6th grade Blogging

In one of my comments I had expressed my concern for a kindergarten teacher asking her students to participate by following her blog and twitter account. I found that it was not an age for such a request to be reasonable. However, in reading the article "Blogging in Ancient Rome", I found the use of blogs in this situation not only to be reasonable but also a great opportunity for students to learn more about their curriculum. The main difference in these two scenarios are the grade levels. The students in this article are in 6th grade. There is a maturity and experience with technology in 6th graders that gives these teachers the opportunity to introduce the ideas of blogs and teach them what they are, the different types of blogs, and how to have privacy and stay safe online. This is very important!

The teachers in this article used Kidblog.org for the students, because it was secure and the teachers would have control over all posts to make sure the kids were posting appropriate content. In this article, the teachers assigned characters to the students from a novel to give them the opportunity to research and explore the character. In this example, the students were able to be creative and innovative. They were only were required to comment in character to two other blog posts, but they wrote a lot more showing they were having fun. One more great thing about this exercise for students was they were not allowed to use text-speak, they had to use formal writing.

I see this use of Blogging as a great way to involve students to the depth of History, Art, and English. It gives the students an opportunity to get into another character, research the time their character lived, and respond with creativity. Moreover, as a future educator, I like the fact that with using Kidblog.org the teachers have full control to approve all posts and make sure the students are on topic and responding appropriately. Also, it is encouraging to see how creative the teachers were by presenting challenging situations to the students to keep the blog thought provoking.

This type of Blogging for 6th graders meets many ISTE standards for students, such as Standard 1. Creativity and Innovation. The students demonstrated creative thinking and expression, construct knowledge and processes using Blogging technology. Standard 2. Communication and collaboration. (Standard 2a). The students are using the blogging form to interact with other students and publishing on Kidblog. Standard 5. Digital citizenship. (Standard 2a). The opportunity for teachers to teach students about how to maintain privacy and stay safe online. Also, the fact that the teachers have control over all posts make sure the students are learning how to write appropriate content and be responsible. Standard 6. Technology  operations and concepts. The students learn about Blogging, the different types, and how to use the format effectively.

Barrett, J. & Goldsby, C. (2013). Blogging in ancient Rome. Learning & Leading with Technology, 41(3), 34-35.

ISTE. (2007). ISTE standards: students. International Society for Technology in Education.