Blogging - A New Frontier (for me at least)!

This week has definitely been a learning experience. Web 2.0 has so many new tools that I had never used before. I had heard about blogging, but I never thought about using it for myself. Now, thanks to the Web 2.0 workshop with David Jakes, I am hoping to use it in my classroom this fall! My biggest problem is that I am not cocmpletely sure what the best way is to utilize this tool! David Jakes said in his blog post Making IT Stick,

The innovation must clearly address an instructional need, with benefits for both teacher and student.

This is where I fall short in my idea. I teach first grade so I am not completely sure how to make this tool address an instructional need. Do any of you have some ideas that could help me? If you do, please let me know, I welcome the advice!

School is Fast Approaching - Are You Ready?

School is just around the corner, is your child ready? There are a few things that you can do to help your child gear up for the coming year.

• Read! - Have your child read. It can be from a magazine, book, or parent-approved website. It does not matter what the content, just read. If your child cannot read on his/her own, read to him/her!
• Math - Review some of the concepts that were learned last year. Take a trip to the store and have your child help you estimate what the cost of your trip will be, have them add simple things, or have them count out the change necessary. This does not have to be long or tedious, make it a game!
• Routine - Start getting your child into a school mode before the first day of school. Start bedtime routines and wake-up routines so the first week isn't such a big shock to your child!

These are just a few small tips to help your child prepare for the school year. Get exicted and get your child excited! Learning should be fun, not tedious and boring. Enjoy your last few weeks of summer vacation and have a great school year!

"Square Peg, Round Hole?" Response

This article poses the question of whether or not Web 2.0 will ever really "fit in." I believe that it will. Society has painted a rather bleak picture of certain internet activities. Because of this, I believe that some people are then scared off of from the tools that can become extremely useful for learning and communicating. I have never used any of these tools in my classroom, but I can see how they can be used effectively, even in a lower elementary classroom. My students love the thought of being able to communicate with people from different regions and these tools makes that so much easier, and response time is much quicker.

I am already beginning to formulate ideas of how to use a blog in my classroom this year. Initially I am intending to use it to inform parents and others of what is going on in my classroom. Eventually, though, I would like to collaborate with another classroom in a different location. This would allow my students to see what other students of their age are thinking about some of the same topics we are discussing in our room. This will give my students a chance to learn about technology, but it will also work on their language skills (both written and verbal) in a real-world application!

Technology is a wonderful way for us to be able to communicate and collaborate with people from around the world. However, as with anything, the students need to know how to be safe while utilizing these tools instead of just being told to stay away from them.