The word blog is slang for weB LOG, which is a "journal" that is available on the web. Educators are beginning to use blogs in a variety of ways. Some teachers use blogs to communicate with parents about weekly events in their class. Other educators use blogs to share their ideas and teaching experiences with their colleagues.

Our grade six class has started using blogs to improve our writing by sharing daily class and school events with parents and friends. Each day one student is assigned to write a blog about the previous day's events. Students may write the blog at school or at home using Word Press.

I require the bloggers to write a detailed entry and to edit it to the best of their abilities. The students take these assignments seriously because each entry is assessed and counted towards their writing mark. Some students write their blog at home after the day is over and those without computers or internet access at home write them the next day at school with the help of an educational assistant. Furthermore, Students that struggle with writing use a program called Co-Writer to help them spell more efficiently when writing their daily blog.

To start a class blog you don't need to have a website or a great deal of computer knowledge. Simply visit http://www.wordpress.com or one of the many other free blogging tools to create your class blog. Give it a try and add another dimension to writing program.

Lucas Kent is an experienced educator and author of 6 Steps to Success in Teaching with Technology which in now available on Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com and many other online bookstores.

His website http://MrKent.Net - Teaching with Technology Made Simple is designed to help schools and educators implement technology effectively into their educational practices.

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