On the topic of teaching with technology, I wrote this in 2007 (published in 2009):
As “digital natives” (Prensky, 2001) enter the classroom, instructors must engage these students and expand their burgeoning and often technologically nuanced skills. The incorporation of technologies into classroom instruction challenges students and instructors alike; but, this challenge is both a necessary and exciting one (Okojie & Olinzock, 2006). Instructors must initiate this challenge by designing activities which both complement course subject matter and engage students with a variety of media. (McArthur, 2009)
When I think about my classroom-based experiments with podcasting, Twitter, Facebook, and other tools, I have to remember that new technologies abound. So, I’m reinvesting in this entrepreneurial spirit and experimenting with Pinterest in the classroom.
If you have any tips for teaching with Pinterest, let me know. More to come this fall…
References:
- Composing Podcasts: Engaging ‘digital natives’ in the communication classroom (2009). Communication Teacher, 23 (1), 15-18.
- Okojie, M.C. & Olinzack, A. (2006). Developing a Positive Mind-set Toward the Use of Technology for Classroom Instruction. International Journal of Instructional Media, 33(1), pp. 33-41.
- Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants. On the Horizon, 9(5).
John A. McArthur, Ph.D. 
What about having Pinterest as an immersion strategy? I apologize-I’m not sure which subject you teach, but I think this could be beneficial in nearly every subject. Right now I’m getting a little envious of history teachers because they could say have a board for every unit – Civil War, Great Depression, etc.
I’m a high school English teacher. I would love to use this as an immersion strategy. Personal narratives, Science Fiction, Poetry, Grammar, Technical Writing. But what might be even more beneficial in my classroom would be a pinboard of assignments/published/proficient work. Examples/Celebrations. Hmm… now I have even more to think about for the fall!
If there are any English/Lang Arts ideas for pinterest out there, let me know!
Great ideas! We’re having a debate over topic-based boards with open contribution for all students or one class board for all students that is curated into multiple unit boards by the instructor.
I have been creating boards for specific books like ‘Esperanza Rising’ or ‘Hatchet’ and pinning not only visuals of objects mentioned in the books but also pins to represent other connections such as other books, author pages, videos clips of locations or activities, related art activities, recipes, biographies and anything else that hooks the book up with other ideas. I always edit the comments and make sure that clicking on the image leads to a link that is appropriate. I find that just searching a word in pinterest is risky – the images that pop up are not always something I would want a young person to see. So by creating a board and pinning I can control what is seen. I feel that I need to say that I am volunteer and… what it the phrase used on DVDs? …. the ‘boards’ don’t represent opinions of the school or it’s officials. That said – here is an example : http://pinterest.com/gilchristmedia/connect-extend-the-missing-gator-of-gumbo-limbo/