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Twitter-pated! Getting the Most out of Twitter in the Classroom
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Twitter-pated! Getting the Most out of Twitter in the Classroom



June 2, 2015

As a teacher, it is really easy to fall in love with Twitter. The classroom applications are vast and fun. Using Twitter in the ESL classroom can be magical, particularly for the highly tech-proficient students in the Middle East, who may have higher tech skills than English language skills. It can also be useful for other aspects of our daily work lives outside of the classroom. This free and easy-to-use resource can complement any learning instruction.

Terms:

 Twitter– Messaging system using app or website  twitter love

Tweet– a message posted according to topic

Hashtag– the indexing system for marking keywords or topics

Tag– the way to direct a message at an individual user by using the @ key before their username

Before you start!!!!

Make sure you read up on responsibility when using social media. Check out the post here.

Here are 28 quick ways that Twitter can be used in Foundations English classrooms:

  1. Class discussions on a theme or topic within a theme of the current unit.
  2. Warming up- Have students Tweet one thing they learned the day before or one question they have about recent vocab or grammar.
  3. Sponge Activity- have students Tweet different “facts” about a topic to see who knows the most (activating prior knowledge, hooking interest).
  4. Exit ticket- Tweet one thing you learned today.
  5. Vocab practice-Tweet sentence that uses 3 vocab words from our lesson today.
  6. Grammar practice- Tweet a sentence using the grammar structure from today’s lesson.
  7. Tweet questions and answers during and after direct instruction to preserve the flow of the lesson and allow all learners access to the information.
  8. Tweet links to articles, content resources, Youtube clips, etc. for instant information sharing.
  9. Include requirements for tweeting to support student collaboration on group work or major projects outside of class time.
  10. Tweet homework assignments, additional practice, and learning tips to aid student success.
  11. Tweet instant feedback / celebrate student achievement.
  12. Organize project-based learning and promote 21st Century learning skills by training students to use hashtags to identify their roles, coordinate with others in similar roles, problem-solve, and brainstorm.
  13. Students can follow news feeds via Twitter.
  14. Have Tweet competitions to see which learning-by-doing projects got the most Tweets.
  15. Tweet announcements and reminders to students on days that your class doesn’t meet.
  16. Tweet photos of board notes or exceptional classwork for students who are absent or to establish expectationstweet
  17. Tweet about content of student assemblies.
  18. Have students Tweet a one-sentence summary of reading tasks they complete during class.
  19. Tweet info graphics and have students Tweet an answer to your question for chart/graph/form-completion tasks.
  20. Use Twitter to write a short story as a group, with each student writing the next sentence via Tweet.
  21. Tweet images and have students write a descriptive sentence using as many adjectives as possible.
  22. Introduce a key concept or vocabulary word by having students track appropriate hashtags.
  23. Tweet a link to a listening activity and then have students tweet back a summary of what they heard or an answer to a posed question.
  24. Tweet trivia questions connected to your content or a word of the day to trigger interest and keep things fresh.
  25. Tweet clues for a digital treasure hunt connected to your theme or IELTS vocabulary, either allowing students to compete individually or in small groups.
  26. Tweet polls to learners for instant checking-for-understanding or learner-feedback.
  27. Tweet a sentence and have learners “translate” it into different registers, accents, or slang for a fun change.
  28. Use Twitter to track student engagement in the classroom using a call out method or game where students can be asked to answer a question you Tweeted and they respond via Twitter.

Using Twitter Out of Class

little_bird_told_meTwitter is also a free and fun alternative to emails for brainstorming, group discussions, and may also be useful in reducing the demands on time for having face-to-face team meetings. Tweeting successful student work, sharing ideas and lessons learned, and connecting to other campus locations enables teachers to collaborate and support each other: it makes room for inspiration and collective innovation. Twitter can create a fun and stress-free platform for professional learning communities to chat, plan, and problem-solve.

Given the versatility and accessibility of Twitter, it is apparent that students and teachers can become Twitter-pated, too.   A word of caution- while Twitter is an amazing tool, please be careful to explicitly reinforce proper “netiquette” and have students (as well as yourself) use accounts made for school purposes, if possible. Also, it can be really fun and engaging to use Twitter, but it is wise to avoid burnout from having too much of a good thing!

If you have any other successful uses of Twitter in your classroom, please share them in the comments area down below!

June 2, 2015
Lesson Plans & Ideas, Software & Apps, Teaching & Learning, Technology