Three Unwritten Laws Of Twitter

Having recently rediscovered Twitter as a tool for Professional Development, I woke up my snoring account to share my thoughts on education and technology. Well, to share great resources if I could help it. I even gained some followers, which made me keen for more (it seems there is a power-hungry dictator hidden in each and every one of us social networkers). Let's just say I like an audience, as it makes my learning experience more authentic (well, this is what we try to convey to our pupils, right?!) Some days Twitter sent me several messages a day that 'so-and-do was now following me!' (the exclamation mark came from Twitter). When new followers looked interesting, I followed them back. Then something interesting happened: I lost followers. Twitter never mentioned those. No exclamation marks here, they simply pushed a button and detached themselves from my world. Lost in space. I felt betrayed. I started paying attention: plus three one day, minus 2 the next. Or worse, the other way around. If the number of your followers still lies within the two digit range, you are actually happy with +2... and sad about -3. Right? So this had become my sad life: chasing my socalled Twitter fanbase. And what an unfaithful and unpredictable fanbase it turned out to be... But why? After a while I figured it out: it is the unwritten Twitter Law of Reciprocity: "I Follow You if You Follow Me - and you've got 24 hours to respond!" Is this why some people have 4.539 followers and follow 4.526 people? What's that, my single reader? Is this me being jealous? Hell no, I am proud of my 91 followers - oh that is 90 now. That must be because of unwritten Twitter Law #2: Don't Talk about Numbers. Pretend numbers don't count, because everyone knows they do anyway. Unwritten Twitter Law #3: Be There All the Time. Even if you have to set a timer to rehash old tweets and blog posts every other month - even if this results in posts like 'Great Tools for Thanksgiving' in March or 'the one that I saw today; 'Summer Vacation is here - What Are You Up To?' It is February.

Good, that makes three Unwritten Rules Of Twitter - I can sense a tweet coming up.

The Importance of Being in Pre-school

In Berlin, babies go to the Krippe and toddlers go to Kindergarten. Ever since Fröbel and Pestalozzi discovered the importance of playing for the development of young children's motoric and academic skills, the Germans take this part of the pre-school curriculum very seriously. Extremely seriously. Playing in Kindergarten is a must. My children went to a solid Evangelische Kindergarten, where they walked around butt naked in the hot summer months. They built huts in the garden and fed the rabbits. They played football and tag, went on trips to the municipal pool and the adventure playground. They sang songs and slept and did tons of handicraft projects, called 'basteln'. They played until they were blue in the face. Learning the alphabet and counting were not included in the Kindergarten routine; that was for school. When they went to school, the teacher complained about some kids' lack of basic number and letter skills. Those children got homework, so their parents could get them up to speed. My oldest son just did his work experience project at a Kindergarten, which was divided into many different rooms. They had a relaxing room, a craft room, a building room, an eating room, a school room. In his written report my son described those rooms. His comment about the school room was; 'I haven't had the chance to see this room, as it was always closed.' This seems to be the way to do it in Berlin. Let them play until they go to school - until reality hits. Why this gap? Why can't there be a more playful entry into school life? This is what they do in the Netherlands; toddlers go to school when they are four years old - school life still involves lots of playing, but there is an active exposure to letters and numbers. Senator Sandra Scheeres: please re-introduce pre-school - and let educators know that it is ok to mix business with pleasure.