Blogging
in the classroom can be used for several different subjects within the fourth
grade. One of the largest subjects that my students focus on is writing. The
use of blogs for writing would be interesting and fun for each of the students.
This blog would allow them to collaborate using the computer, Ipad, or computers
at their homes.
In
the fourth grade the students are expected to write three different genres. These genres include: informational, narrative, and persuasive writing.The RSS feed would allow students to collaborate with other fourth grade students that are blogging. The
students would be able to subscribe to each of the other students blogs so they
would be able to share ideas and feed research off of one another. They would
be able to post their writings and showcase them to the other students in the global world. I would be able to watch their
progress as a collaborator. I feel as though the students would enjoy working on through the blog because in their eyes it is more interesting than using the normal technology of the pencil and paper. My students love to showoff their hard work in the classroom, and this would allow them to work super hard to show a larger crowd just how great their work can be. They would be solely responsible for researching and receiving the ideas needed to produce a quality paper.
The blog will allow the students to have a desire to work hard and they would be manipulating the standard way of writing!
Hi Natalie!
ReplyDeleteI like that you would be encouraging and supporting your students to create and maintain their own blogs. I wish this was logical for me to do with kindergartners, but it's not! Do you anticipate any challenges regarding use of technology at home? Or will you assist the students with setting up their blogs and expect them to update and post during class time?
Lisa LeBlanc
Hi Natalie,
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on your wedding plans!
Using blogs as the medium for teaching writing sounds like a great idea. I’m sure your students will find it much more interesting than using pencil and pen, as you have stated.
You listed the different genres that your students must learn, but did not mention any specific topics. Do you have any specific topics in mind? Would you use blogs differently to teach the different genres of writing? These are a couple of the questions that come to mind, and that will of course have to be addressed when planning your lessons.
If I have understood you correctly, it sounds like the students would each have their own blog. They would work collaboratively with the other students by sharing their ideas and research with each other, but do their own writing. Will the students also be commenting on each other’s work or merely sharing their research and ideas on the topic? If the students commented on each other’s writing it would add another layer to their collaboration by enabling them to learn writing from each other.
Would you break the class up into smaller groups with the members of each group working together? This might make their group work more productive. You also mentioned RSS feeds. Do you plan to utilize them to more efficiently monitor their progress? As you know, it would help tremendously.
You also mention that the students would be writing for a potentially worldwide audience. Will you allow people from outside the class to comment on your students’ posts? If so, you will want to monitor all comments before they are published to the websites.
John Hennessey
It is great to see that you are using blogs in your fourth grade classroom. Now that your students will be publishing information online there are some safety issues which you will need to consider. The danger exists that students divulge too much information about themselves online – both in text and in photos. Similarly, it is also important that the students’ privacy be protected.
ReplyDeleteThere are a number of ways that you can resolve these issues. Will Richardson (2010) writing in his book Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms, posits the view that teachers who use blogs in the classroom should also blog. This would allow them to demonstrate the appropriate method of blogging to the students. He also suggests that students should only use their first names and if they have a unique first name then they should use a pseudonym. In addition, he advocates that teachers should teach students that they should never publish personal identifiers about themselves. It is also important that you inform parents about the safety precautions that you have in place to protect the students’ safety and they should be asked to sign a document with respect to this (Richardson, 2010).
Another issue that you must consider is the level of internet access your students have at home. If the students do not have adequate access to the internet then you might not be able to effectively use weblogs in your teaching practice. For those students who do not have access at home you might need to arrange for them to get that access at school which will allow them to participate in the activity.
Finally, Natalie, you have set up your blog and the students are publishing to the web. An issue that you need to consider is how you will grade the students’ contributions. It might not be possible to grade every single contribution but Richardson is of the view that teachers should include every post in some overall assessment of effort, through the use of a rubric. Richardson suggests that among other things the rubric should evaluate the level of participation, the intellectual depth of the posts and the effectiveness of the writing. Using such a rubric will facilitate your ability to assess the students’ work.
Good luck and have fun with your blogging.
Andrew Haynes