Blogs

Cluster Blogs

[|Muritai School]
Every staff member (including principal and DP) at Muritai School has a blog and they are now all quite well established. Click on the class room number [|on this page] to go and see each one.

Every class teacher has a blog - these are just getting started but I will link here to some of the blogs and will add more as these develop further. I know that there are at least two blogs at Randwick but I don't know the addresses - can you add them please :-) [|Area 4's blog] - Area 4's class blog - Yr 5 & 6 students
 * Maungaraki School**
 * [|Room One] || [|Room Two] || Room Three ||
 * [|Room Four] || [|Room Five] || Room Six ||
 * [|Room Seven] || [|Room Eight] || [|Room Nine] ||
 * Randwick School**

Every class has a blog
 * Petone Central**
 * [|Puriri] || [|Kowhai] || [|Nikau] || [|Kahikatea] || [|Kauri] ||
 * [|Tawa] || [|Rata] || [|Rimu] || [|Koromiko] || [|Pohutukawa] ||

Outside the Cluster Blogs There are directories of educational blogs on the following sites: Support Blogging list of bloggers NZedblogs [|Interface Magazine NZ Blog directories] (where you can register your own blog) [|Teach.com] (informative and motivational posts for all teachers)

Blogging Articles and Examples [|This article]shows how one teacher is using blogging to have her children publish their research on a specific topic with links to her classes 21classes blog site.

Blogging Best Practice
 * Things that might be happening in a blog demonstrating best practise:**
 * Authenticy of blog posts-focus on authentic topics
 * Teach audience and the power of writing for audience
 * Use blogging and commenting features for peer review of writing
 * Create a reading response-students read and write an interpretive blog post
 * Focus on metacognitive activities and have students reflect on learning
 * Like learning languages, start blogging young so it becomes a part of what students do
 * Involve the entire school community in blogging
 * Use blogging to establish connections and networks for learning
 * Focus on cross-curricular applications
 * Link to others to support content and create a culture of mashup
 * A goal/focus should be on student empowerment through self-expression, promoting a competitive voice and an identity
 * Take advantage of the digital nature of the medium to include other types of information, represented in podcasts, movies, graphics and hyperlinks
 * Provide additional time to complete blog posts when computer access for certain student groups is limited or not available.
 * The teacher should model blogging by being a blogger.
 * Provide time to read and comment on other student blogs
 * Apply traditional writing skills to blog posts, no IM language
 * Consider using blog posts as an ongoing portfolio of student writing.