Entering the world of Twitter

@lhimpelmann181

Way back in 2016, I created a Twitter account so I could follow @Madison181.  My building principal was thrilled to have a school Twitter account and was trying to "up" her followers.  I created an account to become a follower, but what I realized was that Twitter isn't just about being a follower.  It is more about being a leader.  After posting minimally over two years time, this course encouraged me to dive into Twitter.  I began following educators from across the globe and organizations that empower teachers to continually improve.  

Inspired by others, I have new strategies.  I've further developed my teacher toolbox of instructional techniques to the benefit of my students.  I read articles suggested by master teachers and watched videos suggested by experts to help me grow my own expertise.  Twitter has led me to folks like @JenniferGonzalez, @AndyLeiser, and @teachtoinnovate.  While I admit that Twitter can be a digital wormhole that I sometimes get sucked into, and it can be difficult to know just who is worth "following," when I have found Twitter gems, I truly feel I hit paydirt.

Because of this course, I participated in my very first Twitter Chat.  This was an amazing experience that showed me the power of connecting to other Twitter Chats.  Being able to share and glean from the ideas of others in a fast-paced digital chat opens up a whole new world of collaboration that was not even possible when I began as a teacher.  My goal is to participate in other chats that I have now learned take place regularly with some of those I follow regularly.  

Check me out on Twitter!

After seeing what others posted on Twitter (and with a little nudge for our fearless instructor), I began to share what was happening in my own classroom.  Through this experience into the world of Twitter, I gained the confidence to believe that others are interested in the happenings of my little corner of the educational world.  To my shock, I was "followed" by others in my Ed Tech cohort of teachers.  Other teachers within my building began to follow me.  Educators I have never met before began to follow me.  Even more shocking, my tweets were retweeted by those I knew,  those I don't know, and groups or companies who I was following.  So, now I'm not just a follower, but I feel like a leader too.