I feel like I am becoming a blogger extraordinaire. In her introduction to the 16 things, Dr. Wilson mentioned that certain school districts were implementing similar projects with their teachers. Spring Branch ISD, where I am, is one of those districts. This past summer, I completed "11 Tools" training which also required me to set up a blog and explore different ways to use technology and Web 2.0 tools. Because of that experience, creating this blog was actually incredibly easy. I am now familiar with Blogger and how to create a new post as well as link websites and embed videos and pictures. Don't get me wrong, those things took practice. I wasn't an expert in July when I was looking at every blog I could find and reading instructions at least 5 times.
I can confidently say now that I am very comfortable with blogs and blogging. Looking at the blogs of my colleagues and other more "professional" blogs, I am able to get ideas on how to improve my own. And while I have never personally commented on another person's blog, I can see how comments can prove to be useful. With that said, whether it be 16 Things or 11 Tools, I think I've got this down now and am very much looking forward to creating a blog for my classroom as a place where my students can discuss with one another concepts we are covering in class and other relevant topics.
-Sarah
P.S. If you're curious, my 11 Tools blog can be found at twelvetoolsminusone.blogspot.com.
I enjoyed reading your 11 tools. You had a lot of great, valuable ideas that can be used in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteMy students have really taken an interest in blog posts. We use one in my high school classroom now. My AP students are great about responding to their peers thoughts and posts. My on-level kids took a much greater interest in spelling and grammar when they realized "everyone" will see what they write.
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