KP’s Teacher Tales #3: Be a Role Model Online and Off

This post will discuss modeling a healthy use of social media, along with explain my mostly healthy bookstagram habit.

My life is full of excitement.

For one, it is Friday. Friyay—if you will. Secondly, I finished marking a big project. I feel the weightlessness that accompanies accomplishment. I had a callback audition last night, and it went better than my original audition. I’m also spending the weekend with my admittedly adorable boyfriend @somebuttstuff, which is exciting in itself as we are both fairly busy people and sometimes carving out a good chunk of time for each other proves a challenge. Oh! And, this morning I was greeted with a post that @alvinauh wrote in response to one of my comments. It’s about finding moments to game during those busy teacher times. Check it out here.

Needless to say, everything is coming up Flaversham.

Today I want to talk about something we clearly all subscribe to—social media. When I was in my teacher training, there was a lot of fear being passed around about participating in social media at all. They told us “delete it now!” and then they told us “don’t delete it because students can create accounts for you and post your head on a naked body!”

They said “use a fake name!” and then they said “use your real name!”

I was 23, and terrified. I had had Facebook essentially since its inception; through my final year of high school, and my first years of university. Nobody had told me that whatever you post on the internet is forever. I swore! I misbehaved! I had fun! And it was all over the internet.

Sidenote: This was actually how my nickname Flaversham was shared with the world. My dad called me Kimberley Flaversham after Olivia Flaversham from the Disney classic, The Great Mouse Detective. I changed my Facebook name, and didn’t change it back to my real life last name until this past year. This was because the fake last name did NOTHING. My students found me regardless. They are wily, you see.

I’ve learned a lot in the past five years. I now have a very public Instagram account that I allow my students follow. I talk about books and post on a daily basis. I have a modest 1600 followers, and I even get free stuff! It’s a big part of my life, and I invite students to be a part of it.

Here is a bookstagram photo I took including one of the very talented @caitycat watercolours!

Let’s start with the obvious tips on how to use social media appropriately. I’m mostly talking about if you have a public account, but also consider these if you have a private account (Facebook, Instagram, or otherwise). The other day my students somehow found @somebuttstuff without even knowing his name. They. Will. Find. You. That being said, all of the following suggestions are a choice. If you are an educator and do any of these, it does NOT make you a bad person.

1. Don’t share too much personal information. I work at a school that really cares about how they are perceived in the world. Therefore, they also care very much about how I am perceived. I try to separate myself from them if I can. I do not use my last name, or the name of my school in any of my posts. Could people figure out both these things if they tried hard enough? Yes. But as a general rule I call myself Ms. P or KP.

2. Try to use appropriate language. I now say “jeepers” or “jinkies” instead of “Jesus”. This is a practice for me in both my real life, and online. I may sound like a Scooby Doo character, but I’m also glad I don’t offend anyone.
   I also keep the f-bombs in my internal monologue.

3. Choose your handle wisely. My Instagram handle is book_banter if anyone is curious. I will say that @somebuttstuff is doing this all wrong, but I actually kind of respect him for it. Don’t tell him though.

4. Don’t post students work, even if it’s hilarious. A few years ago I had a stern talking to from my VP. I would like to say I have no regrets, but I do.

For a long time I didn’t show my face, but now I feel comfortable enough to take photos of myself and do videos!

Okay, that’s it for the generic stuff, I think. The following is how to create a social media presence that models healthy use.

a) If you are going to make a public account of any kind, do it for a reason. For me, it’s bookstagram, but there are so many cool teacher accounts out there. Pick a hobby! Do you love painting? Share it with the world! Are you a fitness junkie? A travel addict? A home chef? Pick something you are passionate about, and shout it from the metaphorical rooftops.
This shows students you are proud of what makes you unique, and if you gain followers or attention for it, they see that having interests and hobbies that may be different or unique is okay! Be proud!

Nerd!

b) Interact with the online community, but be safe about it. Recently I went to Manchester and I stayed with someone I had met online. GASP! They could have been a murderer! They weren’t, but I had done my homework. I think this is where video chatting is really important. You need to see their face, to make sure they are who they say they are. I love hearing stories about people who are friends online meeting IRL. Like those people that only meet face to face for the first time in order to attend a wedding or something.
This shows students that online friends ARE real friends! I’ve seen students struggling socially, and I’m sure the only thing that keeps them resilient is their online community.

c) Keep things as positive as possible. I’m not saying never share if you’re struggling or down. It’s more so about how I present things. If I talk about my students or my colleagues it is in a complimentary way. If I make fun of someone, it’s myself. My intention is never to embarrass my students. I also never use their, or my coworker’s names.
Sharing about my students shows them I care about them. They love getting shout outs. Though I never say exactly who did what, they know if I’m talking about one of them specifically. I can anticipate them coming up to me the next day to mention it. My kids have asked me if they can actually appear on my social media after they graduate. I haven’t decided if this is okay or not, but I’m pretty pumped they care enough to want to be a part of it.

d) BE HUMAN! Be yourself.
My students know me better if they follow my account. They especially love my dog—who you can meet by clicking here. They also enjoy following my travels, and chat with me about what happens during school holidays.

Chewie is a bookstagram star!

e) Follow accounts that fit with your hobbies. I am a huge OwlCrate fan. They are a monthly subscription box that send young adult novels and bookish merchandise. Some of my students have subscribed to OwlCrate because I share unboxings once a month. We then discuss the items and the reading, which I think is amazing! I like that I can point my students to cool literary accounts or businesses.

The socks were Poe-ka dot.

OKAY! That’s it for today. If you want to check out my other teacher posts, here they are!
KP’s Teacher Talk Two: Just Call Me MUN Mom
KP’s Teacher Talk One: A Blessing and a Curse