”Part of being fearless is stepping out and trying new things even if you have never tried them before. The willingness to learn and put yourself out there even if failure ensues (and it will) is the most fearless thing you can do” (Robertson, 2017).
With that profound wisdom in mind and in the spirit of fearlessness, I tackled a new-to-me thing this week; a thing called Instagram. I’ve had a personal Instagram account for years but, remarkably, have never created a single post. I acquired the account for the purpose of following others, my daughter in particular, rather than for sharing my own content. Thus, the experience of creating a brand-new Instagram account suitable for sharing school library content and actually posting content was quite educational. I encountered more challenges than I expected and, I’ll admit, I almost gave up in favor of a social media platform with which I am much more familiar and comfortable - Facebook. For example, I quickly learned that, aside from a complicated work-around, trying to post to Instagram from a PC is nearly impossible! I was motivated, though, by the amazing tips and guidance offered by Molly Wetta (2016) in her article, Instagram Now: Engage young users with the image-based social media tool. I really wanted to succeed at Instagram because of its appeal to younger audiences including students and young parents alike. So, I hiked up my britches and pressed on. Here is the result!
My Home Page
My First Post
A Creative Way to Share Links to
Outside Sources. More about this below.
If you, like me, are new to Instagram, I’d like to share one final tip that I learned during my initial explorations. I was disappointed to realize that it is not possible to create hyper links within an Instagram post. Being able to do this is important to me because I want to be able to link parents and students to outside sources that support and encourage a love of literacy. Thanks to a tech savvy friend who graciously shared her knowledge, I was able to creatively accomplish my goal using Linktree, a free resource that allows one to collect web links all in one place. I created a Linktree account then placed the link to my account in my Instagram bio. Now, when I share outside sources, I can simply direct my Instagram followers to refer to the link in my bio for more information. The link will take them to my Linktree collection where they can access the additional information I want to share. If you’d like to see this in action, check out my brand-new Instagram account and view my post about the Diary of a Wimpy Kid author event.
Happy posting!
Happy posting!
References
Jensen,
L. J. (2019). Integrating social media into online education. Library
Technology Reports, 55(4), 27-30.
Robertson,
N. (2017, June 10). 5 Tips for new school librarians (and those who aren’t so
new). The Incredibly True Adventures of an Edtech Trailblazer. http://www.nikkidrobertson.com/2017/06/5-tips-for-new-school-librarians-and.html
Wetta,
M. (2016). Instagram now: Engage young users with the image-based social media
tool. School Library Journal, 62(2), 30-32.
Thank you for sharing your process of starting out with instagram. I am still fairly new to the platform as well. I set one up for another SLIS class last semester. Other than facebook, I have mainly used social media to follow other people rather than create original content. And for some reason, I have been even more hesitant to get started on instagram. I followed you and I look forward to seeing what you are able to do with the account.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on your success! I have had an Instagram account for years. I have made about 20 posts. Just recently I tried to create another account for a book blog and after a hours of trying to figure it out, I gave up! I do think that Instagram is the best social media app to reach young people. When I begin working for a school library, I will create an account and use my school address so it should be easier to start.
ReplyDelete- Crystal Smoak
Thanks so much for the linktree suggestion! Not being able to post links has always seemed like a drawback to me. So I would like to have a linktree for sure! I have also seen many professional accounts say to click the "link in bio" and then you can access other links from that one? Definitely something I need to look into! Thanks for the post, and also, I admire your bravery in trying something new! I also had to venture into a few new social media arenas this year due to the requirements of a few of my classes, and I have had a positive experience for the most part. ! I will say, you begin to see that some are just more suited for your needs than others, but you can't knock it till you try it as they say!
ReplyDeleteKristen DeAnne Anderson
Great job on having the courage to create an account on a platform that is unfamiliar to you! I love Instagram and immediately decided to create one because I am so familiar with it. I think you will learn to love it and see all of the many features and benefits that it can have. I created an account during the Children's Literature course and have continued to use it to share book recommendations and tips. It has allowed me to connect with individuals on a literacy basis and form new connections. I think the same can happen for our schools and students when we provide the opportunity! Great Job!
ReplyDelete--Cassie Kemmerlin
Thank you so much for the tip on adding hyper links! Although I've had an Instagram account for years, I have not created many posts. I knew I wanted to use it as a tool in the library, but I do not know how to accomplish all the tricks of the trade. This helpful hint is a great addition to getting information out to students, parents, and teachers as easy as possible.
ReplyDeleteStephanie Sulton
Hi DeAnna,
ReplyDeleteI love the quote you added at the beginning of your post about being fearless. I feel like I have really stepped out of my comfort zone during this degree program. And I don't mean that in a bad way. I have grown so much and learned so much about technology and social media. I'm like others and comments made. I've had an Instagram account for a long time because of my children, but I never looked at in terms of using it in my library. I love the Linktree resource you shared and look forward to using that as well. Thank you for reminding me about being fearless and trying new things!
Robyn Gough Nestvogel