Author Will Richardson, describes six functions of educational blogs in his book Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms (2010). Two of his functions describe the class website and the class portal. A blog can be useful for teachers to communicate information to parents and students on a regular basis in a safe, efficient manner. For example, on a weekly basis I send my students' parents an email updating them on what their children are learning in Language Arts. Through this email, parents are informed of test dates, assignment due dates, and changes in policy and procedure. This information could also be easily streamlined and posted in a weekly classroom blog. Parents could subscribe to the RSS feed of the blog and would be able to receive an email when the blog is updated and read it at their convenience.
This method of communication would also be a resource for students. Students might not always remember to write down homework or when assignments are due. They could access the blog for reminders and updates. It would also be a great place for the teacher to post assignment descriptions, rubrics, and models so that students and parents would be able to see what she is looking for without having to either go through an email with multiple attachments or contact the teacher directly.
Hi Best,
ReplyDeleteYour classroom e-letter sounds like a great way for you to communicate with parents and students. It seems like a great way to keep parents involved with what their children are learning on a daily basis. I think the blog wouldn't have to replace the e-letter, it could just act as another way for parents and students to stay informed.
Ryan
I just re-read this and I am not sure why I put in your name as Best, sorry about that, I will blame it on the tablets auto correct feature ;) Keep up the good work Beth!
ReplyDeleteRyan,
DeleteThanks for the feedback. No worries about the typo. Gotta love technology :-)
Beth
Beth,
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of using the blog to interact with the parents of your students. I think the blog is great way to inform your students and their parents about what is going on in your class. You can still get information out and save yourself time by not having to send out an e-mail for each class. Parents and students can also communicate with each. Again, love the idea.
Michele
Hi Beth,
ReplyDeleteI like that you want your blog to be an extension of the classroom and the homework hit the nail on the head. Thankfully my children attend a small school and I am FB friends with some so if my son forgets homework I can message one of them. Having it available on the blog would be a fantastic resource for parents who do not have the same opportunity.