How to Use Social Media as a Learning Tool

Social media is an ingrained part of today’s society. Our students are constantly on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and likely many sites we’re not hip enough to know about, and by reading this blog, you’re interacting with social media at this very moment. If you want to bring the “real world” into the classroom, consider integrating social media into your lessons. No Longer a Distraction Image via Flickr by Sean MacEntee When used carefully, social media can be a useful tool rather than a distraction. Education-based sites such as Edmodo, Edublog, and Kidblog provide alternative social media sites for posting status updates and announcements, blogging, and microblogging. Create a Class Facebook Group Facebook is known as a place to post status updates, announcements, photos, and video — all things that we likely use in our classes anyway. A Facebook group also creates a space for students to ask and answer questions. Start a Topical Twitter Feed Require Students to Blog In Short Related: Kindergarten Tips

Simply Kinder: The First Hours of Kinder (& Beyond!) Does the first day of of Kindergarten scare you? You can plan for the first day... but you have to survive the first hours first! Here's some tips to get you through the first hours of kindergarten! 1. Plan an activity the kids won't tire with immediately when they enter. The kids need to be in their seats working. 2. A fun activity I do at the Meet the Teacher night sometimes is to make Name Tag Hats. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Head on over to PreK and K Sharing to see how to survive the whole day - from how to handle runners and criers to how to not lose kids on the playground!! Whew! Stop by Teaching with Z for other first day of kinder ideas as well!

62 Kindergarten Websites That Tie into Classroom Lessons These are my 62 favorite kindergarten websites. I sprinkle them in throughout the year, adding several each week to the class internet start page, deleting others. I make sure I have 3-4 Photo credit: Chud Tsankov each week that integrate with classroom lesson plans, 3-4 that deal with technology skills and a few that simply excite students about tech. Here’s the list: Do you have any to add? To sign up for Weekend Websites delivered to your email, click Weekend Websites here and leave your email. Follow me Jacqui Murray is the editor of a technology curriculum for K-fifth grade and author of two technology training books for middle school. Jacqui Murray is the editor of a technology curriculum for K-fifth grade and creator of two technology training books for middle school. Like this: Like Loading...

tips and tricks for kindergarten teachers lesson plan ideas You join a special club when you become a kindergarten teacher. There are only a few of us who have what it takes to manage these littlest students who are often still moving in a hundred directions all at once when they arrive in our classrooms. We’ve scoured our WeAreTeachers Helpline and brought together 50 of the very best ideas for kindergarten teachers. 1. Start at the very beginning. “Don't assume they know how to do anything. 2. “Be ready for kids who are readers, kids who have never seen letters, and everything in between. 3. Low maintenance, high fun! 4. One of the most repeated themes on our helpline post about teaching kindergarten was that you should always over-plan for this age group. 5. “Plan lessons/activities that last no more than 15 minutes, with some kind of movement activity in between. 6. “I teach routines, rules, but I also go on some kind of ‘adventure’. 7. 8. 9. “Glue sponges! 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17.

This provides a lot of great examples of social media being used in the classroom. While it does not specifically refer to any one age group all of the ideas can be taken and altered to be appropriate in a kindergarten (or any other age) classroom. Some of the sites are ones I don't use regularly so I hadn't thought of using them in the classroom. Overall it has some great ideas for getting started with social media use in the classroom. by ampengilley Jul 14