Photo CC- By atspyjamasnz
PLN’s are totally new to me. I had no idea what it even meant before this week. But as I began reading what they are and how to create them, I realized that it’s exactly what we are doing in this class; we are creating our own PLN’s!
So what is a PLN? A PLN stands for Personal Learning Network. The main objective of a PLN is to make connections and relationships with fellow educators and experts anywhere in the world. Making these connections can give you access to many different educator’s ideas, advice, expertise, and so much more. Just as you can soak up other people’s expertise, you can share your own as well. Sharing each other’s ideas is what PLN’s are all about.
So how do you create your own PLN? First, you should make a list of your interests as a teacher. Maybe you are interested in Special Education or Early Childhood or maybe you are more interested in teaching HighSchool and want to learn more about Health, English, sports, etc. (The best part about PLN’s is that they are all online. They come in many different forms; Twitter, WordPress, Webinars, etc. The classroom is so technological now days and it is very easy for any teacher to create an account and get starting on creating their own PLN.) So the next step is to create an account using any of the social media websites mentioned above. Find people on Twitter and WordPress that have the same interests as you and check daily for new tweets and blogs. Contact them and create relationships with them so you can feed off each other’s ideas. There’s really endless possibilities when it comes to PLN’s and you can’t really go wrong.
I am VERY happy I learned about this great resource. I know without a doubt that I am going to use it as soon as I become a teacher. Honestly, I am very nervous to graduate and be in charge of a classroom at such a young age but this resource gives me more confidence that I will be prepared when that day comes!
I found this great article/tweet about why every teacher should have a PLN. Check it out here:
Here’s a video that explains what a PLN is. It’s pretty fun to watch and makes it easy to understand!