Blogging
Writing is a key component of our PYP curriculum, especially as our students learn in two languages. One location in which to give students easy access to their writing (i.e., no lost papers) is our school-wide system of Google Docs. The 24/7 access to one's work and ability to collaborate on projects and/or peer editing definitely enhances our writing program. A second tool to support student writing is blogging. Google provides a blogging system called Blogger.
Blogging is both rewarding and motivating for students as it is an authentic task of writing for an audience other than just their teacher. With a click of a hyperlink, bloggers can gather high quality information from our library Online Resources page to further leverage the connectivity that Blogger provides. They can then include links to Web sites as well as embed images and video into their blogs to further make connections in their thinking. Settings can be applied to limit the audience to parents of individual students, your classroom or the whole grade level. Blogs also can be set to be public on the Web. Blogging is about providing a continuously updated stream of communications, and clearly puts students into the position of constantly going through the writing process to publish their work. The comment feature in blogs enables a focus on analysis skills as students react to one another's posts. The conversation and learning go on outside the regular school day thus supporting blended learning.
Take a look at an excellent blog post about implementing blogging in your classroom. Notice the expansive conversation that develops in the commenting strands. Consider how students' blogs might encourage ongoing discussions about books, science activities, current events, and students' individual interests in the classroom. Here are two more helpful blog posts.
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