Saturday, April 4, 2015

Twitter University

     I am a student at Twitter University, an institution of higher learning that is open 24-hours a day.  You choose your own classes with lessons offered by experienced, educated, and enthusiastic teachers of limitless backgrounds and perspectives. The world is your classroom.

    I regularly attend classes on Saturday morning in my bedroom where, sometimes, coffee is delivered in my favorite mug by a very nice man who just happens to be my husband.  (No, I don't know what I did to deserve him.  Thank you so much for asking.)  Here is what I learned today:

ReadWriteThink.org, aka @RWTnow, introduced me to Word Mover, an intriguing app for creating poetry during National Poetry Month (which I also learned about on Twitter).  We'll be trying it out next week in Room 213E.  By the way, did you know that National Poem in Your Pocket Day is on April 30 this year?  I didn't either until @MrSchuReads and @MrsPstorytime told me yesterday!

@DrMaryHoward, an educational consultant and author, reminded me of the importance of read-alouds, the practice I am most likely to abandon whenever I'm feeling a time crunch.  (Just where did I put that great Read-Aloud Anthology?)


In "What I Know to be True," Katherine Sokolowski reaffirmed what I've long known to be true:  I have the greatest job in the world, a job for which I'm actually paid to hang out with kids and books every day of the week.  I look forward to learning more from Ms. Sokolowski at Read.  Write.  Reflect, her blogsite to which I now subscribe.  (You can, too!)  During my time there this morning, I came across a series of books by Andy Griffiths that I think will be just right for my 6th grade devotees of "Wimpy Kid" style books.  Thanks, @katsok!


Here's a new mini-poster I got for my classroom:

And thanks to @edudemic,  I've got a new pre-reading guessing game to use with my students when advertising great reads during our weekly "book talks."  

     Not bad for a morning's "work," eh?  Oh, and before I forget, here's the best news of all:  Tuition is free!  But you'll have to get your own coffee.