Using blogs in the classroom is something I have used in college classrooms, but not yet in my elementary classroom. I can see the benefits of using blogs as students develop their writing skills as well as how blogs might increase their motivation to write.
I could see using idea-based instruction with blogs as a way for students to reflect on their learning. Since blogs are much like journals, student can reflect on the big ideas being presented and they can read each others' reflections to expand upon. Students need to have adequate typing skills to make using blogs in this way time efficient. I have been frustrated with typing assignments with my students because it takes some of them an incredibly long time to type their thoughts as opposed to writing them by hand.
Blogs can also be used to give direct instruction to students. Teachers can create a blog that students read and are able to comment on. Students can also be given authorship of the blog to add their own posts. Direct instruction can also be given to absent students in this way so they do not get behind on missed assignments. The only problem with this is students need to have a certain level of literacy to be able to read the instructions and information given on the blog.
It would be difficult to use Venn Diagrams with blogs because the graphics would be difficult to create. You could use comparing and contrasting in written form, but the visual of a Venn Diagram would be difficult.
Peer editing is possible to do with blogs, but doesn't seem like the best technology to use for editing. Blogs are great for sharing general thoughts for revision, but google docs or wikis would be a better choice for peer editing.
I could see myself using blogs in my classroom mainly with language arts. This past year I did pen pals with a classroom in Michigan. It was so much fun for my students to write and receive letters from around the world. With blogs, we could pair up students to write to each other in this way. For privacy sake, the blogs could be private - viewed only by the students writing to each other and the teachers.
The bonus question is very thought provoking for me. It is one that I have thought about before because I find myself wanting to use technologies more creatively, but not knowing how to do that. I would be interested in reading articles that discuss creative uses of web technologies.
Meredith, you have some good thoughts. I also thought reflecting would be a good idea to do on a Blog, but I agree with you about the typing. Some children do take a very long time...especially in the beginning of the year. Maybe if the expectations of what they need to type on the Blog at first is short and sweet it would be helpful and a good starting point. I really like your pen pal idea, too!
ReplyDeleteLOVE your idea of using blogs as a place to document missing work and provide instruction. I feel I have thought a lot about how students can use blogs to share, but I had not really considered what a great tool they could be for teachers to share.
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