Why Blog?
There has been much debate about whether blogging is a tranformational technology tool in the classroom or just another piece of technology that doesn't change instructional practice. This webcast with Will Richardson and Alan November gives some interesting perspectives on the use of blogging in the classroom.

You can also see some teachers and students discussing how they have used blogging in their classrooms, courtesy of The Fischbowl blog. It is important to note that the teachers and students that are featured have only been using blogs for about one year!! There is a long (16 minutes) and a short version (about 8 minutes) of the video presentation.

How to start? Some of the best advice that I have been given (and that you heard Will say on the podcast above) is to start by reading the blogs of others. Check out the use of blogs in the classroom below but also read these blogs by teachers about teaching. And dip your toes into the water by posting a comment or two along the way. (P.S. If you really get hooked - you'll want to set up an aggregator so that all your blogs will link to one place. Click here to get started!!)

• Student Blogging as Independent Writing: Blog article by Eric MacKnight, a middle school teacher experimenting with blogs in his classroom.
• Hear Our Voices : A blog by a middle school team attempting to create a learning community. My only complaint - they don't post often enough!!
• Learning is Messy: A fourth grade teacher in Nevada and his reflections on using technology tools in the classroom.
• G-Town Talks: A local administrator blogs about her work, her district, and her passion - KIDS!! New to blogging - she is going through the same experiences as you will!! (Bias alert! I like this administrator and am privileged to work with her on occasion).

When you think you are ready to write - read this list of Ten Habits of Bloggers That Win from Vicki Davis (aka Cool Cat Teacher). Then select a blog tool and let's begin!!



Blog Tools

All of the tools listed below provide free blog spaces. Some will require an email address in order to verify the account.


Blogger : This is a fairly easy blogging tool to use and allows you to add many extras to your blog posts. You can set up the blog to moderate comments, a useful tool when using blogs in the classroom. While free, you will need to have an email address to confirm your registration.

Edublogs : Designed for education, this tool is a bit more complicated than Blogger but has nicer templates and a different visual style. Moderation of posts is an option - although I have found it slightly less workable than Blogger. Again, you will need to have a valid email address to confirm registration.

ClassBlogmeister : Designed specifically for classroom use, students can be easily added to an account without individual email addresses. In all fairness - I have not played with creating this as you need a school pass code from the creator, David Warlick. But I will say that this is the first blog home that comes with great directions should you chose to create one here!



Classroom Blogs to Watch
An annotated list of educational blogs, divided by grade level.


Keeping Track of Your Favorite Blogs - Using RSS Feeds
Information page on setting up RSS feeds to make reading your blogs easier.



Be Careful!! After investigating blogging - you may find that it is addicitve! If your friends and family get concerned, take this quiz on Mingle to determine the level of your blogging problem!!