I would like to create a blog on creative writing for my three 10Th grade composition classes. I have thought about a group effort essay, editing skills or essay add-on, in which each class would be responsible for a different part of the essay, then putting it all together. I also looked at giving my three classes a set of fifteen adjectives and let each student write a blog containing those words to see how many different stories can be written using the same words. I like this idea, as we are working on descriptive writing and how adjectives can change the entire tone of a story. The students would have instant access to each others work, rather than copies. I also like the idea, as the students could uses modeling, this really helps with my students who struggle with writing. These are a few of my ideas that incorporate what my lessons are for the next several weeks and I am trying to be a tech-know teacher and tie them in. I would also like to create a blog on "Angela's Ashes", the novel we are currently reading. My thoughts are to have a character "speak" about their viewpoint, rather than the authors. Another idea is from our text and have the students journal. I like the idea of a blog for these because it will be interactive and static. They can correspond to each other and while it is active learning, it will also be fun! So many ideas! I am going to narrow down these ideas and get input from some of the students.
Have any of you worked with creative writing and blogs? I would love to hear past experiences and other ideas regarding writing and use of novels!
have a great week...
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Hi Edie,
ReplyDeleteI believe that using a blog for your composition class will make a positive impact on your students’ reading and writing skills. Richardson (2009) believes that blogs “can teach students the new literacies they will need to function in an ever expanding information society” (p. 28). Blogs are a way for students to think and respond critically in a collaborative, professional manner.
Am I reading correctly that you will have the three different classes interacting on one blog, or would each class have their own blog space? If you have all three classes on one site, I would recommend having them write their class period or another indicator with their posts. This would allow you to make more interesting guidelines for posting, such as everyone must post a comment to a student in a different class.
Your descriptive writing activity sounds fun. It reminds me of Mad Libs, except instead of creating descriptive words, you are creating a story. You could actually have students create a version of their story or writing without the initial words they used and trade with another student to insert the missing words. I think using a blog as a collaborative space while reading a novel as a class is a great idea. If you incorporate student journaling though, I would be sure to include prompts to guide students’ writing towards the process of thinking critically. Richardson (2009) defines blogging as “a process of thinking in words, not simply an accounting of the day’s events or feelings” (p. 20). Creating a rubric for blog posts may also help with improving students’ responses.
Kristy Brown
Walden University
Reference:
Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wiks, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Hi, Edie!
ReplyDeleteYou sound like me...when my mind gets to running with ideas, I have a hard time knowing where to stop and what to do! Like you, I am excited about incorporating blogs into my classes, but not exactly sure how. I was interested in utilizing it with a novel, as we are about to start reading one in class. I had thought about some of the different ways to use it and I like your idea about having postings from the character's viewpoints, then letting the students respond to them. Another option might be to have groups made up of the number of main characters in the book, with each student representing one of the characters. Every few days (or week) the students would have to respond to something that was read, in the voice of whichever character they were. That would require them to speak in the voice of the character, and to assess the situation from the character's perspective. Richardson (2009) speaks of posting a daily question and requiring the students to respond to so many each week, and that might offer a way to assess their participation in something like this.
Again, I still have a lot of questions and many kinks that would need to be worked out. I want to be well-prepared, and right now, I still am not sure how to go about setting all this up. Our school has so many blocks on the internet that I even question if I can do it. We have a school web-sight, and it allows teachers to have pages with class discussion sights, so this may be the place I need to look into.
Good luck with your projects. I know that we are all going to be so much smarter about this when we are done (!) and I am excited about the end results!
Jane
Reference
Richardson, W. (2008). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (Second Ed ed.). California: Corwin Press Inc.,U.S..
Hi Edie,
ReplyDeleteThis reminds me of a story I do at the beginning of the year with all my classes. I really love this activity because I believe an essay or a story is one of the best ways to assess student growth or any new students that come in. I call it "The Story About Something out of Nothing." I first get random items from home such as a shoe, trinkets, little toys, etc., about 13 items total. I have them in a bag and one by one pull them out and ask the class what each one is. When they say the item is a shoe, I respond with "Just a shoe?" And then they begin adding descriptions. Once we've described the item fully, I drop it on the floor. I do that with each item and then walk away. That is when I tell them they are to write a story using 3 Literary Elements, and all of the items. I also assign 3 different genres among the class. They really have a lot of fun with it and it certainly gets their attention when I just start pulling outrageous items from this bag without explanation. This would be a great way to add the story to a blog.
Hi Edie,
ReplyDeleteI have used blogs in my American Literature class to discuss novels and thematic ideas. Blogs provide students with the advantage of having extra time to reflect on the question and post a response later in the evening. Some students need that time outside of class to really formulate what they want to say – especially those students who prefer not to participate in in-class discussions.
For my class, I would post a question that students had to respond to before the next day’s class. I read through the responses that morning, provided my reactions, shared “A” responses, and challenged some of their responses. In the future, I would have them respond to someone else’s entry as well. These blogs, by having them write and respond to others’ responses, provide students a unique collaborative learning experience outside of the school walls (Richardson, 2009).
Be prepared for students who do not have computer access at home. To prevent isolating these students, I posted the question on the board. They could write the response ahead of time and quickly type it up in a study hall, before school, or after school.
Good Luck!
Brad Feick
HS English
References
Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wiks, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Hi.
ReplyDeleteSounds like really great ideas.... I am a lot like you. I start with one idea, et excited, and it snowballs and pretty soon I have several... Sounds like projects your students are going to enjoy!
I like Brad's suggestion, too, of posting the questions on the board for those who don't have access to computers. I wonder, though, if there is a way at your school for you to provide opportunities for them to access the blog? They could have theirs written and ready to go, then access at school.
Also, I would like to know if you've thought about how you will score their work? Do you create rubrics or the like? If so, do you normally include your students in the creating of the rubric? In my last class, we learned about the benefits of students taking more ownership and performing better because they are involved in the creation of rubrics and analysis of projects (Stiggins, 2005). Have you ever considered or included students in the creating of rubrics or scoring guides for other projects? If so, was it more effective and did you see more buy in?
Reference:
Stiggins, R. (2005). Student-Involved Assessment for Learning. Laureate Education, Inc.
Thank you for the fantastic comments; they were informative, thought provoking and full of fabulous ideas! I can’t wait for the week to start so I can use them.
ReplyDeleteKristy-Thanks, I will definitely use a prompt, I can see where the students might not be as focused unless they are given clear outline. I think that I will start off and group by classes, 23-25 students are easier to initially monitor rather than 71.
Jane- Yes, we do sound a lot alike. I have gained so many ideas and I am having fun incorporating technology into my current plans to make them not only more interesting, but also more engaging. Thanks for your ideas!
Dawn-I am stealing your bag idea! That is wonderful and so much fun; I know it will help in descriptive writing, which is what we are currently studying. I do something similar with story expansion with a children’s book called “The Yellow Button” about a little girl with a button in her pocket, I think you would like using this as well. I also want to know where you designed your picture on your blog, I want one too!
Brad-Here we are in class together again, I really enjoy reading your post, you seem very comfortable with technology in your classroom and have great ideas I have used with success. I think I have solved the computer problem. I am going to have the student use the laptops instead of journal writing, this way each student has access for a period of time each day, hopefully this will work.
Digna-Yes, rubrics are my mainstay. I have found that by having a strong rubric before the lesson, everyone is clear on expectations and has clearly defined expectations. I think this is so important. I do use student feedback after I initially introduce the rubric; we “tweak” it and then finalize it on the feedback I receive. Thank you for your post!