The thing with blogging that has really taken off in my own classroom is when I use blogs as something more than merely writing a response, or a journal. When a blog has taken off in the classroom it becomes an extension of a conversation that motivates and moves in an un-thought of direction.
Check out the blog my students made when we read the book Native Son while we studied ethos (character/credibility), pathos (emotion), and logos (logic). Students first posted links that related to the ethos of the main character, Bigger Thomas, then they were to post a comment for another student's link.
http://weblogs.ccsd.k12.co.us/cth/mrobbins2/?p=20#comments
Another way to get familiar with blogs and how to incorporate them is to just surf the net looking for interesting blogs that strike your fancy and get you thinking about student work.
This blog that you are reading houses links to several other blogs that you might find interesting.
3.03.2008
Thanks to...
Molly (skier) and Tina (boarder) - May the Web 2.0 lift you to new heights in your teaching.As shocking as it may seem, there was a time when paper and pencil were the primary tools in our classrooms. We have the following people and resources to thanks and are sure to continue adding links to those who will help us in the future...
To Christine for always saying yes...
To Will Richardson for captivating our attention for three hours (a rare feat) at the 2007 TIE conference and for writing Blogs, Wikis, and Podcasts...
To Sue S. and Michelle A. for being tech pioneers in a book-centered content area...
To Apple and the creation of the iPod, who knew that techonology could be useful, cool, and lifechanging...
To Entertainment Weekly for dutifully writing about Britney Spears and Juno on a weekly basis, our lives would be empty without you...
Google Docs
Want to do a really cool group project, but you need to add some pizazz to this venture? Google docs is the answer. Google docs is an online application where students can collaborate on the same piece of writing from anywhere there is a computer with internet access.
When you think Google Docs think Word, Powerpoint, and Excel only on the web. When I trained my students on this awesome resource all I did was put the interface on the board and say, "What does this remind you of?" and "How do you use this?"
I have used it for a essays with some success. The caveat is that if students do not have their own Google account, they must use yours (or somebody elses). In my case, I let those students use my account and I changed the password for them...it ended badly. One of my students deleted my entire Google account, all of my blogs, docs...everything.
But there is hope...Google just announced a new way to use Google Docs called Google Apps. At this point I don't know enough about it to give it a thumbs up or down or to relay any caveats.
Google Docs Tour:
http://www.google.com/google-d-s/tour1.html
A Blog devoted to Google Docs usage:
http://www.commoncraft.com/video-googledocs
When you think Google Docs think Word, Powerpoint, and Excel only on the web. When I trained my students on this awesome resource all I did was put the interface on the board and say, "What does this remind you of?" and "How do you use this?"
I have used it for a essays with some success. The caveat is that if students do not have their own Google account, they must use yours (or somebody elses). In my case, I let those students use my account and I changed the password for them...it ended badly. One of my students deleted my entire Google account, all of my blogs, docs...everything.
But there is hope...Google just announced a new way to use Google Docs called Google Apps. At this point I don't know enough about it to give it a thumbs up or down or to relay any caveats.
Google Docs Tour:
http://www.google.com/google-d-s/tour1.html
A Blog devoted to Google Docs usage:
http://www.commoncraft.com/video-googledocs
2.29.2008
Audio/Video Casting
Podcasting and digital storytelling presents a way to highlight student writing using their own voice to add power to their writing. They can be used in any content area...to highlight a personal narrative, to add visualization to an argument or historical moment, to add power through the voice to any piece of writing, to allow students to practice fluency in reading.
In making a podcast or a digital story the first thing to think about is how you want to improve student writing in using this medium, either through using the power of the author's voice or using pictures along with the voice. Once this is figured out, think about the process to carry students through...the writing, the choosing of which pieces of the writing students will include or not include in the piece, how you and your students will access the technology to do the podcast or digital story (IMovie, Photostory, etc...). Also don't forget to take copyright protections into consideration.
Please see the links below to view Molly's podcasts and digital stories as well as some other great examples.
Molly's Students Sharing Shuffle:
http://weblogs.ccsd.k12.co.us/cth/mrobbins/
1001 Words:
http://xpress.sfsu.edu/1001words/2007s/#
Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling:
http://www.coe.uh.edu/digitalstorytelling/examples.htm
In making a podcast or a digital story the first thing to think about is how you want to improve student writing in using this medium, either through using the power of the author's voice or using pictures along with the voice. Once this is figured out, think about the process to carry students through...the writing, the choosing of which pieces of the writing students will include or not include in the piece, how you and your students will access the technology to do the podcast or digital story (IMovie, Photostory, etc...). Also don't forget to take copyright protections into consideration.
Please see the links below to view Molly's podcasts and digital stories as well as some other great examples.
Molly's Students Sharing Shuffle:
http://weblogs.ccsd.k12.co.us/cth/mrobbins/
1001 Words:
http://xpress.sfsu.edu/1001words/2007s/#
Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling:
http://www.coe.uh.edu/digitalstorytelling/examples.htm
2.28.2008
Social Bookmarking
When pondering social bookmarking, think MySpace but with a purpose for monitoring more than your friend's Saturday evening out on the town.
At its basic level, social bookmarking is a way to save your bookmarks (normally saved to Window's Internet Explorer) online, which means that you can access them anywhere you have internet access. Just think about the applications that come from having access to your favorite websites whenever you want. No longer do you have to remember websites off the top of your head.
At the intermediate level, you can beging to organize your bookmarks. While you can create folders in Explorer, "tagging" (the official Web 2.0 organizing term) is 10 times better. It allows you to cross-file websites that you might use for multiple purposes. In the Web 2.0 world, content can instantly become overwhelming and organizing that information is key. However, listing websites by author's last name isn't going to serve you well. Tagging is considered a folksonomy (folk - created by the people), which means that you can tag (organize) your content in whatever way makes sense to you.
For example, if you were researching how to grow tomatoes in Colorado, you might use the tags "garden", "Colorado", "tomato", or "black thumb". The point is you can use whatever makes sense to you.
At the advanced level, your bookmarks link you to others on the web. With a simple click, you can suddenly see all of the bookmarks another person has saved to their del.icio.us account. You're learning and accessing more content with every click.
Tag your it - Tina Barber's Del.icio.us account:
http://del.icio.us/tinabarber
At its basic level, social bookmarking is a way to save your bookmarks (normally saved to Window's Internet Explorer) online, which means that you can access them anywhere you have internet access. Just think about the applications that come from having access to your favorite websites whenever you want. No longer do you have to remember websites off the top of your head.
At the intermediate level, you can beging to organize your bookmarks. While you can create folders in Explorer, "tagging" (the official Web 2.0 organizing term) is 10 times better. It allows you to cross-file websites that you might use for multiple purposes. In the Web 2.0 world, content can instantly become overwhelming and organizing that information is key. However, listing websites by author's last name isn't going to serve you well. Tagging is considered a folksonomy (folk - created by the people), which means that you can tag (organize) your content in whatever way makes sense to you.
For example, if you were researching how to grow tomatoes in Colorado, you might use the tags "garden", "Colorado", "tomato", or "black thumb". The point is you can use whatever makes sense to you.
At the advanced level, your bookmarks link you to others on the web. With a simple click, you can suddenly see all of the bookmarks another person has saved to their del.icio.us account. You're learning and accessing more content with every click.
Tag your it - Tina Barber's Del.icio.us account:
http://del.icio.us/tinabarber
RSS and Feed Aggregators
In a world where information streams in faster than we can keep up, RSS comes to the rescue. RSS stands for Real Simple Syndication. Simply put RSS feeds are subscriptions to websites, but the best part is you can narrow your "subscriptions" to only your specific interests. For example, if you're addicted to Celebrity Gossip, but only care about Britney Spears; RSS can make that happen.
RSS feeds are simple to create, but can at first be overwhelming to monitor. Feed aggregators help with this by hosting all of your RSS feeds in one place. There are different sites and layouts to use; some are more user-friendly than others. Consider checking your RSS feed like you do your e-mail. It should be a daily task. Otherwise, your RSS feeds can overwhelm you simply because too much content is coming your way.
Finding RSS feeds & adding them to your feed aggregator:
http://www.ew.com/
How to resource by Will Richardson, a leading resource on using Web 2.0 in the classroom:
http://weblogg-ed.com/category/rss/
RSS feeds have endless application in the classroom. For example, in the English classroom they work well as supplementary materials for research projects or as ways to bring in additional non-fiction to the classroom. RSS feeds can also help make sure that students are using credible websites and help to teach students how to evaluate sources in a web-based world.
Pageflakes is a great feed aggregator that works well in the classroom. Try using it as a teacher-generated resource and then allowing students to go out and find their own RSS feeds. As a special surprise, on-line databases such as EBSCOhost will allow you to create RSS feeds specific to subject searches.
PageFlake Examples (Human ecology, Performance enhancing drugs):
http://www.pageflakes.com/default.aspx Note: You do have to create an account & password.
RSS feeds are simple to create, but can at first be overwhelming to monitor. Feed aggregators help with this by hosting all of your RSS feeds in one place. There are different sites and layouts to use; some are more user-friendly than others. Consider checking your RSS feed like you do your e-mail. It should be a daily task. Otherwise, your RSS feeds can overwhelm you simply because too much content is coming your way.
Finding RSS feeds & adding them to your feed aggregator:
http://www.ew.com/
How to resource by Will Richardson, a leading resource on using Web 2.0 in the classroom:
http://weblogg-ed.com/category/rss/
RSS feeds have endless application in the classroom. For example, in the English classroom they work well as supplementary materials for research projects or as ways to bring in additional non-fiction to the classroom. RSS feeds can also help make sure that students are using credible websites and help to teach students how to evaluate sources in a web-based world.
Pageflakes is a great feed aggregator that works well in the classroom. Try using it as a teacher-generated resource and then allowing students to go out and find their own RSS feeds. As a special surprise, on-line databases such as EBSCOhost will allow you to create RSS feeds specific to subject searches.
PageFlake Examples (Human ecology, Performance enhancing drugs):
http://www.pageflakes.com/default.aspx Note: You do have to create an account & password.
RSS feeds in education:
http://www.shambles.net/pages/learning/ict/rsseduc/
http://www.shambles.net/pages/learning/ict/rsseduc/
Opening Podcast
This podcast features Writing 2.0 currently in action in English classes from the mouths of teachers and students alike.
Link to opening podcast:
http://weblogs.ccsd.k12.co.us/cth/tbarber/
(This link also hosts student podcasts from a unit on the Epic Hero.)
Link to opening podcast:
http://weblogs.ccsd.k12.co.us/cth/tbarber/
(This link also hosts student podcasts from a unit on the Epic Hero.)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
