How to See the Content YOU Want on Facebook

Facebook is such an awesome way for educators to connect and share ideas, but until recently it's had one big, frustrating, drawback. Until lately, there was no way to see ALL the posts from your favorite pages. Who likes to find out about flash freebies, helpful tips, and special sales a day late? Not good! You'd think that clicking the Like button on your favorite pages would mean getting all their posts, but Facebook doesn’t work that way. I guess I can understand why … our Facebook feeds would be swamped if we saw every post from every page we like.

Fortunately, a new feature that Facebook recently rolled out allows you to customize your news feed so you can see your favorite content at the top, marked with a blue star. Yay! As soon as I learned about this feature, I knew I had to share!

How to Customize Your News Feed
To customize your Facebook news feed, find your favorite pages and follow these steps. Why not try it first with my Teaching Resources page?

1. Click to find Teaching Resources on Facebook, and be sure you have Liked the page. 
2. Hover over the "Liked" button and click “Posts in News Feed." 
3. Choose “See First" to see my new posts appear at the top of the your news feed.  

That’s it! Take those three steps now, and you should start seeing all new posts from Teaching Resources appear at the top of your news feed. To see those posts, click the "Home" link at the top of Facebook or the words "News Feed" on the left side. All new posts from Teaching Resources and your other favorite pages will be identified by a blue star. If you click away from the news feed, those posts will drop down into your regular news feed.

I hope you love this new feature as much as I do! You'll never again miss out on teaching tips or resources from your favorite pages that could have made a difference in your classroom! By the way, over the next few days, I plan to do several giveaways and offer some special discounts. To be sure you see those posts, mark Teaching Resources as a page you want to see first!

Awesome Upper Elementary Teacher Connection Facebook Group!

If you're an upper elementary teacher who loves what you do, I invite you to join the Upper Elementary Teacher Connection, a private Facebook group. It's a virtual meeting room where educators can connect and collaborate to share their passion for teaching. Our members discuss active engagement teaching strategies and innovative instructional approaches, and they collaborate on classroom projects like pen pals or postcard exchanges. Click here to find out how to join this group!

Question Connection

When I first started teaching I was full of questions, and I've been asking questions ever since. My mentors and colleagues at school were always gracious and offered plenty of advice, but my teaching style is a bit unique and sometimes their answers weren't what I needed. Luckily, times have changed, and with the internet, its easy to ask hundreds or even thousands of teachers for help or advice! Better yet, I'll often get responses from teachers all over the world!

Facebook has been a key player in the game of collaboration. Lately teachers have been posting questions on my Facebook Wall, and I've been trying to repost them to all 50,000+ fans and open the Wall for discussion. I'm always amazed at the spirit of collaboration when others jump in to help.

The Question Connection
To make it even easier to ask your questions, I'm starting a regular feature called the Question Connection. You can post your questions at any time, but from time to time I'll sharing the logo above and issue a call for questions on Facebook. Just post your question as a comment on my Facebook post or directly on my Facebook Wall. I'll send your questions out, one at a time, over the next few days to get feedback and ideas. Follow me on Facebook and be sure to watch for your question to be shared!

Feel free to ask about anything related to teaching or the education profession. Here are a few ideas to get  you started:

• Share an upcoming lesson topic and ask for links to great resources and teaching ideas
• Ask for advice about classroom management, parent communication, dealing with difficult situations at school, etc.
• Ask how other teachers are using technology or specific websites

Questions are only one half of the Question Connection! We also need educators who are willing to answer questions and share ideas. Don't be shy about responding! Even if you have only been teaching a few weeks, you have learned valuable information that can benefit others. Share your successful teaching strategies, links to free resources on the internet, book recommendations, helpful advice, or best classroom practices. The only thing I ask is to refrain from self-promotion or providing links to your own teaching products.

If you ever feel hesitant to ask a question or respond with a suggestion, remember that your collaborative efforts benefit many, many other educators. Your question may spark a great discussion that leads to someone else learning a new strategy or discovering an amazing resource!

Great Questions + Advice from the Heart = The Question Connection! Enjoy!