced, or pre-service teachers. Wiki Task features units, lessons, and data displays for professional learning. Find lessons to support your subject area. The Networking link allows you to find other colleagues in your area of expertise. They can join your efforts and work with you. Download many free resources.

tag(s): professional development (395), social networking (67)

Pinterest is a virtual pinboard that lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. Browse the site without registration. Type Edu or education in the search bar, and find two different Education results. Clicking a picture gives a description and the option to Follow or Comment. To create/add to your pinboards, register for free. If you have an account, you can Repin the picture to a pinboard you have titled and created within your account. Click on the image again to visit the original site of the image. Often this is just what you are looking for to learn specific details. You can also search Pinterest for specific items such as Guided Reading, File Folder Activities, or other classroom needs. Pinterest members can "follow" other users and see their new items as they add them to their pinboards. Use Pinterest on any device or computer, and there is a related Facebook app.

tag(s): architecture (64), cooking (30), creativity (91), DAT device agnostic tool (143), fashion (9), guided reading (32), nutrition (134), organizational skills (90), professional development (395), social media (53), social networking (67)

Yes, Twitter is now named X. X (formerly Twitter) users enter information to share with their "followers" by creating 280 character Xs (formerly "tweets"); "followers" see what they are thinking, favorite links, etc., all from the brief X (formerly "tweet"). Xs (formerly Tweets) are much more than messages to share what you are eating for lunch! Use this popular microblogging and social networking tool for a great way to communicate with teaching peers and real world people you may not have a chance to otherwise meet. Reply to others to create conversations for some of the best professional development around. Each X (formerly "tweet") or message may not seem extraordinary, but using the sum total of Xs (formerly tweets) from those you "meet" on X (formerly Twitter) can have an amazing impact. Use your profile and settings to add a bio and other information, change your security settings from public to protected, find those who follow you, and more. Post your tweets through the website, mobile devices, or myriad of applications to manage tweets and followers. Keep track of your favorite Xs (formerly tweets) by starring them. Refer to your favorites list as needed. Wish you could take back a X (formerly tweet)? Click the trash can beside the post to delete (however, others may have already seen and responded.) Find many opinions about X (formerly Twitter) on and off the Internet. Remember you will gain only as much as you put into this service. Build a network of helpful colleagues to become a better learner (and educator). Anyone can learn from X (formerly Twitter), even a class of elementary students! Still not sure what X (formerly Twitter) is about? Find a great explanation of how it works in this review.

tag(s): communication (136), microblogging (18), social media (53), social networking (67)

This interactive social bookmarking and collaboration tool does so much more than any ordinary bookmarking tool. It is a research curation tool, knowledge-sharing community, website annotation tool, and social information network all rolled into one "cloud" package. To get started, check out the About link. You will find information and videos on the uses of Diigo. Set up an account, being sure to click the FREE education edition upgrade. This is a device-agnostic tool, available on the web but also available for free as both an Android and iOS app. Use it from any device or move between several devices and still access your work. App and web versions vary slightly. At this time Diigo is experiencing issues with the "Top 10 Tags" from the menu on the left.

This tool can be used as a basic bookmarking tool, simply allowing YOU to save, sort, and access your own bookmarks from ANY computer or mobile device (once you are logged in). You have the choice whether your bookmarks are public or private. You can gradually ease into more advanced and interactive features: highlight parts of sites and save or share those annotations, add sticky notes to parts of websites, pictures, screen-shots, documents, audio, and more. Do group collaborative research. Organize your bookmarks by tags. Unlike sorting bookmarks into file folders, adding tags permits you to put multiple tags or "labels" on one site. The same site you tag for book reports could also be tagged for biographies, for example. Additional Diigo features include groups (a way to share and exchange bookmarks with a certain group of Diigo users), messaging, and search features. You can search all the public bookmarks made by others and discover other people with similar interests, already bookmarked and ready for you to mark as your own. There are many groups you can join, such as those with a specific teaching interest or hobby. See "Tools" for many helpful options, including bookmarklets to make bookmarking instant on multiple devices. Bookmarklets drag directly to the toolbars on your computer and are well worth it. It goes beyond simple bookmarking and adds options like highlight, capture, send, read later, comment, search bar and Diigo message options. You decide your own level of use and desired tools to be shown on the bar. If choosing not to install the toolbar, then there is an applet called Diigolet that will be used in its place. It is not as strong a tool as the toolbar, but will work well if the toolbar installation is not possible. Check our sample group. You can also install a widget on your blog (or class web page) that will show your bookmarks there.
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tag(s): bookmarks (47), collaboration (87), curation (35), DAT device agnostic tool (143), forum (2), organizational skills (90), social networking (67)