This is just a comment from Lory, the teacher. If you are feeling overwhelmed, that is to be expected. You were given a lot to absorb in one session. This process will be a lot easier as you become more familiar with the tools. Not all positions based on what you do and grade level in education are even appropriate to have a blog.
Will Richardson writes, Doing connective writing in blogs, then, is different experience than just posting. Consider what you write as thoughtful analysis and a synthesizing of the comments in posts. We want our students to be thinking critically and reflectively when they post to blogs. We want our students to employ a wide range of strategies as they write and us different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with diferenent audiences for a variety of purposes (from the National Council of Teachers of English). Please consider these elements as you post to the class blog.
In the book, Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and Other Powerful web Tools for Classrooms by Will Richardson the second chapter is devoted to the pedagogy of weblogs. For me, this was one of the the most meaningful chapters in the book. Here, Richardson, actually drew from the national standards for English and Language Arts to illustrate the power of a weblog in the classroom. He writes, students emply a wide range of strategies as they writ and use different writing process elemnts appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes, something bloggers do by the verynature of their process, or Students participat as knowledgeable, reflective, creative and critical members of a variety of literacy communities. Blogs create and connect these communities like few other tools.
Students can use weblogs to collaborate, communicate, and illustrate about what they are learning. The weblogs can be their electronic portfolio that they share with a wider audience. They are able to get feedback from others.
When I first read this book three years ago Richardson said that myspace.com is just personal weblogs I was really surprised. I had heard such bad, bad press about myspace.com and facebook.com at the time. When you think of the sheer numbers of kids that blog daily to have them implement the same practice into the classroom would be motivating to students.
It is the weblog that has really opened the Read/Write Web and started the trend toward the development of all these powerful tools. You now have a weblog so you add pictures from flickr, link to your favorite websites, add/download a little music, let people know where you live (maybe not such a good idea) and a add a feed to a podcast you like to follow. Use these tools in the classroom not only are you with it but have your students attention.
What do you think after reading the first two chapters?
