Many teachers today are using technology in the classroom and it’s opening doors for new ways of learning. Teachers looking to incorporate education technology should not overlook the power of the blog. Whether it is used for a class website or for individual student projects, blogging in the classroom can connect students, parents, and teachers from all around the globe. This promotes innumerable opportunities for learning. Are you wanting to make blogging a part of your classroom but don’t know how? Check out some of these ways to use blogs in the classroom.
- Create a class website: This could be a resource for both students and parents. You can post a classroom newsletter updating parents on what students are learning in school and the goals for the week. Offer parents ideas for what they can do that week to assist in their child’s learning. You can even publish a calendar of events to help keep parents and students in the loop. Provide a page dedicated to resources for students who miss school and need to do make-up work. By using a blog as a class website, you can create a place where students, parents, and teachers can connect and hold conversations. Don’t forget the wonders of polling. Creating your own polls can allow you to receive feedback and opinions of both parents and students.
- Use a blog as a resource for learning outside the classroom: Provide links to games, project ideas (crafts too!), or provide a list of books that stem from what the students are learning in the classroom. If students like a certain subject they are learning in school, provide them a way to go deeper and extend their learning. Encourage parents to explore these additional resources with their child.
- The blog can be used to host tools and resources students can turn to if they are stuck on an assignment. The blog can be a place where students can ask questions about assignments and collaborate not just with the teacher but also with each other. The blog can link to videos and screencasts, which students can refer to for extra guidance.
- Create a blog geared toward a specific subject:
- For example: a blog for language arts. Instead of having students hand in hardcopies of their essays and stories, give classroom assignments an upgrade and have students post their work on the classroom blog or their own individual blogs. In this way, students can give feedback to each other and comment on each other’s projects. When students turn in hardcopies of their papers to their teacher they rarely get to see what other students have done—this is a huge experience they are missing out on; students can learn a lot from each other.
- How-to science project: Just like a how-to you find on blogs via Pinterest for cooking, have students make their own how-to science projects using the structure of the scientific method. Let them post pictures and videos to demonstrate their procedures.
- Virtual pen pal: Let each student be in charge of his or her own blog (which could showcase assignments and projects) and connect them to a pen pal, or a “blog pal,” from another country. Let them have conversations with each other and share what each is learning in school. This will give them the opportunity to learn about other cultures and the perspectives of students outside the U.S.
Resources:
http://blog.simplek12.com/education/15-awesome-ways-to-use-blogs-in-your-classrooms/
Cover Photo: Alex (ahans) via Flickr
