Pinterest is a free, interactive online tool that has endless opportunities for ideas on anything under the sun. It is incredibly useful when deciding on how to set up a classroom, how to decorate, and there are tons of free worksheets/activities available to anyone with an account. Creating an account is very simple. You can sign in with a Facebook account, Google account, or create one with any email account. I created my professional account with my school email. I began by following education bloggers or teachers that I found through the search option. Then I began to browse classroom management/environment, elementary math activities, STEM activities, and so many more. I was overwhelmed with the resources available to me through Pinterest. It is a great tool to interact with the professional learning community and to get inspiration for your classroom or a specific lesson. There are "pins" available to anyone and you can "pin" something to a board that you create. Then on your profile, you can see all your boards. By clicking on one board, you can see all the pins you have pinned to that board. You can also pin something you find on the internet that you feel is useful or interesting.
I have eight boards; classroom environment, behavior management, hands-on activities, STEM activities, ed tech, elementary math, reading, and organization. I chose to create these boards because I felt they were pretty important and interesting topics. For example, if I come across a pin that I think is a great idea for flexible seating, I save it to my classroom environment board. If I come across something that is a cool way to manage student behavior, I save that to the behavior management board. I broke up a few subjects (math, reading, STEM) so that it would be more organized when I go to look through the boards to see activities for specific subjects. Pinterest ties to component 4D- participating in the professional community. Teachers can interact with one another through Pinterest without ever meeting. They have access to activities and lessons that have worked well for others and can implement them in their own way. Pinterest is a great resource to turn to when you are unsure of how to implement different components in the classroom. There are ideas for all four domains; planning/preparation, classroom environment, instruction, and professional responsibilities. The resources and possibilities are endless! I find Pinterest to be extremely user-friendly. I was familiar with Pinterest for personal use before learning how to use it for a resource center. I was shocked by how many resources there are available through this social media outlet that I never would have thought of before. There are so many worksheets and activities available for free through Pinterest. It really showed me how teachers can interact through the internet and share resources that worked in their classrooms. In Exceptional Learners, we learned about setting up the classroom in such a way that all students' needs are met. If you have a fidgety student, it's best to provide them with something like a wobble cushion so they can move without causing a disturbance. A quick search on Pinterest can result in many different ideas for making the classroom a comfortable environment for all students and especially how to help students who need to be moving without walking around the classroom. I will most definitely use Pinterest in my future classroom. There are so many ideas for classroom set-up, behavior management tactics, and activities that are engaging for students. It was a great experience to work with Pinterest and engage in the professional learning network through this outlet. |