With the ever-changing technology occurring in society today, we must teach students how to thrive in an environment that encourages authentic reading and writing as well as fosters the opportunity for students to develop digital citizenship. One technological tool that can satisfy many of these avenues is the idea of student and teacher blogging.

Shared Blogging in the Primary Classroom states, “Opportunities for shared reading and writing of blogs can help students develop independence in new strategies to help strengthen their message” (Mere, 2018).  Blogging offers a new avenue for reading and comprehending than typical print. It connects to readers current lives with the consistent access to technology available through social media, applications, news articles, etc. For this reason, blogs challenge our students to look at a piece of writing through a metacognitive lens in which they must not only read, but form connection and a written response that corresponds with the topic at hand.

When students are creating or responding to a blog, they are learning how to write effectively to an authentic and real audience. This immediately assigns purpose to their reading and writing. Writers learn quickly to read their work with a close eye and reread and edit their work to create a piece of writing that is credible and more likely to be read. Heitin noted in Writing Re-Launched: Teaching with Digital Tools, the benefit of teaching conventions first in isolation, and then introducing blogging as a creative piece to practice applying these skills. While conventions are strengthened, blogging also creates a foundation for giving students a voice in their writing to reflect on their reading and own knowledge to create a new perspective on a topic in a form of persuasive writing.

Blogs serve as a way for students to learn about the viewpoints of others. Whether students agree or disagree, it challenges students to refer to evidence in what they have read and respectfully share their idea and or opinion in a form of opinion and informational writing. Along with this Read Write Think emphasized how blogging can be fit to just about any genre of writing.

While blogs have many benefits for students, teachers can also benefit in positive ways as well. For teachers to readily teach students how to blog they must first become immersed in this digital media as well. Teachers who are involved in the reading of blogs will be exposed to a variety of strategies and information about teaching as a whole. Our administration is consistently encouraging idea sharing; blogs expand this sharing ability by connecting teachers across the whole world. While these blogs offer ideas, they also create an extensive documentation process of all kinds of strategies and educational trends over time. Simply reading and learning about their own practices is not the only benefit. It also teaches teachers how blogs function as a tool on how to actively employ the blog writing process within their own classroom. Teachers can find examples to share with students, formulate instructional objectives, and learn how blogging can play a crucial and engaging role to inform instruction through assessment. These benefits can help teachers own metacognitive strategies in regards to their own teaching.

While technology based writing experiences, such as blogging, offer an arena for students to share their voice, practice comprehension, display understanding, and practice connection and perspective, this can only be accomplished with proper scaffolding in place. Heitin warns, "the caveat to using digital tools, many tech-savvy educators note is to keep focused on instructional goals, and not use technology simply for technology's sake" (Heitin, 2011, pg.34). While technology is a powerful tool, if not taught in the right way, students may be distracted from the specific desired purpose. Along with scaffolding students must also be taught digital citizenship and proper citations in order to avoid unsafe interactions on the internet and protect their work. While commenting builds classroom community, comprehension, and voice, students must understand that their work will be seen across the internet and that their word choice can have a large impact on themselves and those around them. 

After researching the implications of blogging, I am working to implement this for students as young as 5 in my kindergarten class through our safe and private Seesaw account. It is important for students of all ages to develop pride in their work, learn to post on topic, display digital citizenship, and learn to value the work of others.

Sources:

Duckworth, S. (2015, August 4). Top 10 Reasons for Students to Blog. Retrieved November 10,

     2018, from Kidblog website: https://kidblog.org/home/top-10-reasons-for-students-to-blog/ 

Gardner,T. (n.d.). Teaching With Blogs. Retrieved November 10, 2018, from Read Write Think

     website: http://www.readwritethink.org/professional-development/strategy-guides/teaching-

     with-blogs-30108.html 

Heitin, L. (2011). Writing Re-Launched: Teaching with Digital Tools. Education Week Teacher Pd 

     Sourcebook, 4(2), 34. Retrieved from https://www.edweek.org/tsb/articles/2011/04/04/ 

     02digital.h04.html?tkn=RWVDgc72HChwGhHuYlBVuRnL%2B48CQgkhY5cP&intc=bs 

Learning About Blogs FOR Your Students- Part 1: Reading. (2011, October 29. Retrieved November

     10, 2018, from Langwitches: The Magic of Learning website: http://langwitches.org/blog/

     2011/10/29/learning-about-blogs-for-your-students-part-i-reading/

Mere, C. (n.d.). Shared Blogging in the Primary Classroom. Retrieved November 10, 2018, from

     Choice Literacy website: https://www.choiceliteracy.com/articles-detail-view.php?id=1879

Rhode, J. (2013, January 2). Blogging in the Classroom. Retrieved November 10, 2018, from

     http://www.jasonrhode.com/blogging-in-the-classroom