From the New York Times, some great lessons on teaching writing with social media…

March 28, 2011, 3:35 PM
Less Is More: Using Social Media to Inspire Concise Writing
By SHANNON DOYNE and HOLLY EPSTEIN OJALVO
Overview | How can online media like Twitter posts, Facebook status updates and text messages be harnessed to inspire and guide concise writing? In this lesson, students read, respond to and write brief fiction and nonfiction stories, and reflect on the benefits and drawbacks of “writing short.”