Blogs

= Blogs =


 * What are blogs?**
 * **Blogs** (or web logs) are a way to keep an online journal. People keep blogs on every topic imaginable, from education to politics to personal interests, like sports, cooking, and music. In education, blogs are fast becoming one of the best ways to further your own professional development.
 * The main differences between blogs and wikis is that blogs are usually written by one author or a small group (while wikis are built and edited by large groups who may not even know each other). Also, blogs are displayed in chronological order, with the most recent entries posted at the top.

> [|Quick start for Google Reader] > **Blogs to explore:** > [|Weblogg-ed] (Will Richardson) > [|Bud the Teacher] (Bud Hunt) > [|Teach42](Steve Dembo) > [|2 Cents Worth] (David Warlick) > [|Mobile Musings] (Karen Fasimpaur) > [|Cool Cat Teacher] (Vicki Davis) > **Bonus**: You can put the Google Reader widget on your main iGoogle page. > [|Quick start for WordPress]
 * Workshop activities:**
 * 1) Set up an account on [|Google Reader]. (You may have already done this.) Then explore the list of blogs below, and subscribe to ones that you think may be of interest. Remember that if you subscribe to something and you don't like it, it's easy to unsubscribe.
 * 1) Here are some [|aggregated posts from bloggerss all over that are writing about NECC].
 * 2) Look for some blogs that relate to personal interests of yours, and subscribe.
 * 3) Think of a way you could use a blog in your professional or personal life. Click the discussion tab above to add your idea.
 * 4) If you want to create your own blog, you can use [|WordPress].


 * Other blogging tools to explore:**
 * More tools for aggregating (subscribing to and reading) blogs:
 * [|Google Reader]
 * [|Bloglines]
 * Tools for writing your own blog (These are all free and easy to use):
 * Wordpress (You can [|install this to your own server]or [|have them host it for you].)
 * [|Blogger]
 * [|Edublogs] (uses Wordpress)
 * [|ePals SchoolBlog]


 * Blogs in education - classroom ideas**:
 * Writing prompts and response
 * Formative assessment
 * Interactive discussion
 * Daily assignment
 * Daily notes and related resources
 * Book clubs
 * Journaling
 * Electronic newsletters
 * Professional development tips


 * Blogs in education - links:**
 * In addition to using blogs for your own professional development, you can use blogs as a tool in workshops you conduct. [|Here is an example of a blog used to capture workshop comments, questions, and discoveries].
 * [|Matrix of uses of blogs in education]
 * [|10 ways to use blogging in the classroom]
 * [|Why let our students blog](video)
 * Here are some classroom blogging projects:
 * [|Guerilla Season book blog]
 * [|Room Twelve] (see student blogs listed on the right)
 * [|Room 9]
 * and lots more!
 * Info on student blogging policies

media type="youtube" key="NN2I1pWXjXI" height="344" width="425" media type="youtube" key="ddO9idmax0o" height="344" width="425" >> All of these can be sent right from your phone!
 * More resources**:
 * Blogs in plain English
 * Another whole area of blogging is **microblogging**, very short blog posts that can be made from the web or from mobile devices like a cell phone. Here are some popular applications:
 * [|Twitter] (Here is the [|Twitter hashtag stream for NECC] (just tweet with #necc to join this) and the [|NECC 2008]tweets with friends.)
 * Twitter in plain English
 * [|Mobile blogging] (text and photo)
 * [|Audioblogging]