Become a connected educator and become part of an amazing network of educators today!
Professional Learning Networks – What are they? How can engagement with my PLN enhance my professional practice?
A PLN can offer you:
P– a personal experience, building relationships with terrific educators around the world
L– learning experiences, building upon the skills and expertise of others
N– networks of support, resources, and a wealth of ideas shared!
Learn more about PLNs by listening to Will Richardson:
And check out this video about how to craft a PLN shared by educator Skip Via (tools shared are a bit dated, but principles still applicable)
Here’s more on the subject, Growing Your PLN, starring Tom Murray and friends
A PLN doesn’t just fall into your lap. It does require a good deal of time, commitment, and willingness to contribute!
Here are some additional resources introducing the concept of the power of the PLN and ways to get started:
- 23 Resources about Personal Learning Networks from Shelly Terrell
- The 5 Cs to developing your personal learning network from Lisa Nielsen
- How to use Twitter to grow your PLN from Edutopia
- What the heck is a PLN? from Michael Graffin
Connect with other educators!
What is Twitter? View Twitter in Plain English.
Building Your PLN on Twitter:
Remember:
Your profile should accurately represent you as an educator. Include a recent photo (or school logo), grade level(s)/content areas taught, location, interests, etc.
Follow 25 educators who contribute regularly to bring information into your stream. Here’s a great list to reference to find other educators to follow.
Contribute! RT tweets of interest and share ideas and links with others.
Use hashtags to increase the audience of your tweets and to engage educators in conversations.
Twitter 101: Build your personal learning network
Twitter cheat sheet
Building a professional learning network on Twitter
Twitter Handbook for Teachers
Join the Flock!
The Power of Twitter
Find people to follow! Twitter for Teachers!
Educators, Do You Tweet?
Managing Your Learning on Twitter
The Chat Diary – find Twitter chat times/schedules
Master list of educational chats on Twitter!
A simple guide on the use of hashtags for teachers
100 ways to use Twitter in education
Contact me if you’d like assistance getting started with Twitter and connecting to the world!
Google+
Google+ is the social sharing space in Google. You can share links, videos, images, text… pretty much anything. You connect with others and add them to your “circles.” You customize your circles and can limit sharing to the circles of your choice. There are cool features in Google+ including their video Hangouts, which allow up to 10 people to synchronously meet, share and collaborate around a Google doc, chat, and even broadcast the whole hangout live in YouTube (and it is then archived). The possibilities for use in schools and to develop your PLN are endless. There are a number of fabulous communities for educators. There is something for everyone!
Contact me if you’d like help setting up your Google+ profile!
Building a PLN using Google+
Google+ for schools – amazing guide to get started!
5 things I like about building a PLN on Google+
Google+ for schools overview
20 awesome Google+ tips for teachers
10 Google+ communities every teacher should know about
Other Online Communities
Teacher Learning Community/Simple K-12