Thing #3

     Hi!  I sure hope your blogging experience is as exciting as mine!  I'm really getting into this posting my opinions thing.  LOL This week's "Thing 3" led me to some exciting ideas! 
     I had never truly thought about using a blog in my classroom.  But after researching its usage, the possibilities are endless!  I don't know about you, but students these days are so much smarter than I was at their age.  I actually asked my eleven year old if his class used blogs.  He looked at me as if he couldn't believe what a stupid question I had just asked him!  He said, "Well, yeah!  All my classes use 'em."  So.....needless to say after that statement, I decided it must be the "in thing" and I had better do some research. 
     Some of the great ways I found to use blogs are:
1.  Post weekly challenges such as a riddle or brainteaser that requires the students to think creatively and critically. Ask students to post their answers on the blog then discuss the solutions with the whole class at the end of the week. This will tremendously improve their problem-solving skills.
2.  Use a section in my blog for classroom news. Work with students to identify the kinds of information they would like to share with their parents, then engage them in writing and posting daily or weekly news updates.
3.  Use blogs for classroom projects where students can include videos, clips, audio, text and images.
4.  Use blogs for peer learning. Get students to read their colleagues writings and underline spelling and grammatical mistakes.
5.  Use my blog as a communicative tool both with my students and their parents.    
     What do you think?  I'm sure you have your own ideas about how to use a blog in your classroom.  I would love to hear it!  Post away...............