Mrs. Lawrence’s Blog Exploration

Hi – thanks for linking to my First Five tips on blogging. The Getting Started With Edublogs page on the Edublogger has a series of tips and advice on using blogs with students that may help you. Good luck with your blogging.

try this http://trangy.wordpress.com. I use blogging two main ways. A revision/excercise book for homework, and mostly as a student reflective writing tool. A student blog is a great place for them to embed a range of multi-modal resources. A blog should allow students to explore a range of technologies. Also make sure you let parents in on the blog address. For Group blogging – stirring up discussion. Try http://www.ning.com. Good luck and welcome to the EduBlogger community.

I’m not sure about how to respond to a comment – I’m thinking this looks a little like an electronic bulletin board where you leave comments and people respond…or not. I read in Gail’s manual that you can choose to edit a comment, then leave your comment within that comment box, making sure the text is different.

Sue,
I work with 2 schools, teaching technology integration as well as maintaining the hardware, software, and network.
You have quite a bit of information on your site – I’m looking forward to learning about blogging and then sharing with teachers and students at my schools. I plan to explore this summer, then introduce it to interested teachers as well as find a couple of classes that will blog with me.

Dean,
Thanks for sharing your tips. I’ll check out the sites you mentioned. I never thought about sending the parents the blog address. I wonder if I should send permission slips home or if just the network access permission slip is enough?

Hi, I’ve heard about your blogging experience with students trough Sue’s twitter; I’m also starting and learning all about it at edublogs community. Miss w. and her Smartboard http://tasteach.edublogs.org/
is blogging with her students and you may find there whatever you would like to learn about the subject.
In my country school year is winding down, I’m correcting final tests so my young bloggers are patiently waiting to go on with their blogging experience during their summer holidays…
They are eleven years now, they can understand some basic English and they are eager to go “abroad” and “meet” some foreign blogger students.
How do I use blogging with young students? For the moment, we meet on-line or during recreation time; students write freely their personal reflections and visit one another. I intend to go ahead with these “pioneers” during summer time, so that, next school year they may use their blogs to write and comment on specific subjects, to do their home-work, to “study on-line”, sharing their notes…
Since our Comment Challenge – here, at edublogs, during last May – I became aware of the importance of reflecting with students about the deep meaning of blogging itself, of how it implies human values that are “corner stones” in the formation of young people, not only as blog citizens but also as human beings.
If you wish I can give you the url of other edublogers blogging with students.
Ines

You are doing well and this is the correct way to respond back. The only reason you might ever edit a comment and add your response back on the original comment is when using comments with students.

Normally I respond back in a new comment exactly as you have done. Commenting and the conversation that happens when you comment is one of the most important aspects of blogging because this is where learning often happens. Check out this Science experiment post and how the comments made the students reflect on their learning. From the comments they then went away with increased knowledge of science experiments plus found out more information from their experiment.

The best place to start is to learn more about blogging yourself and as you understand its importance for your own learning you will then see how to use it with your students.

I use a comment tracking services and notice that two other people added comments to your post — but I think they may have had trouble adding them. Did you receive comments from Inpi and Elona Hartjes? If not I have a copy of them and will add them for you to read — if that is okay?

Inpi,
One of my schools is a nine month and so they’re out for the summer. My other school is a twelve month so we’re in session almost all year. Our last day is August 11 and then school’s starts back up August 25 (teachers back on the 18th). I figured I’d use now to get a feel for blogging, then start up with a couple of classes in August/September. I bookmarked ms. w’s site – I like how she has some rules set up as well as that survey for sts. on what makes a good comment. I think that’s pretty cool that you’ll keep up with your “blogging pioneers” during the summer. I would love it if you shared other st. blogging sites. I’m looking around myself, but insight from another teacher would be great.
You mentioned Sue’s twitter – what is a twitter? (is that the comment tracking service Sue mentions in her comment?)

Sue,
Thanks for the feedback. That science experiment blog is fantastic. I never thought to post some of the students’ work to have them share and comment on. I bookmarked it to share with teachers and to keep myself reminded of other possibilities for blogging. I started out thinking more of on-line journaling, but can see there’s a great range of ideas from looking at this site and Dean’s site that he shared earlier.
As you see Inpi’s comment was added, but I didn’t see Elona’s so if you could add hers, that would be great.

Hi,
Thank you for telling about your classes. How old are students of your 12 month school?
You can find Twitter at http://www.twitter.com, but as to understand what it is, you must try it out.
It is a small and smart device that enables you to contact quickly with other people, chosen by you and eventually becoming part of your network.
Trough twitter you work all the time in company of other people that deal with the same issues, may eventually ask you some specific question, will certainly answer your questions, most of the time will be sharing their own discoveries on the web: new useful tools, blog posts, special events or meetings…you feel that you are not alone on-line, that you are becoming part of an invisible yet real community.
As for other teachers blogging with their students, you may check, for instance, http://mscofino.edublogs.org/ I’ll be back again, just to keep in touch of you.
How must I call you? rlawrence?
Ines

Hi Inpi,
My name is Ryse. Both of my schools are kindergarten through fifth grade. My position is called an Educational Computer Strategist. I don’t have a “class” of my own. I work with all the teachers and their students to integrate technology with their curriculum. One of the ways I do this because of limited time for training is to work with the students and teachers one classroom at a time.I’m looking to spread my own technology wings, so to speak, so that I can share with the students and I like the interactivity of Web 2.0 tools. I do broadcasting with the 5th grade (10-11 year olds) at one of my school and thought we could work on scripting ideas this way. Both schools have school-wide writing goals which I think I could integrate the blogging with. I’d like to bring 3rd through 5th grade (that would be 8 to about 11 years old) on board with blogging. I’m just working out the management end of it as I’m starting to see how time consuming this could be. (especially as long-winded as I am! =D)
The other part of my job is IT/Network management.
Thanks for sharing and keep in touch.

Hello Ryse,
Thank you for sharing about your work.
Now I understand clearly how you interact with students and also that you are starting to blog but you are already an expert in computer and technology.
I agree that to link broadcasting and writing should be a good idea.
Here you have a great paper from Carla Arena about integration of students blogging and the curriculum: http://tesl-ej.org/ej44/a3.pdf
See you soon again,
Ines

This is the comment that Elona Hartjes tried to post on your blog:

This semester I started a class blog mrshartjes1.edublogs.org and found it to be one of the most engaging things that I’ve done. The kids absolutely loved it and told me that they wished more teachers had class blogs.

I had no security problems because edublogs.org let me set the security settings I wanted- no search engine access, students were invited, I moderated the comments before they got published.

I’m definitely going to continue the class blog next semester.

Great blog to check out. http://www.bobsprankle.com/welcome/welcome.html There’s a classroom blog as well as a blog with an educator point of view and one that focuses on tools for teachers. I’m looking at some of these blogs out there and realize how many different directions a blog can take.
Not sure what direction I’ll go yet, but I’m on vacation until July 1st so I can do some exploring!

[...] Learning to blog [Source: http://rlawrence5.edublogs.org Added Jun 20, 2008 … I’d like to bring 3rd through 5th grade (that would be 8 to about 11 years old) on [...]

First, thanks for the link to my class blog. Honestly, the most important thing I could give you as advice is take things slowly. Even something as simple as commenting on a blog post can take a long time for kids. They don’t usually compose well at the keyboard. Also, make sure you give your students time to comment on other students posts. My plan this year is to give my students more time to respond to others posts. I love the idea of the conversation between students (especially when it is captured on the blog!)

Jorge: I want to be successful and do a lot to pass.
Michelle:I want to be very successful also I want to be what I have always do try my best.

My goal is to get better grades I want to get at least two As and three Bs. MAURO
My goal is to run atleast a mile .Alison