There are several other ways blogging could be used in my classroom which could be by just interacting with other students from around our state. At my school we truly believe in the looping process, so I taught 4th grade last year and now I am teaching the same students in 5th grade. This is my first time being involved with looping and have seen many benefits to this process. Blogging is a good tool for the instructional context because my students would not only be able to learn from their own peers, they would also learn from others around the country.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Blogging in the Classroom
I am new at blogging, but I am seeing great potential for this type of technology. A way I might be able to use blogging in my classroom is something that my students brought up to me today. At my school, we currently have a grant for all students to receive a snack each day. These snacks include many different types of fruits and vegetables from all over the country. One way I could use blogging in my classroom would be to have a way to visit with students from other countries about how these types of food are grown. My students are very inspired by learning from one another and I feel a blogging situation could improve their knowledge about this concept. I can only imagine how excited they would be to receive a message from someone in another state, as well as a different country.
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Blogging with other students from a different country or state would really get their attention and would be a great project. I think that the students would be enthusiastic about blogging in general, since it is probably something very new to them. I would probably suggest starting off with teaching them how to blog and the different advantages that goes along with it. Then I would introduce the idea of communicating with others around the world. I wonder if the students from a different country spoke a different language if there was a translator for your students to read the message. This not only would open their eyes to first hand information but it would make them more culturally aware.
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ReplyDeleteFirst of all, it is great that your students receive a snack every day. In the current economy, our students in Michigan are seeing more and more cuts and seem to be getting no benefits. We spend so much discussing curriculum, but cannot ignore how important it is to provide our students with nutritious food, even for snacks.
I like your idea to have students use the blog to learn about these foods they eat for snack. You are using your blog as a supplement to the classroom, outside of the formal curriculum. I think this will let students feel excitement that there is less stress associated with the blog and it is not just more work.
Since your students have had the same teacher for the last two years, your blog could be a great resource to give your students another perspective, from students and teachers throughout the country. Have you found any negative aspects to teaching the same students for two years in a row? Do you think these students may feel any extra anxiety as they enter middle school, having both a new building and their first new teacher in three years? It is a very interesting arrangement that I have not heard of before you discussed it and was wondering how the benefits and disadvantages weigh out.
As for the looping process, I have not found any negative aspects. This is only my second year of teaching, so of course everything has been new to me for the past two years. I do think my students are starting to feel the anxiety of going to another school next year for middle school, but since they feel safe in our learning community right now, I think they will feel confident when entering their new school.
ReplyDeleteBlogging to reach other students in other countries sounds wonderful, but in addition to setting up parameters for using the internet, students will need to be taught proper ettiquette when talking with students from other countries. Cultures differ and students need to understand that differences should be cherished and respected. This would be a great opportunity to expand social studies units.
ReplyDeleteBlogging with students from other countries would be an exciting opportunity for your students. A feature that I have installed on my blog is an application called "Cluster Maps". It is a map that you put on your blog and when people read your blog, a dot is placed on the map. The more responses, the bigger the dot. It would be fun for your students to find a class in another country and become "pen pals" with them using the computer. What a valuable learning opportunity that would be.
ReplyDeleteIn two weeks I will be teaching International Business (a class I haven't taught in four years). I want to start a class blog so that my students (like yours) have the opportunity to speak to students around the world. As stated in one of the comments above, cultural etiquette needs to be taught first, but what an opportunity for students to connect globally. Judith (a Walden colleague from Canada) and I have already discussed connecting our classes together. We haven't worked out the details yet, but I'm sure we'll figure it out together. The possibilities are endless.
ReplyDeleteMaybe your class could collaborate with students from another state or country on a dual project pertaining to the environment or perhaps cultural awareness.
Wendi, thanks for responding! This is definitely an interesting idea to me. As an elementary art teacher, I am the only art teacher students have for five or six years, so I definitely understand the comforts and anxieties involved. I'm glad the looping makes your students feel comfortable. I'm sure if there are any negative aspects, the amount of confidence they have probably gained from their comfort in your classroom will definitely benefit them in the future.
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