KinderBlogging!

Good Day!

This week I read a lot about blogs and how they might possibly be useful in an educational setting. I got the distinct impression from the reading that the author primarily had older children in mind (versus primary children in kindergarten and 1st grade fir example). I could well be mistaken, but it got me thinking about the children who are at the very first part of their educational careers, many of whom don't know their ABC's let alone how to type or use a computer efficiently.

I started with my conviction that young children, pre-school and Kindergarten, can be taught to use a computer. Both of my sons had access and some training as early as daycare pre-school and daycare using simple computer programs with guidance. (LaPetiote Academy Moore. OK and Compu-Tots Virginia Beach, VA). I think that children could be introduced first to using a mouse through alphabet matching games and then gradually using hunt and peck on the keyboard.

Next I propose teaching them the concepts of cut, copy, and paste buy having them… well cut, copy and paste, really at first, then virtually. The hands on project provides context for the virtual world.

Okay that was the pre-cursor for blogging.

Clearly, even the most astute youngster is not going to hop on a PC and hammer out their own blog in pre-k- 1^st grade. They first need to get the idea of what they are and most importantly the idea of collaborating.

While the kiddies are learning about the hardware side of things, I would use what I have decided to call a classroom “PLOG” to get the ball rolling. PLOG stands for “Paper LOG). On a Monday I would present a question that I thought might be interesting to them, e.g. “What do you think of the new Transformers movie? Like or Not Like?”

After introducing the question, I would spend the rest of the first week doing shared writing where a few children per day answer the question and I write down their answer with their name. After everyone in my class had a chance to voice their opinion I would move the page to the wall outside of my room, with a pen on a string, and encourage my fellow teachers to have their students neatly respond to the question, adding any comments about the answers already given as well. Next stop the main hallway where any person walking by could add to it. At the end of the second week the paper would make its way back to my class for discussion.

This is a scaffolding exercise geared towards getting the children to be comfortable with the idea of sharing their thoughts and having others share theirs as well as comments about the comments of others.

Next Round I would do essentially the same thing with a different question, but the shared writing would be via a Word document projected for the classes to see, then printed out with additions each day and posted so they can read what is new. This next step is meant to expose the children to their words in print, and to create the idea of posts being added each day electronically, and the PLOG being available with those new posts (new printed copy each day.

This time when the paper goes outside the class, it will have a URL where it can be found on my actual blog for teachers and students on my hall to comment. People can still add their comments in writing and I will add them myself. Each day, the updated PLOG with written changes entered and e-additions made will be posted anew. The PLOG will then move again to the front hall where it can be added to by the general populace. Finally the Monday after the second week, the Whole document will be posted and reflected upon by my class as in the first round.

For the next and final PLOG round, the entries will all be made electronically and then printed out for my students and others to see. The PLOG will still make its journey, but only electronic comments will be added. To make it easy, the URL of my blog and a class email address will be included in case any folks aren’t comfortable with blogging yet. again after the two weeks, the PLOG will be review3ed and discussed.

FINALLY, the class BLOG will be created. During the 6 weeks of PLOGGING along, I will be discussing what a blog by our class would look like, what its purpose would be, making a list of possible topics etc. Also during this time, students would be actively engaged in learning the alphabet, partially through the use of the keyboard. Hopefully, one or two students will surface as being proficient enough at keyboarding hunt and peck style to be the class blog keepers, entering the classes’ responses as they are given in the initial stages, and any responses later on.

My hope is that instead of being the lone PLOGGER when I start the process that I would have at least other team or grade level members that would do essentially the same thing and thus create a mini-blogmunity at our school that could eventually transition to a real blog together.

Ideas for PLOG and BLOG content…

What content would Kindergarteners put on a blog after they really got rolling? The answer it simple… YES! Content is the answer. The regular content in any grade level provides a ton of opportunities for authentic and engaging blogging. If every teacher on a grade level had a blog, they could divide the curriculum up by subject, Teacher 1 – math blog, teacher 2 Language arts, Teacher 3 literature, teacher 4 science, etc. The beauty is that though each class is responsible for hosting a particular topic, the whole grade level, and school and perhaps the world can contribute to each one.

Please respond and let me know what you think or if you have seen something like it before.

Thanks,

David