Learn More
Every Friday at noon and 7:00 p.m. (EST), parents, teachers and gifted advocates from all over the world gather on Twitter to take part in Global #gtchat. This new real-time forum allows participants to share resources, ideas, experiences and new ways of thinking about gifted issues. The collaboration and learning taking place via #gtchat have been invigorating and inspiring! More than 1,000 tweets are now devoted to Global #gtchat each and every week. We invite you to give it a whirl.
What Topics Are Discussed?
On Mondays (sometimes Tuesdays), Deborah Mersino posts a Twtpoll, so that everyone has an opportunity to vote on five possible topics. The topic receiving the most votes will be discussed at 7:00 p.m. (EST) on Friday; the second-place topic will be featured at noon (EST) on Friday. Follow @DeborahMersino on Twitter to get the link to each week’s Twtpoll.
How Do I Participate?
If you’re new to Twitter and/or have never experienced a Twitter chat, please know it’s quite easy to participate.
- Enter #gtchat into the subject search box (http://search.twitter.com) and then save that search. You’ll see a stream of all the tweets relating to #gtchat. It’s that simple. You can also try out www.TweetChat.com (enter in #gtchat to participate) or www.TweetDeck.com.
- When you’re ready to jump in and say something about the topic being discussed and/or respond to a tweet or post, just include the hashtag #gtchat at the beginning or end of your tweet. If you’re using TweetChat, you don’t have to worry about adding the #gtchat; it does it for you.
Do You Have Any Tips?
Some of these Global #gtchat tips have been featured in previous Ingeniosus Blog posts, but are worth mentioning again:
- Be considerate of others during the chat. You are free to disagree, but let’s be respectful and demonstrate politeness and courtesy for differing opinions.
- If you have research-based resources and/or book suggestions, please share them (as we can all benefit). Although most people won’t view them during the actual chat (simply goes by too quick), everyone appreciates reviewing the links in detail afterwards. Ingeniosus will post transcripts with live links following each #gtchat.
- It may take a while to get accustomed to following the stream of #gtchat tweets. Be patient with yourself and others. It can be fast-paced at times. Eventually, you’ll get the hang of it!
- Feel free to ask questions and/or share real-world experiences.
- If you want to direct a reply to someone, simply start off your tweet with that person’s @username (Example: @DeborahMersino I agree and think #gifted state associations can play a bigger role and need more of our support).
- Simultaneously, it’s a good idea to search for your own @username a few times throughout the chat to ensure you catch any responses directed to you. It’s easy to do this if you save a search for your own @username.
- If you agree with what someone posts, feel free to “Retweet” (RT) it. (Example: RT @HoagiesGifted Summer Programs for the #Gifted of all ages! http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/summer.htm Enjoy!)
- Be sure your Twitter profile settings are on public not private; otherwise, you won’t show up in the chat feed.
- If Twitter still seems daunting and/or intimidating, feel free to look at the Ingeniosus Blog 3-part series on “Twitter and Gifted Education: How Social Networking Can Propel Advocacy and Learning”:
If you have questions, topic suggestions and/or would like to serve as a gifted resource/expert on a potential #gtchat subject, please shoot Deborah an email at deborah@ingeniosus.net. She receives a lot of DMs and email, but will do her best to respond as quickly as possible (depending on her gifted client work load/deliverables).