Educational Use of Blogs

Educational blogs are commonly used by professors, teachers, parents, students, and the greater community as an alternative communication tool. While each person may have different reasons for using them, blogs provide an online experience for personal expression and exploration on multiple topics that matter most to people. Several of the websites I visited show multiple benefits of using blogs in education.

Blogs are a great resource for educators to communicate with parents, students, and the community at large. They can be used to post newsletters, assignments, online homework tools, announcements, upcoming events, or any other important information they wish to share. They are a great tool for educators because they can be written, edited, and updated from any computer with Internet access at any time of the day or night. Any information posted can also be easily accessed by student and parents.

Blogs are a useful tool for students to continue communication outside the classroom. Students may use blogs as a reflective journal where they share news, opinions, and personal posts. Teachers find blogs very useful because they give all students an opportunity to communicate equally. Students that are shy or timid in the classroom are more likely to express and explore ideas more freely in this type of environment. Most importantly, blogs enable students to connect with each other and engage in thoughtful conversation!
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While I have never been interested in following or participating in blogs, I did find some useful blogs that touch upon topics that interest me the most.

What Kindergarten Teachers Know
I really like this blog because it discusses topics that focus on what’s happening in the kindergarten classroom. Since I teach kindergarten, I am very interested in hearing what issues or topics others are discussing. Here are a few that are listed on the blog 1) Ask the teacher 2) Book recommendations 3) Communicating 4) Giving directions 5) Handling strong emotions 6) Handling transitions 7) Routines 8) School preparation

School Family
This is a website that provides fabulous articles (and blog posts) about any topic in education. Some interesting articles that I found are 1) Teacher's Tips: How Parents Can Help 2) What steps can I take at home to help my child do better in school? 3) 7 Things to Tell the Teacher, and so forth.

Elementary Education Blog
This is a great blog for elementary educators, principals, and specialists to gather and share ideas.

The journal that I selected is called Early Childhood News. It is an online journal resource for teacher and parents of children from infant to eight years of age. It provides articles on the latest trends, examinations of the newest procedures, and evaluations of traditional practices. It provides articles on the topics that interest me such as: language & literacy, kindergarten, child development, child behavior and guidance, and curriculum.

Website:
http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/

PPT as an Educational Tool

PowerPoint is a great educational resource because it allows both teachers and students an opportunity to use a tool that can enhance learning. The features on PowerPoint can be used to emphasize words, show pictures, and make learning more interactive and fun for students when video and audio clips are added. I believe that teachers at any grade level can integrate PowerPoint into their teaching and see the benefit of it. Students who are taught and encouraged to use this program can also become more engaged in learning. PowerPoint allows for creativity with it’s hundreds of features. I can see how students would want to do their best to make their work unique.

Here are some helpful resources:
http://www.midgefrazel.net/powerpoint.html
http://www.bitbetter.com/powerlinks.htm
http://its.leesummit.k12.mo.us/powerpoint.htm

Digital Natives Digital Immigrants

In my opinion, digital natives should learn some of the content the old way and digital immigrants should teach some of their curriculum the new way. Both teachers and students should be connecting half way and finding a middle ground. I see the benefit of both and think that a combination would benefit all students. As I think about it, I realized that there’s a benefit for all students to learn in a digital, current method. However, I also see the value of learning the “traditional” way. Students need to be able to develop skills such as being able to focus on something that’s not constantly flashing at them.

About Me

Greetings,

My name is Delia Villanueva. I teach kindergarten in Spanish at Puesta del Sol Elementary. I love the language. I especially enjoy teaching in Spanish! This is my third year teaching and I look forward to another great year.