My 7th grade daughter is interested in the genocide happening in Darfur right now. I told her she should create a blog to connect with others and learn new things. She said, "What's a blog?" talk about music to my ears....I knew something about technology that she did not! YES!!
I really want to help her get started with this. She does Facebook but according to my current textbook, Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms by Will Richardson, students use Facebook as a social networking tool. Students need to use blogs as a means of learning critical reading and writing skills. My daughter loves to read and write. I think a blog about something she is passionate about is a GREAT next step for her! Has anyone ever let their child have a blog? Do you think I should have certain settings in place for her? Any suggestions would be appreciated! I'm still very new at this!
You are so right! I think having something to write about that you are passionate about is a great way to express yourself. This idea is similar to some of the examples mentioned by Will Richardson in his book, Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms. I think this could be one of those "powerful tools" for your daughter as well. I would caution that you start out small, especially since your daughter (and you) aren't real comfortable with blogging yet. I have recently started my 5th graders on a site I mentioned in my post called kidblog.org. It is simple, easy to use, and has a limited audience, but that might be a good way to learn!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the suggestion and the link Carrie! I do want to start small! It's tough because I already police her email and her Facebook on a regular basis and the task of sorting through her blog all the time seems quite daunting! Yet the other side of not keeping track of it frightens me! Keep me posted on how your students are doing! Thanks for the comment!
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