To Tweet Or Not To Tweet

This week at the All Write!!! Summer Institute I learned things that were new and different for me. I always learn new things at that institute since we have the best of the best speakers presenting. That was the same this year: Ralph Fletcher, Donalyn Miller, Franki Sibberson, Katie Wood Ray, Patrick Allen and our own Ruth Ayres. But even though I learned tons from them, I learned something else quite new.

You see many of the people attending were tweeters.  That means they use Twitter to communicate. They have a special language, format and symbols. The first night of registration they had reservations for 40 people at a local restaurant. Because I helped with registration and was part of the All Write!!! staff, I was able to sneak in, too. What a great bunch of people. They are made up of teachers from all over the nation. The only time they actually see each other is at conferences like ours. Their conversations and dialogue was amazing. I loved to listen to them.

When the conference started the next day, there they were: some presenting and some listening, but most of them tweeting. They would tweet about what the person presenting was saying. That way, those other tweeters out in cyberland could "hear" what was being said too.  I just sat in wonder as they did their "thing".

Yes, I now have a Twitter account.  Yes, I follow many of those who attended All Write!!! And, yes, they will be back next year to attend our wonderful summer institute!