With school now underway and students knowing their routines, it’s time to catch up on connecting with others and growing professionally. Since October is Connected Educator Month, it’s a perfect time to remember that you have needs as well. To help you get connected to some awesome educators that can help you maintain your enthusiasm throughout the year, I’ve selected five of my favorite resources.
Connected Educator Month Resources
The obvious starting place is the calendar of virtual events that you might want to join throughout the month of October. There are multiple events every single day, many of which are free and can be attended from anywhere in the world. You can also follow the hashtag #ce16 to discuss connectedness with other educators.
EdCamp Calendar
Sometimes the best professional development happens organically and without a formal schedule. If that sounds interesting to you, then let me encourage you to check out Edcamp’s calendar of upcoming events…possibly in a town very near you. You’ll have a chance to learn about relevant topics from folks just like yourself who are on their learning journey of using technology to make a difference in their classrooms.
Twitter Chat Schedule
We all have special hashtags that we like to follow for a stream of great resources and ideas. But do you have any favorite Twitter chats that you really enjoy? If you don’t, or if you would like more, consider looking at TweetReport’s Twitter chat schedule. Sort by topic, day, or time to find the most relevant one(s) for you. And, if you run your own Twitter chat, drop the information into their database so others can find it and connect with your group.
Best Web 2.0 Applications for 2016
And finally, who better to help us connect than Larry Ferlazzo himself. Check out his Best Web 2.0 Applications for 2016 to discover his newest favorite tools that you can use. You’ll find some great ones to share with your peers as you talk about engaging students and livening up lessons.
TCEA Social Community
If you are a TCEA member, then you should already know about the TCEA Community groups that can help you connect with like-minded educators. If you are not a TCEA member, then just know that this is one of several great member benefits of joining TCEA. Subscribe to the groups that meet your needs; ask questions, swap ideas, and share resources. And you can even create your own group if you find that the one for your niche is missing.
Regardless of the content and grade level you teach, you are sure to find some great educators to connect with using one (or more) of these five resources. What other resources do you use to connect with educators? We’d love to hear about them. Just leave us a comment and share.
