Blogging in the 21st-Century Classroom
This year, I admitted a hard truth to myself. I wasn't having my students write enough. In an attempt to follow Kelly Gallagher’s advice that students should write more than we can assess, I decided to have them blog weekly. One Assignment, Many Objectives After giving students some practice and solidifying my ideas by talking to a colleague and past student, I developed this assignment. I tried to ensure that the assignment would: Address multiple Common Core standards Hold students accountable while minimizing stress Be structured enough to provide clarity while giving freedom to experiment Be varied enough to keep students engaged Get students to write for multiple purposes I introduced blogging to my juniors, reminding them to keep an open mind about this experiment (they could relate to that; I teach in a STEM school that focuses on life science and experimental research). It. Skill and Enthusiasm First and foremost, student writing is improving by leaps and bounds. Less Agonizing Pain
5 Rewards of Teaching Young Students to Blog
I have been an elementary-school teacher for more than 25 years and I am always on the lookout for meaningful ways to engage and motivate my young students. I started Mrs. Yollis’ Classroom Blog in 2008 with the idea of sharing class activities with parents. Over time, the blog has grown to be the centerpiece of our third-grade classroom. It has become a true global learning community that offers myriad rewards for students, parents and teachers. 1) Develop quality literacy skills When I first started blogging, I thought the posts would be the primary focus of the blog. My students are highly motivated by their authentic global audience and take great pride in producing top-notch writing for their readers. What has been even more exciting for me is the student participation from home. 2) Parents are included in the learning Parental involvement has strengthened and expanded the learning opportunities for my class. Many parents work but would love to volunteer in some way.
Fix-It in Five
When I first started student blogs, I assumed students would enjoy it. After all, we were using technology! It was, at the time, a cutting-edge tool! Unfortunately, I didn’t think ahead of time about the power of blogging as authentic, interactive form of expression. Instead, students wrote posts in isolation. In short, they weren’t student blogs at all. Student autonomy. Looking for More? If you enjoyed this post, check out this free resource Student Blogging: Rubric, Self-Assessment, and Checklist If you want to see more posts about student blogging and digital writing, check out this page for other posts and resources.If you enjoy this blog, please subscribe via email and receive each post in your inbox, along with one free resource a week.If you're interested in workshops or sessions on digital writing and student blogging, I'm available to consult with schools, districts and organizations.
The True Adventures of an Incurably Curious Educator
Simple Teaching Tip
New beginnings → Shiny shoes, Crisp new uniforms, Bulging backpacks, Brand new lunch boxes, Untouched exercise books Yes its back to school time here in Australia, week one is already over and the […] The International Conference on Creativity and Academic Excellence → I along with two Year 6 students Charlotte and Michelle, presented this week during the first day of The International Conference on Creativity and Academic Excellence which is being held […] Perseverence and Persistence → I have had this post in a half written form for some time now ever since in fact I read this quote. When trusting your teacher is wrong → My class have one lesson a week as a timetabled computer lesson.
Why Are You Blogging? [Guest Post]
You hear that all teachers should blog. You follow the tutorials and set up a blog. Now what? It’s easy to get overwhelmed with the idea of blogging, especially if you are unclear about the purpose of the blog. Is the blog for you or for students and parents? This post highlights the most prevalent types of education blogs and includes links to blogs that exemplify each of the types. A Blog is Not Just a Blog A single classroom blog may exist for many reasons. personal reflection on teaching and learningcommunication between you, parents, students, and the worldexhibition of student workrecommendation of resources to other teachers Student blogs also vary. ongoing reflection on lessons, work, or projectsportfolios of work for parents, friends, and the worldstudents’ exploration of interests or passions When you clarity the purpose behind your blog, you begin thinking differently about your practice. Below are some examples of blogs that illustrate clear purposes. Google “the resume is dead”.
Mr. Salsich's Class - “Take Me Out to The Ballgame” – a guest post about baseball by Brendan
Hi! My name is Brendan and I play Baseball. Baseball is an American sport involving lots of physical requirements like being able to run fast, swing heavy bats, and have good arm strength to be able to throw across the baseball field. The field you play on in baseball is called the baseball diamond and in the baseball diamond there’s an infield and an outfield. Here’s a diagram of a baseball diamond and the defensive positions I made using Skitch: layout of a baseball field, with the positions. The clothing you wear for baseball is baseball pants, team jersey, baseball hat, cleats, and baseball socks. When you play defense you also need a baseball glove: Fielding Equipment When you are hitting you need a baseball bat and a helmet: Batting Equipment There is also a dugout which is where the players sit during a game. Some people in my class play baseball. My favorite Baseball team is the Boston Red Sox. Boston Red Sox Here is a video of my class and I singing the song: Do you play baseball?
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