Spicing Up Class Discussions With Twitter

Twitter chats have taken the education PD world by storm over the past several years. Every day, there are tons of engaging chats for educators, technology specialists, and administers to get involved with and learn from. If you want to know if there is one for you, just check out the archive HERE of daily education chats. Since I, like many others in the education field have found Twitter and the chats to be beneficial in the journey to continually learn, connect, and grow; I thought why not give it a try with my students and show them the power behind the software.

Check out this FLIPGRID on how "Twitter Has Impacted You As An Educator!" to hear testimonials from ROCKSTAR educators about how Twitter has changed their teaching careers.

I have found that when we as educators give students a platform to express their thoughts through another avenue other than raising their hand in class, you hear from everyone's perspective, not just the interpersonal ones. Twitter chats allow everyone to share their thoughts and opinions in a quick and fun way.

So far, I have conducted two Twitter chats with my entrepreneurship and accounting I students. Check out the #DTacct & #DTentrep in the search box to see how it went! HERE IS MY LESSON PLAN for the entrepreneurship one I conducted.

Some things that I think are important to know if you complete one with your students:

1. Take time to brief students about what a Twitter chat is, how they are run, and why they are useful.
2. Don't assume everyone knows how to use Twitter. Take time to go over hashtags, how to follow, and how to comment, favorite, and retweet someone else's post. Also, remind them that every tweet must have the hashtag you are using!
3. Give students the option to create another Twitter handle that isn't their personal one. 
4. Prep students the day before with the questions you will ask them.
5. Teach them how to appropriately comment and respond to others. 

I am lucky in that my district is very open and supportive in not blocking Twitter and having it be used for educational purposes. If you are interested in trying a Twitter chat with your students, but Twitter is blocked, you can always do a "Mock Twitter Chat." Thank you Alice Keeler for the second option! Please let me know if you have any questions and don't be afraid to try something different and SPICE UP those class discussions!