The reaction that I often get when I introduce Twitter to my students is that it is something silly. I get to hear remarks such as “you can’t do much in 140 characters” and “I’d rather be doing something instead of simply telling others what I’m up to.” The reaction of my students is not atypical. Anyone who is being introduced to Twitter is likely to have such a reaction.

But what I have also noticed is the creativity of some of my students in how they use Twitter. One of my students, a professional “personal trainer,” asked her clients to use Twitter as a way to document in real time their activities (e.g., what time they got up, what they ate, what exercising activity they engaged in, etc.). She found that Twitter was a better way of documenting than the older method of writing a diary of one’s activities at the end of the day.

Recently, I have also come across other creative uses of Twitter. A NY Times article in April described how a women in Northern Ireland has attracted more than 6000 followers by tweeting complete recipes in 140 characters! Book writer Matt Stewart is releasing snippets of his new novel “The French Revolution” via Twitter. He kicked off his tweets on July 14th, the Bastille Day. Someone has even figured out a way to make your plants let you know via Twitter when they need water.

Of course, not all uses of Twitter are creative. Last night my son emailed me a link that shows how often people tweet about something more prosaic — their bowel movements!

Are you aware of creative uses of Twitter? Please share them with us and our readers.