Do you have these digital skills?

I came across a great article that I have bookmarked and plan to use as a starting point for upcoming tech training. What is the article you ask? It is The 22 Digital Skills Every 21st Century Teacher Must Have. What I love about this article is the fact the author provides examples for each digital skill.  I have to admit, I am not proficient in some of the areas - but that is ok!

I won't talk about all 22 digital skills here, but I will focus on just two today. If you want to see all 22, read the article - which I highly suggest!

(1) Create and Edit Audio
~ Audacity

Ok, I love Audacity!  This is a free download for PC or iMac. Although the program looks like a lot, you will only use three buttons in the beginning - record, stop, and play. So how does Audacity fit into my day? Audacity is perfect Common Core - Speaking and Listening! Students can record themselves practicing reading fluency passages, reciting math facts, practicing an upcoming speech/presentation, and much more. Once recorded, the students to listen to themselves and analyze what worked and what needs improvement. Teachers can use Audacity as well. The next time you have to be out of the classroom, record your directions using Audacity for the the sub to playback.


(2) Use Social Networking Sites to Connect with Colleagues and Grow Professionally
~ Twitter and Pinterest

Again.. love!! Yes, you can pin your favorite recipes or follow the tweets of Tim Tebow but when Twitter and Pinterest are used in a professional format you can so much knowledge! I am a big fan of Twitter and try to bring teachers to the Twitter side whenever I can. My PLC is not very big, but it is growing. If you do not have a Twitter account and want to see what the conversation looks like before creating an account, just do the following:

-- go to www.twitter.com/search
-- do a search for one of the following hashtags - 1stchat, 2ndchat, 3rdchat, 4thchat, 5thchat, kinderchat, edapp, scichat

Pinterest is the same way. When used professionally you will gather so much for your classroom and your professional development.

So who do I follow..
Twitter - edutopia, NMHS_principal, thenerdyteacher, rmbyrne, jaymelinton
Pinterest - Matt Gomez, Lisa Johnson

This is just a tiny sampling of the awesomeness you will find on Twitter and Pinterest!