“Go West, young man, and grow up with the country” Horace Greeley

The quote that lead to this post refers to going “West” to find new adventures, getting away from the tried and true, and ensuring that you grow up with your new found information.

For me the “West” is the 21st century learning environment, and I really want to grow up with it. Well, not just me, but my teachers, students, parents, and other administrators.

How do you go “West” nowadays? The list is endless (twitter, facebook, pintrest, google+, linkedin) and fortunately there are people there willing to help you.

Here is one map for your trip “West” young educator

1. Sign up for a twitter account (here is a video)

2. Follow Kelly Tenkley, Eric Sheninger, George Couros, Cool Cat Teacher and Erin Klein (they will lead you to more people)

3. Familiarize yourself with these hashtags (#edchat, #cpchat, and #edtech) (here is a video on hashtags)

4. Lurk and learn for 10 minutes a day, three days a week, for 1 month.

5. Subscribe (via email) to one of these clearing houses for information (TeacherCast, Edutopia, or Connected Principals)

6. Track your data for the month. How many articles, and blogs did you read? How many videos did you watch? How many podcasts did you listen to?

7. Then come back to this post and let me know what you found out “West” young educator!