What is Twitter?
Twitter is a free service that enables its users to send and read messages known as tweets. Tweets are very similar to mobile phone text messages, and can only be up to 140 characters long. When the user sends a tweet it is displayed on their profile page on the Twitter website.
Other users can subscribe to receive the tweets when they are sent and these people are known as followers. Followers receive the tweets of those they are following on their profile page on the Twitter website. They can also get the tweets sent to their mobile phone as text messages so they are never without Twitter!
What do you tweet?
Tweets are about anything – there are no rules. They can be news, spam, self-promotion, conversational, or just plain pointless babble! You can also send links to interesting websites you have found and want to share with your followers, or links to photos you have stored on photo sharing websites.
Why are Puddleducks tweeting?
Puddleducks are using Twitter to send out messages regarding events such as when the school has to close due to weather conditions, amended school opening times, reminders of special events, anything really.
Parents can follow Puddleducks on Twitter and get tweets sent to their mobile phones and computer with instant, up to the date information regarding special events, closures, etc.
Parents often find it useful to have a text message stored on their mobile phone with, for instance, the date of when Puddleducks will be closed due to the hall being used as a polling station.
Will Puddleducks still phone me in an emergency?
Of course we will. We are not using Twitter to replace any of the usual means of contact – it’s just an extra method that some people find more convenient, or fun!
If the school has to close or a child feels ill then you will be contacted in the usual way by the school. If the school has to remain shut, or has amended opening hours, such as during the last snow we had, then we will post the details on our website, on the school answer machine, and we now also tweet the news.
During the snow closures we also tweeted photos of how deep the snow was at the hall, so you can see the conditions and better decide whether you can make it into the nursery. It’s up to you to decide which is more convenient to you.
How do I sign up to receive Puddleduck’s tweets?
First you need to sign up for a free twitter account and there is in depth help on signing up for twitter available here. As part of setting up your twitter account you will be asked to search for people you know. Puddleducks is known as PuddleducksMont on twitter (the maximum length of a name is 15 characters so we couldn’t fit it all in). Once you follow us, all our tweets will be displayed on your profile home page. Feel free to send us a tweet to tell us you have signed up.
How do I receive tweets on my mobile phone as text messages?
Read the online help for full details on setting up twitter on your mobile phone. Tweets sent to mobiles phones on Vodafone, Orange and O2 should be free but check with your mobile phone company first. Replying to a tweet from your mobile phone might cost you the price of a text message, but again check with your mobile phone operator as this might also be free.