College Readiness: Writing to Learn The controversial author Norman Mailer said, "I don't know what I think until I write it down." Joan Didion perhaps said it better in this way, "I write entirely to find out what I'm thinking, what I'm looking at, what I see and what it means. What I want and what I fear." Donald Murray, a pioneer of the writing process, stated, "...all writers 'are compelled to write to see what their words tell them." There is an amazing power to learn when you read what you have written. Learning From What You Write Perhaps the first level of writing to learn has already been discussed in my post on critical reading. Though writing is an active learning endeavor, not passive as in listening, the act of writing involves more of the entire body in the process and thus will increase the likelihood of learning. Writing to learn is more than just putting words on the page for someone else to read. In the Classroom What's the difference between reflexivity and reflectivity? Suggested resources Kingdon, C.
Workshop Activity: Paper Blogs | Mobile Learning I came up with this activity to demonstrate to teachers what (mo)blogs are, how they work, and why they can be such a powerful strategy for empowering and engaging learners. I’ve used it on a number of occasions – first for a Social Web Professional Development Day in July 2006, and most recently, last Friday, at a Professional Development workshop on M-Learning, for the University of Canberra. I’m pleased to see it has also been used by others I’ve taught it to, as a fun and accurate way to explain blogging – and it doesn’t even need a computer! Objective: To provide a hands-on, interactive explanation of (mo)blogging, and the way that blogs can be used in education as powerful learning tools. Participants: For a group of 6 or more workshop participants. Materials: A5 sheets of Paper – one per participant, and preferably in many coloursWriting implements – lots of colours of ballpoint pens and/or colourful textasPost-It Notes – I use 47.6 x 73mm ones. Procedure:
Start a Reading Revolution: Flip Your Class With Blogs Are kids actually reading? It's a worthwhile question. In an age when distractions seem to make readers more reluctant, one must wonder how many students actually do it. There's evidence to support this fear. Even though the books are classics, they are very uninteresting. I don’t like it because all the books we read I am not interested in. There is no value in reading old books and making up stupid feelings that we are supposed to get from reading when none of it makes sense or it is just a stupid book. It doesn’t have to be this way. The Flip In flipped classrooms, students watch online lectures at home so that they can engage in project-based learning during the school day. But what does flipping look like in an English or reading classroom? The Solution I realized that the traditional English experience needed to be turned upside down. My flip, which I first explored two years ago, did all of these things, and created a contagious atmosphere of passionate readers. Overview Fear
A Beginner's Guide to Student Blogging Student blogging is quickly becoming a well-respected branch of writing as more and more educators embrace it and integrate into their curriculum. When I started blogging with my students in 2010, I had no idea what I was doing, which I think may have been a great approach for me. After all, most of us would prefer just try something rather than read pages and pages of how-to before we do it. Or at least this somewhat impulsive teacher would. However, there is a system to get student blogging off to a good start. 1. In order to get others excited about blogging, you have to know why they are doing it. We examine the benefits of learning handwriting in the age of technology in the... In today's centerpiece article, we look at how to motivate students by learning... A few ways teachers can embrace technology and stay relevant in the lives of... Today, we ran a "think piece" on picture day in the teaching profession. 2. I use Kidblog and have loved it every since I started. 3. 4. 5. 7. 8. 9.
7 Tips for Writing that Great Blog Post, Every Time Image Source Your blog is probably one of your company’s most valuable marketing tools. You use it to build trust with your customers, generate leads, educate consumers, and build brand awareness. So, if a reader tells you your blog’s content quality is poor, that comment will probably make you cringe just a little. The best company blogs are engaging, deliver value, and align with the company’s business strategy. It’s often challenging to consistently publish valuable and engaging content. #1. If you are selling to decision makers in the publishing industry, write a blog post that targets their specific needs. The H2 Real Estate blog does a great job of developing content that helps potential homeowners learn more about the community where the available homes are located since this is usually an important issue for homeowners. #3. #6. #7. The content should provide valuable and useful information to the reader.
Hur skriver man bra blogginlägg? - Börja blogga! Att skriva bra blogginlägg är en hel vetenskap, det finns mycket att tänka på och många misstag att göra. Exakt hur du ska skriva, det kan du bara säga själv, men det finns förstås många konkreta tips som kommer att hjälpa långt. Oavsett om man är van bloggare eller nytillkommen så har man definitivt någonting man kan utveckla, här kommer några saker som jag tycker är viktiga att tänka på! Sätt en beskrivande rubrik Det är viktigt att sätta en rubrik som får läsarna att vilja läsa inlägget. Var personlig Jag gillar skribenter som är öppna och personliga. Tänk på språket Ingen tycker det är inspirerande att läsa formella skrivelser som liknar lagtexter, så det är väldigt viktigt att vara personlig i sitt språk. Grammatiken är också viktig, det är inte nödvändigt att allting stämmer helt perfekt, men några större grammatiska klavertramp får det verkligen inte finnas i texten. Håll en röd tråd Det är allt för många spretiga inlägg där ute på nätet och jag är själv skyldig till flera.
Three ways to structure your blog posts for more engagement - Brad Blackman Art If you’ve already set up an editorial calendar for your blog and you have planned what content comes out when, the next step is to write it. I know. This can be overwhelming. The first thing you have to do is just start. I know. But once you’ve started, there are some frameworks we’re going to talk about in a minute that will help you structure your writing so it makes sense. Once you have your rough information down and you’re ready to give it shape, whether you are writing a blog post, a book, or even a presentation, there a couple of ways to structure that information so that it makes sense to the audience. The Term Paper The first structure is probably the most well-known. I will never forget Dr. I used this formula all through high school and college, and it worked. This format is kind of stiff and formal so it doesn’t always lend itself to blogging, but it works really well for presentations. The Transformation Next is what Pat Flynn uses when he drafts blog posts. The Hero’s Journey
Mentor Texts in the Digital Writing Workshop: Reading Like a Writer "Teachers must also ensure that children have access to reading materials that are relevant to the kind of writer they are interested in becoming at a particular moment. Teachers must recruit the authors who will become the children's unwitting collaborators." Frank Smith, Joining the Literacy Club Our students naturally mentor themselves to texts that matter to them. A few years ago, many of my students were learning Hannah Montana's Hoedown Throwdown dance from this video. And we are seeing more and more things like Toaster Pop, an iPod app/game created by a first grader. With apps like the Toaster Pop, we can read the story and easily identify the mentors this child used and the way in which he realized, "Hey, I could do that." But my students have taught me that the experiences they have with digital texts at home are mostly limited to viewing for sheer entertainment. Funny, right? I am a person who is is constantly mentoring myself to experts.
9 Reasons Why Teachers Should Blog My edtech journey at Boise State University was an eye-opening and life-changing experience in too many ways to count. Blogging was one of the professional activities I got exposed to as a student, and it is also one practice I want to continue as part of my teaching. In every edtech course, I was required to keep a digital learning log as a platform to post homework assignments, reflect on my learning and progress, showcase projects, ask for help, share aha moments, share resources, and finally, organize artifacts for my M.E.T. portfolio. Right from the start, the whole concept of homework changed; there were no more papers written to be read by no one. But is blogging only suitable for students? Absolutely! 1. Share your successful projects, ideas, resources, etc. 2. Reflect on your own learning and teaching by engaging in the best thinking activity – writing! 3. Many teachers continue to research well beyond their grad school. 4. 5. 6. 7. Become proficient with technology. 8. 9.
Digital Writing, Digital Teaching – Integrating New Literacies into the Teaching of Writing You have a Class Blog – Now what? I spend a fair bit of time as an eLearning Coach talking to teachers and helping them set up class blogs. This is a common and wonderful first step towards opening classrooms to the outside world, sharing practice, collaborating, modelling cybersafe behaviours, digital writing skills and much more. The value of class blogs is the topic for another post and is well summarised by Silvia Rosenthal Tolisano in the graphic above (if you want any further information on blogging Silvia’s blog should be your first stop!) . I have found that there is a point at which teachers struggle to move on – they learn the mechanics of blogging, most often making their blogs a wonderful showcase of classroom activities. These are the ideas I then present : Use blog as a reflective tool. Many teachers do not know how to create a network, how to connect their class with others. I think I will have to say that I believe Twitter is the best way to connect your blog to a wide audience.
The Reading & Writing Project - TC Digital and Media Literacy Institute Monday, May 21 - Wednesday, May 23, 2018 Grade: K-8 Featuring: Colleen Cruz, Cornelius Minor, Rachel Rothman, Katy Wischow, Eric Hand This institute, which offers first year and advanced sections for participants, will focus on the Project’s latest thinking around the integration of digital and media literacy with tried and true reading and writing workshop methods and curriculum. It will introduce participants to our latest and most successful methods for authentically tapping the power of digital tools and media within the workshop classroom in an aim to foster digitally literate students. This institute will also discuss media literacy, supporting strategies for media criticism, and ways to authentically integrate author’s intent or purpose across the various types of texts readers encounter. We are excited to build on the energy and excitement from our past institutes, and plan to share our best work from last year’s institute in addition to our revised and latest thinking. Cost
Blogging in The Classroom: How to Get Started It’s no secret that blogging is more than just a hobby. For many people around the world, it’s also a career, but could it be even more than that? What about blogging in the classroom, is that an option? Could this practice benefit students across high school and college? In a word? As bloggers, we grow our knowledge and learn new things each and every day. Blogging stretches all kinds of mental muscles, and it affords limitless opportunities to expand your knowledge. It’s incredible how much potential blogging has as a tool for education, so teachers, let’s find out how to get this into your classrooms. Here’s what we’ll discuss today: Ways to bring blogging into your classroom and daily lesson plansThe litany of benefits blogging brings to educationDeciding the purpose and goals of your blogSetting up your classroom’s blogEasy ways to promote and grow your classroom blog 1. Check out some sample blogs here. From here, the blog becomes an amazing tool that has no limit: 2. 3. 1. 2. 3. 1. 2.