If you would like to join us for #TeachChat on Twitter every other Wednesday night, but are not quite sure how to, this picture tutorial will guide you through the steps.  As with all sites, there is a learning curve, but it is definitely a site that you can master.  So, join us and chat for an hour of great professional development and support.

Step 1:  Sign up for a free Twitter account at Twitter.com

 *VERY IMPORTANT – Make sure that you do NOT set your tweets to Private.  If you do, even if you use the hash tag, we will not be able to see you during the chat.  You can manually switch your preference before each #TwitterChat if you would like, but if you forget your tweets will not show up.

2.  Once you have created your account, go to TweetChat.com

3.  Click the Sign In button on the top right.  It will ask you to authorize your Twitter account.  Click Authorize app.

4.  Once you have signed in to TweetChat and authorized the app, you will be back at the main screen.  Type TeachChat into the search bar and hit Go.

5.  Once you hit Go, you will be redirected to a page that shows all of the #TeachChat posts that are currently happening.

6.  The first thing to do is change the Refresh Speed.  Click on the Refresh Speed button below the text box and slide the switch from 10 seconds to the left as far as it will go.  The refresh speed should now be set to 5 seconds.

7.  Now it is time to jump into the conversation and say hello!  A great way to get going is to introduce yourself and tell everyone what grade you teach and where you are located.  As you can see in the picture below, we are encouraging people to join us for #TeachChat on Wednesday night.  Notice how we have not put the hash tag #TeachChat at the end of our post.

Now look at how the post looks after it posts.  See the #TeachChat hash tag after our post?  TweetChat did that automatically, so that we do not forget to include it.  Why is the hash tag so important?  It is the only way that others know you are participating in the conversation.  Without the hash tag, your tweets will not show up in the #TeachChat stream and you will be, essentially, talking to yourself.  If you choose not to use TweetChat, be sure to manually type in the hash tag #TeachChat after every comment that you make.

8.  To respond to someone directly…

And that is all it takes to join in the conversation.  While it will go quickly, it is great fun and if you miss any of it, the transcript will be posted on The Teachers’ Lounge in the days following the Wednesday night chat.  Still have questions?  Leave a comment below and we will help you get started.  Hope to see you there!