Social Media in Early Childhood Education:E-Literacy and Professional Tips

Melanie Parlette-Stewart, BA, MLIS

melanieparlettestewart.comTwitter: @melanie_sarah_

April 2013

Today we will cover . . .

• Social Media and Early Childhood Education• Ethics and Security• Tools• Tips• Recommended Resources

Why should I care about social media?

• Communicate with your

profession

• Build your professional brand

• Learn and engage

SOCIAL MEDIA AND EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

in context

Challenges

Is social media a benefit or a distraction for early childhood educators?

Benefit or Distraction?

• Our work lives take a lot of energy. By the end of the day it might be hard to do much else.

• Our work lives can benefit from our growth achieved through networking

• More people engaging = better conversations – The time is now to jump in!

• Connecting allows us to learn and collaborate with others

Challenges

Ethics and Responsibilities

Ethics and Responsibilities

College of Early Childhood Educators• Early Childhood Educators are

current in their professional knowledge (Standard IV)

• Early Childhood Educators build a climate of trust, honesty and respect in the workplace (Standard IV)

• Professionalism as an Individual: role models for children, families, members of the profession . . . (Standard IV)

• Confidentiality and Consent: Early Childhood Educators shall not disclose information concerning or received from children under their professional supervision, or the families of those children (Standard VI)

Security

• Digital literacy is key to being secure online

• Social media sites intended for adults should

not be used by children

• Regular monitoring of security settings

• Revision of policies and procedures regularly

Policies• Does your organization need a social media

policy?• Get opinions from people in your

organization• Determine how to best ensure the privacy

of the children• Privacy settings• Permission from parents if you plan to

post photos• Use initials instead of full names

• Key to engage with parents using a variety of methods

• Be an advocate for the causes children, their families . . .

TOOLSECE and Social Media

What is Twitter?

• Microblogging social networking tool• Read and write messages of up to 140 characters

Why should I be on Twitter?

• Connect with clients / colleagues• Get feedback / engage• Develop your online brand• Keep up with the latest . . . news, trends, and

more

Your Twitter Profile

Your Twitter Profile

• Always use a professional photo, ideally a headshot

• Include a bio – people want to know something about who they are following

• Post at least two interesting tweets before you start to follow people

• If you don’t have a website to link from your profile, provide your LinkedIn profile link

How do I choose Tweeters to follow?

• People Search: Search for specific people you are interested in following.

• Use a directory: Twellow (Twitter profiles are indexed here by categories)

• Explore who other people follow and are following

Tweeters to Follow

• NAEYC• EarlyChildhood News• Teaching Strategies• Canadian Child Care Federation• CCAC• CanadianECE.ca

#Hashtags to Explore

• #ECE• #Preschoolers• #EarlyEd• #PreK• #ecetech• #childcare

What’s a Hashtag?# People use the hashtag symbol # before a relevant keyword or phrase (no spaces) in their Tweet to categorize those Tweets and help them show more easily in Twitter Search. 

Tips to make the most of Twitter

• Ask for help . . . ask for input, ask questions• Help others . . . answer questions, provide

feedback• Plan a tweetup (meetup / conversation on Twitter,

have a designated hashtag)• Make a plan to tweet often, set goals of how

many original tweets / retweets each week

What is Facebook?

• Opportunity to develop both personal and professional pages and connect with colleagues

• Join groups and follow pages of interest

Why should I be on Facebook?

• Get in touch (find and be found)• Learn and share professional experiences• Build your online career identity• Facebook for business

Your Facebook Profile

Your Facebook Profile

• Personal– Don’t post unprofessional status updates– Make your profile picture a picture of you– Don’t post incriminating photos– Customize your privacy settings • Facebook changes their interface and

privacy options regularly. Be prepared for change and regularly monitor your own settings.

Your Facebook Business Profile• Business– Create a business page– Images and videos are best to promote

visibility on feeds of followers– Engage and build relationships– Comment back– Link to your website or blog– Ask your friends to invite their friends

Why should I have a Business Page (not a profile) on Facebook?• Access to Analytics (statistics)• Facebook is #1• Branding• Listen – get feedback and answer questions• Engage – ask questions

Pages on Facebook

• Your alumni association• Professional groups

Pages on Facebook

• Early Childhood Professional Resource Centre (PRC)

• Association of Early Childhood Educators Ontario (AECEO)

• KidsAbility Centre for Child Development• Campaign for a Canadian National Child Care

System• Healthy Canadians• The National Association for the Education of You

ng Children (NAEYC)

• Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care (OCBCC)• Association of Early Childhood Educators Ontario (

AECEO)

Tips to make the most of Facebook

• People will search for you. Keep you image professional, update your background and education information and show your interests.

• Connect with potential collaborators and/or employers. “Like” their pages.

• Really think about the photos you post.• Keep your Facebook resume up to date.• Limit your friend list / expand your friend list• Be aware of what you post on Facebook.

What is LinkedIn?

• Database for professionals• Ability to search for professional contacts– Education, Company etc.

Why should I be on LinkedIn?

• Get in touch (find and be found)• Learn and share professional experiences• Build your online career identity

Your LinkedIn Profile

Your LinkedIn Profile

• Always use a professional photo, ideally a headshot

• Just use your name (do not include titles, acronyms, credentials)

• Have a catchy headline• Connect with as many people as possible• Write in the first person• Build credibility through recommendations• Join Groups• Use your vanity URL• Own a company? Create a company profile

Why should I join Groups on LinkedIn?

• Learn from the discussions• Identify opportunities to collaborate• Discover best-practices• Explore and post job opportunities• Build relationships

How do I choose Groups to join?

• Corporate • Industry• Alumni• Geographic

Groups on LinkedIn

• Early Childhood Technology Network• Early Childhood Education, Child Care, and CCR&

R Professionals...

• Early Childhood Education Network• Early Childhood Professionals Group• Advocates of Early Childhood Education

Tips to make the most of LinkedIn Groups

• Plan to visit your top groups at least once a week (ideally 2-3 times/week)

• Identify discussions in groups that interest you– Respond to comments– Provide insight (examples on your own

experiences / reflections)– Ask questions

• Start a discussion in a group• Be Active

What is a Blog?

• A website where you can communicate ideas, experiences and information on a regular basis

Why should I have a blog?

• Builds your online identity• Increases your credibility• Establishes you as an expert• Opportunity to have a voice

Your Blog

Tips for your Blog• Think about your audience

– Your profession?– Your clients?– Your colleagues?

• Think about why you would like to blog– Personal satisfaction?– Share your career and professional experiences?– Focus on a specific subject/ topic?

• Think about your time– How much time can you commit?– Set a goal for how many posts per week/ per month

Blog Tools

• WordPress• Blogger• Tumblr

Blogs to Read

• Let the children play– Also provides a great list of blogs

• Topics in Early Childhood Education• The Living Classroom• For the love of Learning• Inspirational Early Childhood Education

What is Pinterest?

• A content sharing site• Users can “pin” images, videos and other web

objects

Why should I have Pinterest?

• Have a presence• Gather ideas and become inspired• Method of filing and organizing potential projects

or ideas

Your Pinterest

Tips for your Pinterest

• Have a variety of boards – display your interests• Post your resume and accomplishments• Monitor photos and comments• Check your security

Pinterest Boards to Follow

Pinterest Boards to Follow

• Favourite Early Childhood & Education Blogs• Early Childhood Education Skills• Early Childhood Education Ideas• Spring Crafts and Activities• Arts and Crafts With Kids

TIPSECE and Social Media

Thinking about social media . . .

• Use your best judgment• Privacy, privacy, privacy• Don’t overdo it• Keep things up to date• Give credit where credit is due• Have fun!

Model Good Social Media Practices

• Don’t post private information on personal profiles (i.e. phone numbers / addresses)

• Block harassing or bullying posts• Monitor the activities of children online

– Did you know that 40 out of every 1,000 children on Facebook are 6 years old or younger*?

– Software – Social Media just for kids i.e. ScuttlePad.com,

yoursphere.com, GiantHello.com, and Everloop.com

*Source: http://www.minormonitor.com/2012/04/minormonitor-surveys-1000-parents-of-children-on-facebook-shares-results-on-realities-parental-concerns/

QUESTIONSECE and Social Media

CONTACTMELANIE PARLETTE-STEWART

melanie.parlettestewart@gmail.commelanieparlettestewart.com http://pinterest.com/melanieparlette/https://twitter.com/melanie_sarah_ ca.linkedin.com/in/melanieparlette/https://www.facebook.com/melanie.parlette

More Resources

• http://canadianece.ca/social-media/my-social-media-journey• http://www.engagestrat.com/web20_ece_nonprofit• http://www.engagestrat.com/socialece• http://www.slideshare.net/vcv1/impact-of-social-networking-on-the-ece-community-5450901• http://www.uniteforsight.org/global-health-university/sesame-street• http://www.thinkport.org/ece/technology/socialmedia.tp• http://prezi.com/coqdav1vjllc/early-childhood-education/• http://www.slideshare.net/FSSimon/everything-ece-directors-always-wanted-to-know-about-social-m

edia-16488475• http://www.slideshare.net/FSSimon/tools-of-engagement-status-report-on-technology-in-early-childh

ood-education• http://www.slideshare.net/FSSimon/digital-and-dap-what-ece-faculty-administrators-and-trainers-nee

d-to-know-to-help-teachers-use-technology• http://canadianece.ca/• http://www.ccsd.ca/cpsd/ccsd/i_ece.htm• http://ecl.sagepub.com/content/early/2011/12/27/1468798411430101.abstract• http://altechconsultants.netfirms.com/jmle1/index.php/JMLE/article/view/143/145• http://www.msera.org/Rits_191/Rits_191_Barone_1.pdf• http://

www.slideshare.net/FSSimon/everyone-is-doing-it-managing-social-media-in-the-early-childhood-ecosystem

More Resources

• ttp://fssimon.wordpress.com/2010/08/08/does-social-media-open-doors-or-distract-early-childhood-educators/

• http://www.engagestrat.com/socialece• http://pinterest.com/dianekashin/professional-learning-for-early-childhood-educator/• http://

www.msvu.ca/site/media/msvu/Documents/MSVU%20winter%20spring%202013%20PD%20brochure.pdf

• http://www.twibes.com/early-childhood-educators/twitter-list• http://deta.qld.gov.au/earlychildhood/about/news/atoz/index.html• http://www.ece.gov.nt.ca/files/Early-Childhood/success_in_early_childhood_en.pdf• http://www.ecetech.net/about/who-we-are/margaret-a-powers/• https://

www.facebook.com/pages/Association-of-Early-Childhood-Educators-Ontario-AECEO/189978994376068?group_id=0

• http://earlyliteracycounts.blogspot.ca/2009/08/technology-literate-early-childhood.html• http://www.ecetech.net/events/webinars/• http://www.fpg.unc.edu/node/1955• http://www.childcarequarterly.com/pdf/fall11_business.pdf• http://globalearlyed.wordpress.com/global-tools/teacher-tools/• http://www.naeyc.org/topics• http://www.slideshare.net/FSSimon/engaging-with-parents-on-social-media-ccrr• http://

www.slideshare.net/FSSimon/tools-of-engagement-status-report-on-technology-in-early-childhood-education

• http://www.slideshare.net/FSSimon/increasing-enrollment-and-parent-engagement-using-social-media-and-online-communication-tools

• http://www.slideshare.net/Mediakasvatusseura/part-of-a-picture-media-education-in-early-childhood-education

• http://canadianece.ca/early-childhood-education/ece-and-technology