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www.plurk.com

Plurk is like Twitter with a timeline.

But before you go off and say you already use Twitter or have no use for Twitter, hear me out. Plurk is the perfect place to build your PLN. Oh, yes, another acronym in education. But this is far beyond the realm of education! PLN stands for Personal Learning Network. In short, it’s a group of professional colleagues around the world that have similar interests and expertise. My PLN is invaluable! This is where I go when I need the wisdom of experience and experts that are in the trenches and on the cutting edge.

140 character posts with links, images, and videos can change the way you learn- because none of us are as smart as all of us! Continue reading

Susan and I are both avid readers- and our interests vary greatly. Finding a new good book to read is like finding a treasure- and a double bonus if it’s in stock at Half Price Books! Shelfari is a place where you can showcase the books you have read, are reading, or planning to read! You can start your own book group and see what your friends are reading, make recommendations, write reviews, and all kinds of things. Take a look at my bookshelf…

Does that interface look familiar? Seems like the Apple bookstore isn’t so original in its design after all.

So as an educator, think of these implications:

• Showcase what you are reading as an example of lifelong learning to students
• Create an account for your own personal books that students can borrow (yes, you can keep track of your lent books in Shelfari)
• Display a class bookshelf to show what students in your class have read or are reading- complete with their own reviews
• And on and on

Oh, did I mention it’s free?