FanFiction.net

Ever wanted to write a sequel/prequel/trailer for an existing book, comic strip, TV show, movie, or video game? Now you can! FanFiction.net allows anyone to share their creative writing on the world wide web. Furthermore, anyone can write a review to any posted piece! The world is now your editor!

Discussion
How might you use FanFiction with blogging in your teaching practice? How might you have your students use these web 2.0 tools for their own learning and collaboration?

Please share your ideas here! Simply click on "Comment" at the bottom of this posting and add your 2 cents! The more we share with each other, the richer we'll all be!

13. Diigo: Highlight & Share the Web! Social Bookmarking 2.0

Diigo.com is a collaborative research tool, as well as a knowledge-sharing community and social content site! One can highlight portions of web pages, and attach sticky notes to specific parts of web pages. Whenever you return to the original web page, you will see your highlights and sticky notes superimposed. To find out more about Diigo, go to: www.diigo.com/about. Here's a video that tells you a little more about Diigo:

Discussion
How might you use Diigo with blogging in your teaching practice? How might you have your students use these web 2.0 tools for their own learning and collaboration?

Please share your ideas here! Simply click on "Comment" at the bottom of this posting and add your 2 cents! The more we share with each other, the richer we'll all be!

12. Will Richardson

Will Richardson is a former secondary school teacher, and has been recognized for his use of blogs in his classroom. I recommend that you check out his highly ranked and read blog, "Weblogg-ed", where you'll find rich resources and Will's current blog postings about educational blogging.

This book that he published in 2006, is a wonderful resource:








Preview this book on Google Book Search:



In 2008, Will Richardson published the second edition of this book. Click here to view a preview on Google Book Search.

11. Curriculum Connections

As previously mentioned, student participation in blogging is a great way to engage them in non-fiction writing!

For example, you could "hook" your students by using your blog to:

• link to a website/blog
• post a piece of text
• post or embed a video
• post a powerful digital image (i.e. the "Reuters News in Pictures" Google Gadget found in the side panel of this blog

After your students have viewed this "hook", have them post a response to what they viewed. Next, have them read each other's posts, and post a comment to at least 2 peer posts. To comment on a post, the reader simply clicks on "Comment" found at the bottom of the post that they're reading.

Vehicle for Social Action?
Due to the accessibility of blogs, a class/student blog can also be an effective vehicle for social action and change! Here's an example of one: http://ne1dare2dream.blogspot.com/

Click here to view a blog about assessment and evaluation of student blog postings.

Discussion
How might you use a blog in your classroom, school, or community for social action?

Please share your ideas here! Simply click on "Comment" at the bottom of this posting and add your 2 cents! The more we share with each other, the richer we'll all be!

10. Helpful Blog Resources

• http://tdsbweb/program/ict > Resources > Web 2.0 Tools, then scroll down! (TDSB intranet)
• Blogger Help Videos
• Blogger Help Group
• Blogger Help
• Blogging Workshop (Atomic Learning video tutorials)

Also available on the "Helpful Blog Resources" link list in the side panel of this blog.

If you find other helpful blog resources, please share them by posting the URL in a Comment to this post! Simply click on "Comment" at the bottom of this post to begin sharing!

9. Creating a Podcast With Blogger

If you've only just begun to create your own blog, I suggest that you stick to that for now. If you've been blogging with your class for a while now, then this may be a nice way to "take it to the next level".

Blogger doesn't have the capability to host your audio files at this time. Podomatic is one place where you can host your audio files for free. Once you've found a place to host your audio files, you can create your podcast episodes on Blogger, then link each episode to an audio file hosted on Podomatic.

Please view this video, "Creating a Podcast With Blogger":

Discussion
How might you use podcasting and blogging in your teaching practice? How might your students use these tools for their own learning and collaboration?

Please share your ideas here! Simply click on "Comment" at the bottom of this posting and add your 2 cents! The more we share with each other, the richer we'll all be!

8. Adding a Google Gadget to Your Blog

If you look on the side panel of this blog, beneath the blog list, you will see a Google Gadget called "Reuter's News in Pictures". If you click on the Reuter's News picture, it takes you to the corresponding Reuter's news article.

These gadgets are constantly being updated - meaning that if you were to come back to this blog on another day, those 2 gadgets would display different content than what they are currently displaying. There are countless Google Gadgets that one could add to their blog! They can serve as points of interest for curriculum connections and blog discussions that you could use with your students. This is yet another wonderful way to engage your students in non-fiction writing!

Please view this video to learn more! "Adding a Google Gadget to Your Blog":


Your Turn!
Add a Google Gadget to your blog!

Discussion
Which Google Gadgets would you use on your own class blog? How would you use these gadgets? How might these gadgets foster learning?

Please share your ideas here! Simply click on "Comment" at the bottom of this posting and add your 2 cents! The more we share with each other, the richer we'll all be!

7. Adding a Blog List to Your Blog

A blog list is a list of your favourite blogs that would appear along the side panel of your blog. This blog's blog list is called "Blogging to Learn in the TDSB!" and shows snippets of a few TDSB classroom blogs.

This would be helpful if you were having your students follow certain blogs, and then having them post their thoughts about what they read on your class blog! This is a fantastic way to incorporate non-fiction writing into your program!

Please view this video, "Creating a Blog List with Blogger":


Your Turn!
Now use Google Blog Search to find some curriculum-related blogs for your class! Once you've collected a few URLs, add a Blog List to your blog!

Discussion
How would you use a Blog List on your own class blog? How would you have your students use a blog list on their own blogs? How might a blog list foster learning?

Please share your ideas here! Simply click on "Comment" at the bottom of this posting and add your 2 cents! The more we share with each other, the richer we'll all be!

6. Adding Video to Your Blog

There are 2 ways to add video to your blog:

1. Upload the video directly to your blog
2. Post a video from YouTube

Please view this video, "Uploading a Video with Blogger":


Your Turn!
Now try to upload your own video directly to your blog! When you're done, try to post a YouTube video to your blog! Here's an interesting YouTube video that you may want to post: Web 2.0...The Machine is Us/ing Us.

Discussion
How might you use video on your own class blog to foster learning? How might you have your students use video on their own blogs?

Please share your ideas here! Simply click on "Comment" at the bottom of this posting and add your 2 cents! The more we share with each other, the richer we'll all be!

5. Adjusting Your Blog's Privacy Settings

Privacy is always a concern when dealing with web publishing. Since the internet is accessible to anyone in the world, it is not advisable to post photos, full names, or anything that can help strangers identify TDSB students. Blogger has some features that allow you to limit how public your blog will be.

Please watch this video, "Adjusting Your Blogger Privacy Settings":


Your Turn!
In your own blog, click on the "Settings" tab, and determine how accessible you want to make your blog!

4. Create A Blog!

Blogger has created several excellent help videos on how to use Blogger! They are all available on YouTube and are grouped as BloggerHelp.

Let's begin! Please watch this video, "How to Create a Blog with Blogger":




Click the above PDF icon for a handout on Blogger.

Your Turn!
Now go to http://www.blogger.com, and create your own blog!

If you have a Gmail account, use your Gmail address as the Blogger username and your Gmail password as the Blogger password.

If you don't have a Gmail account, you can create a new Blogger account by going to http://www.blogger.com. Use your own TEL/Hotmail/Yahoo/Rogers/etc. email address as the new username for your new Blogger account. TIP: for some reason, it helps to be signed into your email account on a different browser window when using this email address to create a new Blogger account.

You don't need a Gmail account to create a new Blogger account. However, if you'd like to create a new Gmail account, get a free one from:





Note: the above video was embedded into this posting by copying the code found in the "Embed" box on the YouTube site for this video, then pasting it into the "Edit HTML" tab for this posting.Discussion
How would you use on your own class blog to foster learning? How might you encourage active student participation on your blog? How might you use student-created blogs in your classroom?

Please share your ideas here! Simply click on "Comment" at the bottom of this posting and add your 2 cents! The more we share with each other, the richer we'll all be!

3. Blogs in the Classroom

Want to soften your classroom walls? Consider incorporating a blended (face-to-face and online) learning environment! Having your students actively participate in a class blog is a great way to integrate non-fiction writing, web 2.0 tools, and collaboration!

For example, you could have your students read a piece of text or watch an online video. Then have them post a response to what they read. Next, have them read each other's posts, and post a comment to at least 2 peer posts. To comment on a post, the reader simply clicks on "Comment" found at the bottom of the post that they're reading.

Click here to view a blog about assessing student blog postings.

Here are some examples of classroom blogs currently being used in the TDSB (also shown in the "Blogging to Learn in the TDSB!" blog list in the side panel of this blog):

• Deb's Blog for NMPPS (D. Gladstone, Nelson Mandela Park PS)
  
• My Soap Box (D. Foster, Glenview Sr. PS)
• Fernfolio (E. Douglas, Fern Avenue PS)
• Fenside Blue Spruce Readers (C. Hill, Fenside PS)
• Fenside Silver Birch Readers (C. Hill, Fenside PS)
• Crestview PS Blog (C. Lang, Crestview PS)
  
• Work Ethics (M. Wentz, Churchill Heights PS)
• VPMS Library (T. Friesen, Valley Park MS)
• Word From the Library (T. Friesen, Valley Park MS)
• Daily Communications (V. Reinsalu, Milne Valley MS)
• Green Team of MV (V. Reinsalu, Milne Valley MS)

Here are a few more classroom blog examples:

• A Duck With a Blog (Elementary)
• Thinking Out Loud (Intermediate)
• AP Calculus (Secondary)

Here are some teaching-related blogs:

• The Four Stage Research Process (demonstrates the Research Process in a Web 2.0 format)
  
• Enhancing Teaching & Learning @ BGSU (Rubrics to evaluate classroom blogging)
• The Tubes (A how-to blog on using YouTube, SchoolTube & TeacherTube)
• Podcasting & Vodcasting for Learning! (a how-to blog)
  

If you find some good examples of classroom blogs, please click "Comment" at the bottom of this posting and share the URL of this blog in your comment!

2. How To Search For Blogs

Blogs can be a great source of information and "news". There's a blog out there for just about every topic (i.e. academic, professional, interests and hobbies) imaginable! Here's how you can search for a blog that interests you:

1. In a new browser window, go to: http://blogsearch.google.ca
2. Type a topic of interest in the Search Box, then click on "Search Blogs".

If you find some helpful blogs about blogs or blogging in education, please share them by clicking on "Comment" at the bottom of this posting. Be sure to include the URL of the blog in your comment!

Your Turn!
Subscribe to Your Favourite Blogs Using Google Reader!
Now that you have a Google account, you can use Google reader to subscribe to your favourite blogs! Start your Google Reader list now! Here's a video to show you how to get started:

Discussion
How might you use blog searches in your teaching practice? How might you and your students use Google Reader to foster learning and collaboration?

Please share your ideas here! Simply click on "Comment" at the bottom of this posting and add your 2 cents! The more we share with each other, the richer we'll all be!

1. Start Here! Intro to Blogs

As you may have already noticed, the most recent blog postings will appear at the top of this webpage. For the purposes of this How-To blog, please begin here - at the bottom of the webpage - where the first posting appears!

Objectives Of This Blog

• promote understanding of what a blog is
• show you how to search for blogs
• highlight examples of how blogs can be integrated into the curriculum and used in the classroom
  
• guide you in the creation of your own blog using Blogger
• show you where to access helpful blog resources
  

Blogs in Plain English

Created by: Lee and Sachi LeFevre of the Common Craft Show (www.commoncraft.com/show)
Note: this video was added using the "Add Video" feature in Blogger.

Create a Google Account!
To comment to postings on this blog as well as to create your own blog using Blogger, you will need a Google account.

• If you already have a gmail email account, then you've already got a Google account (same username and password as your gmail account; and this account will work with any of Google's products)
• If you don't have a gmail account, you can sign-up for a Google account using any existing email address that you wish (e.g., TEL/Hotmail/Yahoo/Rogers/Sympatico, etc.); click here to create a Google account
• Please view this video to learn how to create your Google account

Discussion
What questions might you have about blogging?

Please share your ideas here! Simply click on "Comment" at the bottom of this posting and add your 2 cents! The more we share with each other, the richer we'll all be!

Note: you'll need either a Gmail account or a Google/Blogger account to be able to post comments. If you don't have either type of account, simply use your TEL/Hotmail/Yahoo/Rogers/etc. email address to sign-up for a Google/Blogger account at www.blogger.com.