How to Transform the Social Studies Classroom in 140 Characters or Less: #mcss16

Twitter is a powerful tool. But what can it look like in a social studies classroom? Missouri teacher Jordan McGaughey spent a hour this morning sharing his ideas of using Twitter as a teaching, learning, and professional development tool. 

Jordan started by sharing what the use of Twitter can look like at different levels of Bloom’s. I really like this image – great way to jumpstart personal and professional conversations:

So what are the ideas?

Social media is a hook. And a tool.

In an essay titled From Connected Educator to Connected Classroom, Brianna Crowley describes her journey using social media tools at a personal level to using them in her classroom. It’s a good read with practical suggestions and links to a variety of social media tools and strategies. Brianna also makes a statement that I like:

This Twitter hashtag is genius

On a scale of one to ten, with ten being a person whose phone never leaves their hand and one being someone who has absolutely no clue what social media is, I’m probably around a seven.

And while I do have Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Google+, and YouTube accounts, much of my social media time is spent messing with Twitter. I use Twitter quite a bit – mostly lurking on #sschat, #gafe, and #edtech – using Flipboard and Hootsuite as my access points. Like most of you, I’ve fallen into the habit of using one favorite social media tool. It’s comfortable. People can find me. I can find them. I get useful ideas and resources. Everybody’s happy.

And I get it. To be a true 21st century educator, I suppose I need to be using all of the different platforms. But seriously. Who has that kind of time?

So if your tool of choice isn’t Twitter, feel free to move along. Nothing to see here. Cause this awesome genius tip isn’t for you. It’s for Twitter users. Unless . . . you know, you’re just a little bit curious. Then, sure, definitely hang around.