It’s about to start – Sue Wyatt’s annual Student Blogging Competition! This year I’m really looking forward to bringing some 4th and 5th grade students into the competition – and watching them grow as readers and writers in the process.

But how do we transition new bloggers from the “That’s cool!” or “Me too!” kinds of fluff responses to meatier responses that are likely to foster extended conversations, invite dynamic classroom connections, and push literacy skills to the next level? I have a few tips to share on that topic, five to be exact:

#1.  Provide students with examples. Chances are blogging has not yet been presented to them as its own genre.   In order for them to become thoughtful, effective bloggers,  they’ll need to see samples from other student bloggers. For elementary age bloggers, I recommend they spend some time reading student work posted to Brian Crosby’s class blog and Mark Ahlness’s class blog. Be sure to checkout Mark’s strategy of having blog reading as part of his SSR program.

#2.  Include reflection  and self-evaluation as part of the blogging process.  I really like the templates for reflecting on posts and reflecting on comments posted by the Rotorua East Lakes Learning Community.  While I think students should certainly be allotted a number of “me too” or “that’s cool” comments, they should also be held accountable for a minimum number of self-selected “best” posts or comments.

#3.  Teach students how to hyperlink. Here’s where blogging beats the heck out of paper-pencil writing. When students understand how easy it is and how important it is to support their opinions, for instance, by including links to their resources – including other bloggers – they then start to make those inter-textual connections that lead to literacy bumps. I agree with Wes Fryer that  “Hyperlinked writing is the most powerful form of writing because it permits authors and readers to connect words to a variety of other ideas and multimedia files on the Internet.“

Students may wonder how to include hyperlinks when posting a comment, since most comment boxes do not include a formatting toolbar.  The one piece of html coding I would, therefore, teach them is how to turn text into a link by setting if off with anchor tags. By placing <a href=”url of the site“> in front of the text and </a> at the end of the text, they can easily include links in their comments.  To turn Blogwalker into a link, the coding would look like this:

<a href=”http://blogwalker.edublogs.org”>Blogwalker</a>.

#4.  Invite students to share their strategies for bringing others into their conversations. Students need to know that far more bloggers will read their posts than will actually respond to them. They also need  encouragement to respond to ideas, not individuals.  Connecting  students to classrooms in other regions, states, or countries will help them make that distinction.  When students don’t know who the “cool” kids are, typically, it is the thoughtfully-composed posts and comments that receive the most response.

#5.  Begin an on-going conversation on digital citizenship.   Blogging is a great way to teach students how to use the Internet safely, effectively, and ethically.  Sending a letter home, such as Bud Hunt’s sample, is an excellent way to bring parents into the  conversation. Besides understanding – and agreeing to -  guidelines on posting personal information  (i.e, no last names, phone numbers, or home addresses), students will also likely need some help with handling diverse perspectives. It’s a good idea to provide a bank of sentence starters, such as “That’s an interesting point. I’m wondering if you’ve considered …” or “I understand what your trying to say, but …“  Knowing how to respectfully disagree is a skill that requires much practice – but can be essential to maintaining a positive digital footprint.

A huge thank you to Sue Wyatt for organizing and hosting the the 2009 Bloggers’ Competition – and to Sue Waters for supporting and promoting the efforts of teachers to bring their students into the blogosphere!

Note: This post has been written on “5 most important tips for educators starting out blogging with students” as part of The Edublogger’s Competition!

If you’re an intermediate or middle school history-social studies teacher looking for online resource to engage students, checkout these sites:

For a glimpse into ancient times:

• Winged Sandals – From ABC Arts Online, this site invites students to “Take the tour with Hermes the messenger god, through a magical place filled with awesome gods, daring heroes and fabulous monsters”

For a glimpse into the Middle Ages:

• Historic Tales Construction Kit – This wonderful digital storytelling tool prompts students to  select among menus of folk (brave and ordinary), buildings, and beasts; add their own text in the colors of their choice; adjust the scale of the items they select; and create an authentic looking Medieval comic strip.

• Bayeux Tapestry – Starting with Haley’s Comet and ending with the Battle of Hastings, this animated version of the Bayeux Tapestry is a stunning stroll through history!

For an introduction to civic education:

• Our Courts – On to US History…Kudos to Justice Sandra Day O’Connor for her efforts to do something about her concern that “students are not getting the information and tools they need for civic participation and that civics teachers need better materials and support.”

Know of more great history resources? Please post a comment!

Coming up next…Links for Math…

This week, I’m looking across the curriculum for great resources for teachers and/or students, starting with science.

OK, coming up next…Favorite Social Studies Links!

Since reading Kelly Gallagher’s Readicide, I’ve been thinking about online resources to help find books our students just can’t put down, as they are swept away in a “reading flow.” Here are a few of my favorites:

• Educating Alice: If you’re an elementary teacher and can’t find the time to read Monica Edinger’s blog, then follow her on Twitter.  She’s on vacation in Alaska right now, but even as she explores Denali, she’s sending out Tweets with 5 star recommendations, such as yesterday’s link to A. S. Byatt’s The Children’s Book. Eleven years ago, Monica introduced me to Harry Potter, months before the Harry Potter tsunami hit the US.
• The Reading Zone: Another resource I discovered via Monica’s blog is the Reading Zone. Written by a 6th grade teacher, this blogger provides excellent book reviews and shares her passion and strategies for promoting the love of reading.
• The Book Whisperer: I discovered Book Whisper Donalyn Miller  through a post on the National Writing Project’s site.  Her reviews, recommendations, and strategies target a broad range of readers, including adults.

  The Book Whisperer addresses topics such as Creating Readers – Part 1, and Creating Readers – Part 2 in her column for Teacher Magazine.

• How about some of those YA books you already know your students would love if you could just get them to pick them up?  Robert Rozema’s pre-service teachers have created an awesome bank of YA book talk podcasts – just enough to peak even a reluctant reader’s interest.  Checkout, for instance, this team approach to Walter Dean Myer’s Monster.

If you have more recommendations, please jump in with a comment!

I finally bought a copy of Kelly Gallagher’s Readicide.  I wish I had read it sooner so that I could have joined in the VoiceThread and the English Companion Ning discussions. However, I have it now and want to promote it to anyone working with K-12 students! In less than 150 pages, the author clearly explains “how schools are killing reading and what you can do about it.”

If you are at a site that does not support a minimum of 15 minutes per day of silent sustained reading – read this book.

If you are at a site that mandates AR (Accelerated Reader) – read this book.

If you are at a site that mandates a reading anthology exclusively, at the cost of removing novels – read this book.

If you are looking for strategies to engage students in literature and promote a life-long love of reading – read this book.

With so many thought-provoking ideas, powerful strategies, and even links to the supporting research that are applicable to elementary through high school readers, Readicide would make for a great faculty book club read.  I’ll leave you with Kelly’s closing words:

If we are to find our way again – if students are to become avid readers again – we, as language arts teachers, must find our courage to recognize the difference between the political worlds and the authentic worlds in which we teacher, to swim against those current educational practices that are killing young readers, and to step up and do what is right for our students.

We need to find this courage. Today. Nothing less than a generation of readers hangs in the balance.”