Even though the first basic attempts of blogging actually began in the early 1990’s, blogging in the world of education is a fairly new technology trend. Blogging can give students a way to publish their writing for a real-world audience, not just those within their classroom walls. Still, does the thought of organizing such a task sound intimidating, time-consuming, and just plain overwhelming? Well at first, I would have agreed. But, if you break it down into small steps, blogging with students can be a rewarding task.
Here are some thoughts to get you started:
Maybe consider whole class blogging in your initial attempts. Teachers can create a classroom blog, where only you make the entries, but those entries are created as a result of student discussion and participation. These entries can be about whatever you would like: math, science, history, book discussions, etc. Or you may choose to dive straight in and create a classroom home page with additional blog pages for each student. You can still lead the topic discussion on the main classroom page, but the students have their own page for individual entries.
Whichever route you choose, be sure to keep a hard copy of your blogging account username and password along with student usernames and passwords. Inevitably your students will forget their information and you will too. (I speak from experience!) Also, don’t be afraid to create accounts from more than one blogging website. If you find that one source does not fit your needs or isn’t user friendly, by all means move on to another. If you would like to see examples of how other educators are using blogs in the classroom before beginning your own, I have provided a list below. I have also included website resources for blog servers that are specifically geared toward education and can help you begin your journey. If you are a blogging veteran, please respond to this post and share your resources and tips. Just remember, start small and build from that foundation. Happy blogging!
Classroom Blogging Examples:
http://www.classblogmeister.com/blog.php?blogger_id=1337 – 1st grade blog
http://duckdiaries.edublogs.org/ - 2nd grade classroom blog
http://kootmansclass.blogspot.com/ - 4th grade classroom blog
http://classblogmeister.com/blog.php?blogger_id=35989 – 6th grade blog
http://harringtonlibrary.blogspot.com/ - Middle School Library Blog
Website Servers for Educational Blogging:
http://classblogmeister.com/
http://www.21classes.com/
http://edublogs.org/
Monday, 5 January 2009
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