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Blogger - Google
Grades
K to 12tag(s): blogs (65), communication (138), digital storytelling (152), writing (323)
In the Classroom
Use Blogger to create and share your class blog with students and parents. Include updates on classroom lessons and upcoming events, and share pictures of students at work (with appropriate permissions). Add this site to your list of website creation tools for students to use for many projects. For example, ask students to share poems, lab reports, or quick journal entries and add an image or links to additional information. If students create pages, check with your district's policy on publishing student work. Have students take turns writing weekly blog posts that share information about what they learned at school or ask them to share writing or research projects with family and friends. Use images you and your students take, or find free image resources on TeachersFirst Special Topics Page: Free Image Resources, reviewed here.Edge Features:
Parent permission advised before posting student work created using this tool
Includes social features, such as "friends," comments, ratings by others
Requires registration/log-in (WITH email)
Products can be embedded
Products can be shared by URL
Multiple users can collaborate on the same project
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Straw.Page - Osman Ahmed
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): blogs (65), communication (138), digital storytelling (152), portfolios (23), writing (323)
In the Classroom
Add Straw.Page to your list of website creation tools to offer for students to use for many different projects. For example, ask students to share poems, lab reports, or quick journal entries and add an image or links to additional information. If students are creating pages, check with your district's policy on publishing student work. Create pages to share information with parents about upcoming events and important dates or a list of links for resources to use at home.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Site123 - Site123
Grades
4 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): blogs (65), communication (138), portfolios (23), writing (323)
In the Classroom
Use this site for students to post or collect material for simple projects such as stories, poems, art projects, science lab write-ups, or the week's problem in math. Collect a master list of URLs to student pages on your classroom website, wiki, or blog for easy access. If students are creating pages, check with your district's policy on publishing student work. Create pages for quick link-sharing or upcoming events such as field trips, class party information, school events, science fairs, etc. Students can create simple pages to share links to include in presentations so classmates can participate on laptops. If you are beginning a major creative project such as a literary magazine or research project, Site123 is a wonderful place for writers to collect questions and ideas to be developed later.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Telegra.ph - telegra.ph
Grades
2 to 12tag(s): blogs (65), communication (138), writing (323)
In the Classroom
Use this tool as an easy to use blogging tool in the classroom and in every subject area. Use in language arts classes to strengthen students' writing ability and 21st century skills. Teach about proper commenting etiquette on simple first blog posts. Use for student-written book reviews for the school library. Use as a tool for class or parent communication. Engage students in discussions on current events, independent reading, literature, and more. Ask students to play the role of a historical figure and write about their viewpoints or experiences. Use the site as a forum for any simulated or real task. Invite parents to join to give their points of view on upcoming elections or public policy issues by commenting on student posts. Share a blog in even the youngest of classes, for parents to use to learn about a specific unit of study, field trips, and more. Use this site in world language classes to have students write a blog entry in the new language. Include the principal or superintendent in class discussions of students' rights as you study the Constitution. Create incredible discussions of environmental, political, or economic issues. Create a standing assignment for elementary and middle schoolers on snow days. Have students write a post about the snow using Telegra.ph and share the URL on a class wiki. Post the various links on the class web page so students can comment on each other's posts after they come in from sledding.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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StackEdit - Benoit Schweblin
Grades
8 to 12In the Classroom
Sometimes students (and teachers) get distracted by the appearance of a project instead of focusing on the content. Using StackEdit and Markdown language offers the opportunity to set up and format text before adding the "bells and whistles." Have students use StackEdit to create and polish content for blogs or other projects requiring HTML, then upload and add images, graphs, and maps later.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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My Live Chat - mylivechat
Grades
K to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): chat (41), communication (138), DAT device agnostic tool (147)
In the Classroom
Create a chat message pop-up for the most frequently asked questions students and parents have about finding items on your classroom site. Offer a set time for office hours published well in advance for parents and students to drop in and ask questions about assignments, homework help, or any other questions that they may have. Set up a chat time early in the school year for "meet and greet" so parents discover your website or for those who are unable to attend back to school night! Cut down on email! Encourage students to identify the questions they (or their parents) have the most as you develop the scope for your chat. ESL/ELL teachers can use the chat to provide extra written language practice for their students in an engaging way! Use the chat with your colleagues in a Teacher Lounge format to help each other in the appropriate use of technology, content sharing, or professional development.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Quadblogging - David Mitchell
Grades
2 to 12tag(s): blogs (65), communication (138), cross cultural understanding (165), writing (323)
In the Classroom
If you never blogged before, you might want to check out TeachersFirst Blog Basics for the Classroom. Have your students choose a question from Thought Questions reviewed here. Have students respond to the question, and then have them ask the reader to respond to their writing and answer the question from their point of view, too. The benefits go beyond just writing. You can also build cultural understanding and world language skills through blogs. Help your students become aware of environmental issues or how to live "green" for our planet. Try Greenlearning.ca, reviewed here, or choose something from the Environmental News Network, reviewed here, for students' Quadblog projects.Edge Features:
Includes an education-only area for teachers and students
Parent permission advised before posting student work created using this tool
Includes social features, such as "friends," comments, ratings by others
Requires registration/log-in (WITH email)
Multiple users can collaborate on the same project
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BlogBooker - BlogBooker and LJBook.com
Grades
K to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): blogs (65)
In the Classroom
Print your BlogBook to share with your class. Use as a way to have an archive or back up of the class blog. Keep the PDF files for use in portfolios to show student work. Challenge students to create their own BlogBook about a subject they are learning in class. All three tools are free and fairly simple to use. In primary grades, the teacher would need to do most of the Blogbook work. Secondary students could create their own BlogBooks independently or in small groups.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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edublogs - edublogs.org
Grades
K to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): blogs (65), communication (138), writing (323)
In the Classroom
Save this site as a favorite for all of your blogging needs. Find very informative instructions on blogging, and follow the student blogging challenge lesson plans. Use this tool easily in your Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) classroom since all students will be able to access it for free, no matter what device they have. Peruse through the various subjects and discover how other teachers use blogging in their classrooms. Using the given PDFs on blogging start up, parent guidelines, incorporating into subject areas, and adapt to make them suitable for you. Look at a variety of examples to help devise your own unique style to meet your students' needs.Edge Features:
Includes an education-only area for teachers and students
Parent permission advised before posting student work created using this tool
Includes social features, such as "friends," comments, ratings by others
Requires registration/log-in (WITH email)
Premium version (not free) includes additional features or storage
Products can be shared by URL
Multiple users can collaborate on the same project
Includes teacher tools for registering and/or monitoring students
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Just Paste It - JustPaste.it
Grades
4 to 12This site includes advertising.
tag(s): blogs (65), communication (138), images (260), note taking (36)
In the Classroom
Copy and paste important information found on websites while viewing as a class into Just Paste It, then save as a PDF for students to have a hard copy or share a link to the information through your classroom website or LMS. Use this tool to create a simple blog. Challenge students to create their own "Paste It" to use to take research notes, write study notes for vocabulary, or many other uses. Have students create individual pages (blog posts) as part of classroom projects then share them using a tool such as Padlet, reviewed here, to create an online bulletin board to use to display information learned. Why would a teacher share text or images this way? Teachers can offer an assignment, a writing prompt, a vocab list, a story starter, a handout, or even a permission slip for parents to download, print, and sign.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Tumblr - David Karp
Grades
9 to 12tag(s): blogs (65), communication (138), microblogging (15)
In the Classroom
Use for posts that have visual elements such as photography and art. The ease of adding images to a Tumblr blog make this a great tool for the medium. Use for Family and Consumer Science to create a cooking or entertaining blog. Create a blog showing images from experiments or learning about the world around them in Biology with posts about pond life. Focus on genetic traits and the differences that exist including photographs of past ancestors to show traits. Create posts about elements and take pictures of items or objects that are made of that element. Or show images of various chemical properties. Create a Tumblr blog page for a specific historical figure and create posts that the person would make highlighting accomplishments, people they meet, etc. Note: It is highly recommended that teachers not allow students to make their own Tumblr blog for class but instead make a blog for ALL students in the class to use. The teacher can manage (and monitor) the blog.Edge Features:
Parent permission advised before posting student work created using this tool
Includes Interaction w general public/ public galleries with unmoderated content
Includes social features, such as "friends," comments, ratings by others
Requires registration/log-in (WITH email)
Products can be shared by URL
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Penzu - Alexander Mimran and Michael Lawlor
Grades
4 to 12tag(s): communication (138), DAT device agnostic tool (147), journals (16), writing (323)
In the Classroom
A class journaling program has limitless possibilities. Engage students in discussions using a topic from current events, current social issues, independent reading, literature, and more. Any class using a journal can use Penzu. For example, science lab write ups or the problem of the week in math. Penzu can even be used for homework. Just think, no more lugging heavy boxes full of notebooks around! In language arts have students journal daily and harvest from their musings and ideas to create a short story or a poem. They can even use Penzu to develop their brainstorms and rough draft. For social studies classes, students can write posts and ideas about famous people or daily life in a time period being studied, then create a "diary" for the famous person in Bookemon, reviewed here or a poster using Genially, reviewed here about daily life. For either of these ideas, once they are ready to present a final project have them hare with their peers and others and possibly add other media. See more ideas for student blogging/journaling at TeachersFirst's Blogging Basics for the Classroom. Share journals with parents as appropriate by URL. Be sure to respect student privacy before sharing.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Weebly - Weebly
Grades
2 to 12tag(s): blogs (65), communication (138), portfolios (23), writing (323)
In the Classroom
If you plan to have students create their own web pages, under your account, no email is needed for them, and they will have a special log in page. You will have to enter each student's name, username and a password. What's nice about Weebly is they will print out a list for you to give to students with their log in information. Though you can make your site private, you want to be sure not to use student's real names. Use a code or acronym. Suggestion: You can use the first two letters of the students last name, the first three letters of their first name, and if you have multiple classes, have them put the class period or code after the last letter. This works well if you're going to be grading web pages, since most grade books are in alphabetical order by last name.Possible uses are only limited by your imagination! Create your own Weebly website for parents and students where they can stay updated about what is happening in your classroom, where students can submit their assignments, contact information, and anything else you might want to put on your website. You can add up to 40 students on one free website, so students can use their pages for projects and assignments. There is a free blogging tool that you may want your students to use for writing assignments, reflection, or reading journals, just to name a few ideas. You can have everything you need on one Weebly website! Find more specific blog ideas in TeachersFirst's Blogging Basics ideas.
Try using Weebly for: "visual essays;" digital biodiversity logs (with digital pictures students take); online literary magazines; personal reflections in images and text; research project presentations; comparisons of online content, such as political candidates' sites or content sites used in research (compared for bias); science sites documenting experiments or illustrating concepts, such as the water cycle; "Visual" lab reports; Digital scrapbooks using images from the public domain and video and audio clips from a time in history -- such as the Roaring Twenties; Local history interactive stories; Visual interpretations of major concepts, such as a "visual" U.S. Constitution. Imagine building your own online library of raw materials for your students to create their own "web pages" as a new way of assessing understanding: you provide the digital pictures, and they sequence, caption, and write about them (younger students) or you provide the steps in a project as a template, and they insert the actual content of their own.
After a first project where you provide "building blocks," the sky is the limit on what they can do. Even the very young can make suggestions as you "create" a whole-class product together using an interactive whiteboard or projector. Consider making a new project for each unit you teach so students can "recap" long after the unit ends.
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