Getting the hang of SoMe

I completed activities 9 and 10 today. I opened a Twitter account (@jamiegreenewv) and added a link to my blog. I'm not sure I like the way that the Tweet box looks on my blog page, so I might need to figure out how to adjust that.

I also updated my Google+ profile and asked my wife to help me do a test run for both the chat and the hangout functions. It worked but I am still learning how exactly those plugins will function for me. I don't use a smartphone yet, so all of my online communication happens on a laptop. I email a lot but I rarely use FaceTime or instant messaging applications. Anyway, I think I am getting the hang of some of these new-to-me applications.

I've reached the point on the learning curve where I am starting to think about how I might use a blog or a Twitter account to communicate with students. I can see real benefits to using electronic communication to share the same set of information with everyone. On a related note, I am wondering what technologies my students will have available to them in their homes. I know that parts of Marion County are really struggling economically and my guess is that some families will have great access to technology while others will not.

Finally, these activities - especially activity 10 - relate well to NETS-T standard #3. This work and these skills will allow me to model digital age work and exhibit the knowledge, skills, and work processes representative of an innovative professional in a global and digital society. It is already clear to me that I will need to become more technologically fluent in order to relate well to my students.