5 Ways to Organize Your Teaching on Pinterest

I have a Pinterest account and eagerly pin new, cool things I come across….. but seriously my boards are a mess. Sure, I can find that Colosseum Tour for Kids video link, my favorite tri-corner hat tutorial or the yummy ice cream in a bag recipe when needed. But – hold on - it’s going to take several minutes.

My colleague Bristlecone Backpack is young. She grew up using technology and therefore approaches her account in a totally different way. Check out her Pinterest boards. So pretty…so organized… so easy to find stuff. I’m an old dog. She’s teaching me some new tricks.  I’d like to pass along “Do this, Not That” advice to designing functional teaching-related Pinterest boards.

Do this: Create a board targeted for a specific unit – Not that: create a board for a broad skill

Place pins on the board where you know you’ll use them. It keeps you focused and reduces the total number of boards you work with. We teach the Core Knowledge curriculum so she organizes her boards by domain. Look at her Astronomy board. Point of use. It works.

Do this: Be picky – Not that: Pin indiscriminately because you think “ that looks good”

Check out the links you are considering. This means actually click the link! Does the link work?  Is the idea appropriate for your grade level? Are there photos of the end product? Is the website easy to navigate? Is using the idea or resource something you’d actually do? If you say no to any of the above, pass it over. It creates clutter. Boo on clutter.

Do this: Use the secret boards – Not that: Uh… Don’t use the secret boards…

Bristlecone Backpack told me she collects hairstyle inspiration, memes and recipe ideas like the rest of us. But YOU can’t see it. (She has equally impressive secret boards keeping her private life private.) Her public Pinterest profile is professional and makes it easy for others to use (like me!).

Do this: Unpin stuff you don’t like or use – Not that: Leave it all there, just in case….

Take a few moments to unpin the stuff that you would not use again. It’s slightly clunky, but hover on the pin and click on the pencil symbol. On that page press delete. Don’t keep the junk.

Do this: Bookmark the Pinterest board you are currently using on your school computer – Not that: email yourself links you think you’ll use to your school email (from home).

I would never would pull up my current Pinterest boards on my school computer because of the above referenced jumbled mess. However, if your Pinterest board is school-worthy, bookmark it!  If Pinterest is blocked at your school, talk to your network administrator. Show the Pinterest boards you want to have at your fingertips.

I’d love to hear best Pinterest practices for YOUR boards! Share the love below!