Digital Portfolio

For my digital portfolio, I used the Web 2.0 tool, Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/nicrose1268/

Pinterest is a site that allows you to create boards where you can post or "pin" different content and can be used for a variety of purposes.  Essentially, people use this tool to search for and "pin" the things they like, find interesting or would like to try.  You can use it for just about anything whether it is lesson plan ideas, new recipes or even wedding preparations. 
 
            Initially, I started using Pinterest for classroom and lesson plan ideas.  The "Education" board I created has different teaching ideas, lessons and activities that I found interesting or that I would like to try in my classroom.  When using Pinterest it is so easy to find what you are searching for.  Pinterest is a great tool to use educationally, because it is an easy way for teachers to collaborate and share ideas or lessons they have used.  I found fabulous sites for literature circles, collaborative grouping, lesson planning, novel guides, and many more things.  I especially like using Pinterest because it allows me to organize all these different things I like and want to try by creating different boards for all the different content.  To me, creating and organizing these boards is much more effective than bookmarking a bunch of websites into your "favorites," while you are surfing the net.  I love the visual layout of Pinterest and find it easier to go back and find the things I "pinned" versus when I used to try and find a website I added to my "favorites." 
            Although I haven't started this yet, I would like to create boards for my different units of study such as a "Holocaust/Night" and "Existentialism/The Stranger" boards.  I can organize different resources, useful websites, video clips, etc within these separate folders.  For example, my "Holocaust/Night" board might include lessons, historical information, interviews with Holocaust survivors, and movie clips relating to the Holocaust.  Not only would these boards be an effective way to keep myself organized, but they can be a tool for my students as well.  They can use the boards to refer back to lesson, watch videos, do extra skill practice or to just extend their own learning.  I could even have my students use Pinterest for different assignments.  For example, students could work in collaborative groups to create Pinterest boards for characters in a text or novel.  Students would need to use critical thinking skills to decide what they would pin for the different characters and then explain their choices.  How funny would it be to see what students pin on Macbeth's or Holden Caufield's Pinterest boards?  I think students would enjoy this type of creative assessment. 
            I also used Pinterest to explore ideas for this course.  My "EDUC 536" board includes resources relating to Digital Citizenship, blogging, cyber-bullying, and technology use in the classroom.  Since my goal has been to use more technology in the classroom, many of these sites I have pinned will help guide me in actually accomplishing this.  I found different tutorials to help me get started and explored just a few of the endless ways I can incorporate technology to effectively engage my students.    
            Although I signed up for Pinterest several months ago, I didn't officially start using it until the start of this course.  Pinterest intimidated me, and I wasn't quite sure how to use it.  I thought it was just a bunch of pictures—I never realized that you were supposed to click on the pictures to go to the sites.  Now that I have gotten use to Pinterest I can say that it is very user friendly and its uses are endless.  As previously stated, I have used it for lesson ideas and classroom strategies and for personal uses as well.  I have pinned different recipes, things I found funny or interesting and even some hair and makeup styles I'd like to try.