Teach Middle East Magazine Jan-Feb 2016 Issue 3 Volume 3 | Seite 11

Sharing Good Practice

Using Pinterest for Great
Lesson Ideas
By Betina Fuentes

I

t has long been said that the best
teachers are also thieves. We
beg, borrow and steal amazing
lesson ideas, organizational tips
and behavior management strategies
from one another. With the advent
of technology, sharing the wealth
has become even easier. Using
the Pinterest app on your phone
or computer enables you to glean
knowledge from the entire web with
a few simple search terms. Let’s take
a look at how it works and how to use
Pinterest responsibly.

What is Pinterest?
Pinterest is touted as a “digital bulletin
board”. Simply put, the user can “pin”
links to specific pages on any number
of customized “boards” on their
account. The user creates the boards
and gives them unique names. Then,
while browsing through Pinterest
or the web, the Pin button (can be
downloaded onto the toolbar) is used
to pin links to a board. It really is that
easy.

Getting Started
Once upon a time in 2011, you had
to sign up and wait to be invited to
join Pinterest. Now, however, you can
create an account instantly and start

browsing within minutes. Pinterest
is available on your mobile device or
through your favorite browser, and
your account can be accessed anytime,
anywhere. Be sure to give yourself a
memorable username and remember
that password!

Finding Great Pins
Using the Search function really gives
you control over what Pinterest shows
you. As your boards become fuller,
Pinterest will suggest pins for you. Your
Homepage also shows you what your
friends (added manually or through
other social media sites) have recently
pinned. To find specific content, type
terms into the Search box. The more
words you use, the more specific the
results will be. For example, if you
want to find sight word activities, type
in “sight words”. Then you can modify
the search by including words like
“ESL”, “kindergarten”, “dinosaurs”,
“cars”, and so on. Once you scroll
through the results, use the handy Pin
button on the link to pin your favorites
to any board you wish. There’s even an
option to keep a board secret if you
wish (great for gift ideas).

Social Networking

network. This is as a result of all the
communication that happens on the
site. You can add friends and follow
certain people or organizations (Teach
UAE, hint, hint) and see what they
are pinning on their boards. While
scanning blogs, webpages or company
sites, look for the Pinterest logo and
click to follow them on Pinterest. Just
like Twitter or Instagram, the more
people you follow, the more will be
exposed to your site.

Pin Responsibly
One flaw in Pinterest is that sometimes,
links do not work or are outdated.
Before you pin to a board, open the
link to be sure that it works. This can
save you the torment of opening a
lesson plan to use and then having to
look it up over again. Only pin what
you plan to use – an excess of pins
only brings you back to the original
problem of having too many choices.
Be cautious. Ensure that content is
not copyrighted, and is appropriate to
UAE and Islamic culture before using
in the classroom.
So there you have it. Fantastic lesson
plans, strategies and more at your
fingertips. Happy Pinning, teachers!

Pinterest is classified as a social
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