Professional Learning Communities

The thought of a professional learning network is both overwhelming and intriguing.  Just spending the last hour reading about PLNs has my head spinning.  I think if I were to start my own PLN, I would start basic.  I am not one for informing everyone of everything I do.  I would begin instead of subscribing to three or four interesting educator blogs like Always Learning by Kim Cofino at http://kimcofino.com/blog/ and Learning is Messy by Brian Crosby at http://learningismessy.com/blog/?page_id=367.  To help keep track of these new blogs, I would subscribe to the RSS feed (which I just learned about).  In Google Reader, you can subscribe to the blogs and keep the information in one place!

The blogs that I looked at are from teachers who are sharing different ideas and thoughts about lessons, technology, teacher reform, etc.  After getting to know other people's blog, I would feel more comfortable starting my own teaching and learning blog to share with others.  I would start with lesson ideas, projects, and questions I had for other teachers or even parents.  I would connect with the blogs I had been learning about through posts and comments to broaden my reach and connectivity with others. The purpose of my blogging would be to aid in my own professional development in the classroom.  I would also, if possible, try to aid others in their own professional growth.

I think the time I have to devote to the blog and reading those of others will become an important factor in whether I will expand my scope.  If I find that I have become handy with blogs, wikispaces, Ning communities, etc. and I would expand my PLN.  I enjoy learning about others successes and offering up my own experiences.  In this age of technology, learning is easier and more accessible than ever.