Two years ago, I was frustrated with the communication gap between home and school. All students were/are provided with planners. I would ensure that the planners would get filled out, into the backpacks, and out the door (most of the time). Unforfortunately, too many were NOT getting into the hands of the parents. I tried incentives, and yes, I even tried consequences, but the same families were still struggling to CONNECT. Then one glorious, revolutionary day, I stepped out a couple of minutes early in preparation for after school duty. There were the parents, standing by the doors or sitting in their cars, waiting for their kiddos to blast through those school doors at the 3:15 bell. However, hardly anyone even noticed me as I came out with a smile on my face, ready for a few seconds of adult conversation! Do you know why??? They were all on their phones!! Their thumbs were moving faster than the speed of light! THAT is when it hit me!! If I want to CONNECT with families, I must MEET THEM WHERE THEY ARE AT!!!! ...And where are they? Families of the 21st century are consumed with social media and technology!!! That was the day my classroom kingdom entered the "twitterverse"!
My classroom uses Twitter for announcements, special shout outs, activity highlights, and classroom action shots (Be sure to adhere to your districts online picture policy). It has also become an unexpected behavior management tool! Students who are "plugged in" and engaged are the ones who are the first to tweet (Although, I must admit, I am constantly scanning the room to catch one of those sluggish learners on task in order to hand them an iPad. It is amazing how they rise to the occassion when they are responsible for our classroom tweet of the hour).
Are you asking if it has made a difference? The answer is a resounding YES! Families LOVE receiving LIVE updates during their day seeing and reading what their children are up to! I have had several parents tell me that reading our tweets really livens up the dinner time conversation! No more saying, "nothing" when asked what they did at school that day!! Parents also like getting announcements and reminders on "their time" instead of having their student bring their planner to them when they are cooking dinner, driving down the road, or helping a sibling with homework.
This year, we even had a parent keep us updated on the condition of her daughter after surgery. It was a great way to communicate with the parent and send some special shout outs to our recuperating student whom we missed very much (Ask me more about how we did that because we do not follow anyone. I will be glad to share why that is too if you're curious).
Twitter has revolutionized the way I communicate and collaborate with families. However, we still have our work cut out for us. We still have many families who do not have internet access. Therefore, planners are still being used. We also battle the time crunch along with every other classroom. Therefore, missed opportunities to tweet have occurred too many times. That's okay though, because the use of Twitter in my classroom continues to evolve. This year, I want more curriculum content and examples to be tweeted by students. I have brainstormed that the daily classroom helper could be our "Tweety" of the day. The brainstorming continues and I am thrilled that I do not have to do all myself. There are some great articles, blog posts, and yes, tweets on this very subject. Here are a couple great ones to get ya goin'!
"20 Ways to Use Twitter With Your Students"
"Teachers Roadmap to the Use of Twitter in Education"
If you are considering Twitter for your classroom, I encourage you to go for it! However, be sure to research, plan, and organize for success. Make your policy, norms, and expectations clear to students. Be sure to monitor all tweets. Promote, advertise, remind, and advertise some more so parents get signed up and follow you. Decide if, how, and who your class will follow. Lastly, and most importantly, FOLLOW US @MrsCoffinsClass https://twitter.com/MrsCoffinsClass!
I would love to help, brainstorm, and problem solve with you as you get started! Leave me a comment or question!
