When I consider blogs for language arts classes, I generally think of students expressing themselves in reaction to a given topic. But there are many more uses for blogs. Consider using a blog as a way to alert students to new assignments or to have them view a video or article to be discussed further either in class or through blogging. To see what I mean, take a look at Julia Osteen’s blog that she uses with her English classes. She’s done everything from putting assignments on her blog to posting class notes. I think it’s a very effective way to utilize blogging with students.
To view Julia’s blog, click HERE.
Because of its nature, blogging is a great way to encourage students to write more and express themselves in ways that they might not during a class discussion. Writing allows one the time to think about word choice and offers teachers a great way to incorporate technology into classroom practices.
This next teacher brings up an important point if you are considering blogging for your class. Many districts block various sites and this may prevent you from either starting a blogging project or from continuing one. It looks like this is what happened to Mr. Caldwell with his English class.
Click HERE to see Mr. Caldwell’s last post alerting his students that the class blog is moving due to filtering issues. This is a good reason to check with those in power before you start using this great technology.
At his new blogspot, one of the things you’ll see Mr. Caldwell teach about is the concept of satirical devices. He posts a few cartoons and instructs his students to explain why they think a particular cartoon is satirizing. His manner of using blogging with his class definitely provides lots of ideas for language arts teachers.
To view Mr. Caldwell’s current blog site, click HERE.
This next blog is hosted by Mr. Sale, an English teacher in Littleton, CO. He presents some interesting things for his students to comment on. Two things really stand out to me. The first is that he addresses reading habits and has students comment on where, when and how they read. From having taught for a few years myself, this is something that might be somewhat dull to discuss in the classroom. The 19 responses from his students are proof that you’ll get more responses if you give students a medium that they feel comfortable with.
The second thing that stands out is Mr. Sale’s approach to poetry. He worked with his students in class on a particular poetry style called pantoum. He published some of the student’s work so that others could determine what the rules are for this kind of poetry. What a great outlet for creativity!
To view Mr. Sale’s blog, click HERE.
Finally, I’ll leave you with a short video called Blogging in English class. Students reflect on how they used blogging in English class.