Collaborating in a Blogging Triad - NECC - 6/29/08

June 29 - 12:30-3:30
Triad - CIT, Librarians, and Administrators
Focus on Science today since their students were weak in this area of content
Research

• Cener for Applied Research in Educational Technology - CARET - http://caret.iste.org/
• Educational and Library Research Services - and http://www.ers.org/
• 21st Century Skills - Teacher as "Orchestrator of Learning"
• Clip - "Shake it Up" from Teacher Tube
• Clip - "Blogs in Plain English"
• Will Richardson has some great information

Resources

• Educause Learning Initiative - www.educause.edu/eli/
• Class Blogmeister - http://www.classblogmeister.com/ - for student blogs with high level of security - posts and comments are approved by teacher - email David Warlick for a school code to register at classblogmesitern- works for all classrooms in your school
• Edublogs - http://www.edublogs.org/ - no teacher control of student created blogs in this site - but has a wonderful interface and is great for the classroom.
• NISD Video Support for Edublogs - www.pavenet.org/Edublogs.org/Edublogs.org.html - learning blogging via video

Student Blogs

• Powell ES - Math Specialit's blog on Hands-on Equations with Student Video - http://powellmath.edublogs.org/
• Luna MS - Blogs as Book Reports with student Audio - http://lunabooktalks.edublogs.org/
• Holmes HS, Stevens HS and Warren HS - Cuban Missle Crisis - Propoganda -http://propaganda.edublogs.org/2008/03/12/comment-here-on-cold-war/#comments

Elementary Science Blog

• Worked in teams or triads - investigating a curricular blog based on Elementary science objectives. They used both Class Blogmesiter and Edublogs
• Triad Model - Started with the end in mind - improving achievement in science and writing.
• Not adding to the teacher plate - used the unit that was already being used in science - Ocean Ecosystem
• Worked from Essential Questions
• Class Blogmeister Version - done with administrators - to build their capacity in blogging www.classblogmeister.com/blog.php?blogger_id=1101588newlimit=25
• Edublog Version - http://oceane035788.edublogs.org/
• Used real world experience from the Texas Newspaper to begin the lesson - an oil spill off the coast of Texas
• Make a Prediction Post
• The Food Chains Post
• The Food Chain Disturbed Post
• Narrative Writing Post
• What Can You Do? Post
• Using blog along with the materials they are already using in the lesson
• Blogs lend themselves beautifully to differentiated instruction
• Made a special effort to have a web publication form in place as students began to use blogs for their class work.

Digital Citizenship

• Located databases and web sites suitable to 4th graders reading abilities prior to the unit using the assistance of the library media specialist
• EBSCO database was used - also could translate all articles to another language to work with ESL students
• Britannica Links - Britannica Online
• Library Databases
• Related Links - www.nhptv.org/natureworks/nwep6d.htm and http://oceanlink.island.net/biodiversity/foodweb/foodweb/html as examples of related links
• Streaming Videos - http://www.discoveryeducation.com/

Our Turn

• We formed Triads - administrator, CIT, Librarian
• We made comments about the ocean oil spill
• My new partners are: Kristal and Adrienne from Courtry Club Hills, IL
• Both are principals or asst. principals making decisions on the use of Blogs with their teachers and teacher teams.