Why Do I Tweet?

Venspired

I've been a member of the Twitter community since the summer of 2009. I was in college and my roommates and I jumped on the Twitter bandwagon and spent waaay too long one afternoon thinking of clever usernames. Luckily for me, a sweet friend had nicknamed me "Furnelly" and I felt like it would be the perfect Twitter handle for my new social media adventure. 

Speaking of which... hey Lauren, I'll need a new handle soon! Get to thinkin', sister!

Now, if you were to back channel through my tweets and read what I was up to from 2009-2011... you would be unimpressed. We'll just jump ahead to when I found the true value of Twitter as an educator. 

Before I continue I must confess: my Twitter feed is a random collection of all things related to my life. I choose to have my Twitter be a reflection of my personality and my thoughts - even if they are strange and rather goofy at times. 

Exhibit A:

Looking at the forecast makes me think of @Oprah saying, "YOU get outdoor recess! YOU get outdoor recess! YOU TOO! Outdoor recess!"
— Jordon (@furnelly) March 9, 2015

I tweet about my favorite TV shows, what's happening in room 52, what my dog's internal thoughts are, and I share anything and everything I feel someone else can find to be relevant to their life. That's the great thing about Twitter - you control who you follow. You control what information is flooding your timeline. If you're a big fan of March Madness... then your timeline probably looks much different than mine right now. Mine is flooding with Scandal tweets and Edchats.  

Back to my question - Why do I Tweet?

For me, I tweet to be connected. I tweet to find out what other great teachers are doing so I can do those things too. I tweet to share great ideas with MY teacher friends. I tweet to learn new teaching strategies and new trends in education. I tweet to find out answers to things I just can't figure out. I tweet for the professional development in my sweatpants.  I tweet to catch up on my favorite celebrities and live vicariously through the lives of my favorite Housewives. I tweet to find out how I can be a better teacher, better person, and more encouraging educator. I tweet to learn how other teachers are enriching their curriculum with technology. I tweet to share what incredible things people in my world at Osage are doing. I tweet to share what we are experimenting with in room 52.  I tweet to show people that kids really do say the dardnest things.

Student, "I hope it someone's birthday today because I'm prepared." Me, "oh really?" Student, "I brought my kazoo just in case."
— Jordon (@furnelly) January 15, 2015

I've found there is always someone willing to share their expertise on Twitter. Whether it's about removing wallpaper in the house we just bought, where to eat in New Orleans, a new recipe I must try, or how to navigate through the app Explain Everything for the first time. Strangers - fellow Tweeters - are willing and ready to offer their assistance in 140 characters or less. 

I tweet to bring the world outside of Osage into my classroom. Last year, my classroom connected with five different classrooms around the country through Skype. All of this happened through a simple hashtag #MysterySkype. From there, my kids were video chatting with students in New Jersey, Texas, and California to name a few. I tweet to bring authors and writers into my classroom without making a formal field trip. I tweet to show my students how it's possible to communicate with astronauts living on the International Space Station.

Welp, those are my two cents on the Twitter bandwagon. If you've been thinking about jumping on board, maybe this is the little inspiration to get started. Good luck!


You can find me @furnelly (you've been warned about my Twitter feed....)!

Talkin' Sharks Through Skype!

Well, I learned something today. Did you know more people die each year from coconuts and vending machines than sharks?! Yes, it's true! Amazing what you can learn when you bring a marine biologist from Miami into a classroom in the middle of Missouri.

 Thanks to our Skype with David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter) I now find myself looking at vending machines with an evil eye...

A few weeks ago, David's Twitter account popped up on my newsfeed because Donalyn Miller had retweeted his post about Skyping with kindergarteners. I thought to myself, "Oh! Now that looks fun." Plus, we had just started our classification unit and it just seemed like the perfect fit for our class. 

 Have I mentioned how much I value Twitter as a teacher?

Well, if I haven't.. here it is: I truly value Twitter as a teacher. 

However, no time to chat about it now!

To prepare for our Skype, I had the kids jot down questions for David. An overwhelming number of my students were curious about shark bites, Great White Sharks, and whether or not he was a fan of sushi. 

Once things got rolling, the questions started pouring out from my students. He told us about his work and background then let the students ask away! He even dispelled a few rumors...

17th straight classroom talk where a student asked about #Megalodon or #mermaids . THANKS, @SharkWeek @AnimalPlanet !

— David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter) February 13, 2014

Great afternoon. Great conversations. Great learning! I'm in awe of the power of connection. I highly recommend getting in touch with David!

Now, can you send some 84 degree temps to Missouri please, David?

If your'e a teacher (or know a teacher) interested in having my Skype with your class, let me know! I've spoken to pre-K through Masters

— David Shiffman (@WhySharksMatter) February 13, 2014

Year in Review

 Happy December 30, 2013 folks! It's hard to believe that 2013 is coming to a close so quickly. Since I've had some free time the past few days (bless you, Christmas break!) I have been having fun with social media tools.  Through #flipagram, Vizify, and Statigram, I have been reviewing my year through social media. If you're a Twitter and Instagram junkie (I mean that in the nicest way) like me, I encourage you to do the same. It's quite fun! 

Click here to watch my Vizify 2013 Twitter round up. 

Screenshot

#students #Chip #MIZ

My Top Tweets of 2013

Are you on Instagram, too? It's one of my favorite social media tools. I even started using it with my students! Here's a snapshot of my year on Instagram: 

#memostatigram 

Wishing you all a wonderful 2014! Here's to another great year!