Quick Tip #8 - Student Engagement

Peer feedback is so very important... Let's make the effort to have this time more often!

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Quick Tip #7 - Reluctant Readers

Books with funny titles...

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Quick Tip #6 - Student Choice

Choice when turning in an essay... that will benefit you and students in various ways!

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Quick Tip #5 - Motivating Readers

When you're giving book talks, supplies to have on hand for a book talk lottery...

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Quick Tip #4 - Student Choice

"Question of the Day" - I cut a sheet of magnet (that can go through the printer), ask students to write their names on them, and then have students answer the question each day...
**BONUS: This is also an easy check to see who's not in your class - which names haven't been moved?

2017 Update... I've since modified this SLIGHTLY... and here's the post where I share how I create quick magnet strips. Want to see more about the question of the day? Check out the Shift This blog posts about them here!

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Quick Tip #3 - Writing Motivation

Using what I've learned from Choice Words by Peter Johnston, I've changed how I craft my comments to students on their writing...

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Quick Tip #2 - Motivating Readers

One way to motivate readers...

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Quick Tip #1 - Reluctant Readers

I am starting a new vlog series - quick tips - that I want to remember in the future!

These will be ideas that have worked in my classroom, and ones I don't want to forget. I won't worry about extra noises in the background, what I wear, if my hairs are all in place, or what I sound like. I am doing these for my teaching. If they happen to benefit you, too - GREAT! I'll label/tag them "Quick Tips" and then what they relate to (reluctant reader, struggling writer, genius hour, ants in the pants, etc.).

So here's my first one - Using a Timer to Help a Reluctant Reader

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Passion-Driven Learning Presentations at the K12 Online Conference

I'd never heard of the K12 Online Conference, and yet I was asked to be the "keynote presenter" for the Passion-Driven Learning strand for this year's online conference. Humbled and anxious, I accepted, not knowing the work I'd have to put into it. I could criticize my own video until I'm blue in the face, but I am proud of the message, and stand by it. I am also very thankful to those teachers (Sheri Edwards, Denise Krebs, Oliver Schinkten, Paul Solarz, Gallit Zvi) who came through for me by sending me clips of their answers to questions I wanted to include.

My (@JoyKirr) K12 Online Learning Conference Keynote presentation from October 27th:

On the K12 Online blog, this presentation is here.

Here is the complete schedule of the 2014 K12 Online Conference presentations, and I've pulled out three here that are pretty specific to the group of teachers who follow this blog. See the complete listing for so many more fabulous presentations that make you contemplate all sorts of ideas and issues!

Bart Miller's (@BarMill) presentation (& resources) is one of my favorites from this strand. I need to watch it yet again, take notes, and then... take action.

Here is Bart's written transcription of his presentation.

Michelle L. Haiken's (@TeachingFactor) presentation & resources:

JoAnn Delaney's (@jdelaneyJoAnn) presentation & resources:

Again, see the complete listing for so many more fabulous presentations. I've learned so much watching them, knowing that the next time I'm asked to create a video, I've got to step it up a few notches!

Comments or questions on these videos? Please leave them below.

Third Annual Cardboard Challenge

Additions / Changes that made this year even better than last year...
     Give students a paper reminder for guidelines the Monday prior.
           Use only the supplies you bring - don't count on others for supplies, including adhesives.
           Have a title, your first name(s), and directions ready to display.
           Be nice to customers, and do not give up!
           (Only one group forgot their cardboard - but they created a game anyway!
           And not like last year, only ONE student came totally unprepared!!)
     Ask students the day prior to name who is bringing what for their group.
     Invite parents the weekend prior - and give them specific times. TWELVE parents came!
     Remind parents the night prior - letting them know it's still on.
     Create a "Welcome" sign.
           This year I added our article from the Imagination Foundation website, too!
     Set up part of the room for creating, and the front part of the room for final displays/games.
     Stop the class a FULL five minutes to help students decide who is bringing what home
           or use the time to recycle their project.
     Make cardboard strips to tape onto the wrists of students (great reminder!) who are
           bringing home their games after school.
     Have bandages ready for when you slice your finger with the box cutter...

With these changes, this was our best year yet! Many thanks to Caine's Arcade and the Imagination Foundation for starting this wonderful idea!

More articles and blog posts on why this day is so very valuable...

     Innovation: Error and Insight

     Why We Do the Cardboard Challenge in ELA Class

     Reflecting with Students
     Cardboard Challenge Reflection Part 1 (What I Did NOT See!)

Jury Duty Ramblings

I'd gotten the notice about a month ago - Jury Summons for October 8th at the Daley Center downtown. That's cutting it pretty close to the Cardboard Challenge date, isn't it? No worries - every time I call the night before, they don't need me. Well, I guess that was in my former life. I called last night - they "needed" me.

I wrote detailed sub plans for the new digital curriculum and shared them with colleagues I knew would get them to the sub and be able to explain the myriad nuances. I looked at the map as to how to catch the blue line from Rosemont, and tallied up the cost. Got money from my honey and my bag ready to go - including one professional book (and highlighter, of course), one juvenile book, my watch, phone, and iPad. I awoke at the same time as usual, but took my time in the morning. I was anxious. To the 10th power. I did NOT want to postpone the Cardboard Challenge tomorrow. This was my only true worry. It might just be my favorite day of the year. The question kept going through my mind - What if a STUDENT was absent Thursday? Would I postpone it for him? Was it fair to postpone it, or should I just let them enjoy the day without me? A generous coworker said she'd help with it if I couldn't make it - should I just let it go on? On, please don't let me be chosen for a jury!

Prayer came in to play. I usually only pray for God to keep me, my family, and my friends safe and healthy. Never to not be chosen for jury duty!! How trivial! I sometimes think that if I pray for trivial things, I won't be heard as much when it matters... So today my prayers were of gratitude, each time a different panel number besides mine was called.

I made the best of today, even though my nerves were on the fritz. On the "L" I read, and when I arrived early, I took in my surroundings. I scoped out the building and figured out how to get through the metal detectors and to the 17th floor. Once I received my sticker, I snuck over to the big window and took in the buildings.

As it turns out... 

I did not serve on a jury.  

I do not have to return tomorrow. 

The Cardboard Challenge is still ON.

I came away from today grateful & humbled. I came away from today with more questions than I've had time to think of lately. I thought I'd document them for myself - to return to when I'm worried about something such as missing the Cardboard Challenge. Most of these thoughts stem from the view from the Daley Center's 17th Floor...

So many people. So many stories. No one the same. People struggling, physically, mentally, financially... Others rushing by on the phone, some speaking another language. Pigeons surround Garrett's popcorn shop, while customers line up outside the door. Workers on scaffolds in the street, cranes lifting huge items onto roofs, police with bullet-proof vests watching walkers. Tourists heading into Macy's (Marshall Fields!) while locals sell StreetWise newspapers. Wind whipping around corners and the sun warming faces.

Who am I to think I can make a difference? Some people went into education thinking they could. I fell into teaching - I didn't even think kids liked me. Some days I feel I can make a difference, but days like today make me feel so very tiny.

I read a book today - Don Wettrick's Pure Genius: Building a culture of innovation and taking 20% time to the next level. He wrote of change. Of spreading the message of your one class, or your one idea you tried. Of using social media to get the message heard. He included words from a prior student, who wrote about sawdust. Yes, sawdust. It used to be considered useless, until someone decided to make particle board out of it. I look around this massive, busy city, and all I can think of is "Dust in the wind. All we are is dust in the wind." What if... What if I started thinking of ideas as sawdust? What if I took this time I had today and wrote down my rambling thoughts and shared them with others? Would it inspire others to share? If I kept it up, would I be able to make something out of this dust I'm made from? What are all these people in Chicago doing today? Are they sharing ideas? Are they making new connections, or making previous connections stronger? Are they spending time with family, letting them know how much they are loved?

This city overwhelms me with its diversity. With its myriad stories. Sometimes life overwhelms me. So many decisions each day. What's my priority supposed to be? Can I really call the Cardboard Challenge a priority? What's the litmus test here? It's engaging to 90% of my students. It's something they'll always remember (hopefully). It's something the parents can enjoy as well. It's something for us to remember throughout the year when we talk of perseverance, creativity, collaboration, and failures. It's a time for past and future students to join, and teachers as well. It's a community-building experience. I think it passes the test. I think it's okay for me to want to be there tomorrow, even if I am only a speck of dust on this big, beautiful world.

I have soaked up this day. I said hello to strangers on the street, smiled at vendors, given a dollar to a musician, taken photos and videos to share with my love, and gotten my fingers orange with Garrett's cheese popcorn (yes, I brought some home to share, as well). I am grateful I do not have to serve on a jury tomorrow, and therefore not feel guilt at postponing the Cardboard Challenge. I also know, however, that my world would not have ended should I have needed to head back downtown tomorrow. I would hope my students would understand how much I wanted to be with them on this special day. I know that others have so many more worries than I do, and I have nothing to complain about. This makes me even more grateful for all I have. This, too, I think we need to spread. Even though we are just a speck of dust, our smile or compliment or "Have a great day" can make someone else's day a bit brighter. I wonder what they're going through today. All these people out here in this huge city...  All these stories... Not one the same as another.

Process for Genius Hour

How do I hold my students accountable when I'm not grading them?

I see myriad blog posts about pitch proposals, planning sheets, deadlines, reflections... the list goes on.  I have had certain parts in the year when I'm as open as any teacher as to what students can learn or create for Genius Hour. And yet, I find that some students need a scaffold to see how the process works.

So I put many ideas together, added a quote for each (I love quality quotes!), used a magnet sheet and had students write their names on small slips of magnet, and this is now on the back chalkboard. I'm aware that this is just one more step to helping students succeed with Genius Hour. Some students will thrive without this guide, but for others, it will be a good scaffold to encourage them to plan and follow through.

Via Joy Kirr

Stages:

     I'm reading...

     I may have an idea...

     I'm brainstorming ideas.

     I'm seeking feedback from peers.

     I'm finding a mentor - to guide me on the journey.

     I'm researching and documenting.

     I'm putting a plan together.

     I'm ready to share with the class.

     I'm ready to share with the world.

See the document I created here, if you'd like to copy and create your own. I took a screen shot of each full page, then put four on one sheet of cardstock paper, so these steps are only 4 1/4" X 5 1/2". The circle is supposed to represent a web of sorts, with the title card in the middle connecting the threads. I wanted to make sure students knew they can jump around in the process. Knowing where each magnet name is will also help me when it comes to one-on-one conferencing. (I'm debating taking out the "I may have an idea" stage, but it looks like a couple of students are on that stage right now! I'll keep it this year...)

Two more I really like - AJ Juliani's - Beginner's Guide to 20% Time

                                       Gallit Zvi's - Genius Hour Broken Down Into Steps

Below are more versions that other teachers have graciously shared with me:

Another version (much cuter!) is here, courtesy of Chantel Sebastian (@SebastiansClass):

Used with permission from Miss Sebastian

Stages:

     Brainstorming

     Research

     Teacher Conference

     Expert Work

     Final Product

     Ready to Showcase

Here is a similar version from Jeremy Collins (@kwalityejukatar):

Used with permission from Jeremy Collins

In sixth grade, Peter Cameron (@cherandpete) digs into this process he created:

And here is Peter's idea in Brenda Valencia's 6th grade classes. Her students decided how to post it!

In fifth grade, Julieanne Harmatz (@jarhartz) shares this process with her students:

Used with permission from Julieanne Harmatz

Here's another from fifth grade - from Rebecca Brink's (@RebeccaBrink1) Passion Projects site:

Here's what Paul Solarz used in 5th grade when following Google's design thinking process:

A bit younger version, grades 3-5 from Matt Coaty (@Mcoaty):

Used with Permission from Matt Coaty

Grade 3 version - Andi McNair (@mcnairan3) shares this photo, and has the QR codes in this post. She also shares the 6 Ps in this older post.

Used with permission from Andi McNair

Would you like a younger version? Check out Laura Bright's (@lbrightedu) blog post about her Genius Hour "map" for first grade!

Used with permission from Laura Bright

Turns out, Laura had seen a tweet from Mark White (@mwhitedg), who currently teaches 2nd grade. It looked something like this:

Used with permission from Mark White

Another gem comes from Candace Marcotte (@canmarcotte) & Elena DeFilippis (@MissDeFilippis) for 6th grade:

Used with permission from Candace Marcotte

This is a game board, where students move their piece as they go. They've generously shared their game board here, AND (BONUS!) their color-coded sheets for the spaces HERE!

Nigel Coutts, from Sydney, wrote about the IB Design Cycle in this blog post, explaining the process for planning for Genius Hour.

This one from Jeromie Heath (@TeachHeath) shows their process in two different ways...

Used with permission from @teachheath

Yet another - from Dawn Zamora (@DawnZamora11) - In her third grade class, students will use post-its with their name, and add a question, etc. as they go.

Used with permission from @DawnZamora11

Take the above chart one step further, and solely focus on the research aspect with this flow chart from Tobie Taylor Jones (@tobiemichele), 6th grade:

Another basic structure is seen here, in what Jeff Peterson (@petersonjeffrey) shared for his MS science classes...

Used with permission from @petersonjeffrey

Here's more general one from a tweet by @Gary_S_ King regarding the Inquiry Process (please let me know if you know the original source):

A.J. Juliani wrote about the LAUNCH cycle in this post (with sketch from John Spencer)

Troy Cockrum was inspired by the Imagination Foundation when he created this graphic:

Here is the old one I used to use - I still like it, though - it's very simple, and fits 7th grade ELA!

Via Joy Kirr

Here is another - in Pictograph form - from Evie O'Dor (@evieodor) -
       The Life Cycle of a PAT Project


What does your Genius Hour process look like? Let me know in the comments and let me know if I have permission to add it to this post. Thank you for sharing!

Finally Realizing My Own Passion

I finally get it.

After hearing Angela Maiers in person at BLC12 (Better Learning Communities, Boston, 2012), reading both Classroom Habitudes and The Passion-Driven Classroom, seeing her work regarding Choose2Matter with high school students, following all the tweets and retweets of her words and work, and watching her podcasts, Google HangOuts, Skype sessions and now my favorite - "Passion-Based Learning with Angela Maiers".......

I finally get it.

I think I listened to this visit with Angela about 15 times now. She explains "passion," as she does whenever I listen to her words. After listening to her so many times and actually thinking about my own life and how I'm motivated by my own passion, I finally get it. Here are the words that have resonated with me this past month, and the message I will be sharing with my students this year.

"Many people think passion is doing what you like to do. And that projects should be wrapped around what kids like to do... But the root word of passion is 'to suffer; to endure.' So, passion isn't doing something that you LIKE to do - that's called a 'hobby,' or a 'project.' It's not even doing something that you're good at doing. That could turn into a job or a career or a project again. Passion is discovering what you MUST do.

"If you were asked to not do _____, what would your life be like? When you talk to individuals who are passion-driven, there is no event, there is no project, there is no beginning and end, and there's certainly no mastery... You're never finished. Passion becomes your energy, it becomes your fuel, your soul, when you think you can't rely on anything else and then passion whispers in your ear and says, 'What choice do you have?' because quitting is not an option...

"This is where the word 'suffering' becomes important... When something gets hard, or when something becomes high risk... when you start feeling the pressure of it... it's at that moment when you decide to cross the line, when something stops being fun, when something becomes incredibly, absolutely, almost sometimes almost excruciatingly difficult, if you stay with it, you are driven by passion. If you give it up...it just isn't true passion."

Just this month, I have realized what my passion is. It is giving students time to pursue their own passions. It was my 40th birthday, in January of 2013. On this date, I crossed "the line." I felt the pressure, and Genius Hour stopped being fun...

There was a parent that had been angry with me throughout the first half of the school year - for various reasons. I remember three specific reasons - Her child did not do as well on the ISAT as the year prior, and nothing I was doing in class seemed to be helping her to do better on the next one coming up in April. I was not giving enough homework, her child didn't have any grammar or vocabulary or root word work to study at home, and class was "too easy." On this date in January, she wanted to meet with me and the principal so she could explain her concerns more. On this date in January, in front of the principal, I also heard the criticism, "Genius Hour is crazy. All the parents think so. You should do more PR for it."

Nope. I can cut through the yard!

Although I had my principal's support, it felt like I'd been punched in the gut. Although I knew that Genius Hour was the only day of the week I saw her child smile in class, I felt defeated. I wanted to go home and cry. It was the first time any parent had stepped on my toes about Genius Hour. I left the meeting, and left my principal to talk more with the parent. I went home and had my birthday meal. I don't remember if I cried or not, but I do know my husband and I talked long and hard about it. One thing he asked me, "Do you think you're doing the right thing?" Yes. "Why do you think so?"

I slept that night. (I'm blessed that I can sleep most nights without trouble!) I woke the next day and wrote this blog post about the changes I'd be making. And then I acted. Out of suffering. I endured. Quitting was not an option. She wanted PR for parents? OKAY! I took the notes I'd been keeping to myself in an Evernote folder, and I put them into an online binder - for all to see.

The LiveBinder was created out of pain. It started because Genius Hour had become something I MUST do with my students. I needed to defend it. I needed to find the stories that motivated others to try it. I needed to let parents know just WHY I was using this time in class on a weekly basis.

It grew. During the #GeniusHour chat once a month, teachers had always been asking - How do I start? How do your hold your students accountable? How does this prepare them for standardized tests? What can I use to inspire my students? What do you do about students who have a hard time with this type of learning? I started making the LiveBinder helpful to teachers, as well. I began collecting, every day, posts and ideas that people were tweeting out about their own trials and tribulations, creativity, innovation, engagement, passion......

There are now OVER 400 teachers who have made the Genius Hour LiveBinder what it is today. Call it what you will - Genius Hour, 20% Time, Passion Projects, Innovation Days... All of these days are incorporated into precious school hours because of teachers who are passionate. These teachers know that their students need time to follow their own passions, or be turned off by the institution we call "school." Who to thank for this LiveBinder? A parent who didn't understand Genius Hour - because I didn't explain it. Who else? YOU. We should thank all the teachers who have made the LiveBinder what it is, and all the teachers who will help it grow further.

I received an email from Sherri Stokes this past week. She wanted me to put six different resources on the LiveBinder. These resources are in FRENCH! World language teachers will be so happy to see them. In addition to the resources, she shared with me a lengthly story from a parent who was giving her blessing to Genius Hour, because it had helped her daughter and their family. This is more fuel for me. This feeds my passion in ways I can't describe.

What's next for me? I will continue to be PROactive with parents, and let them know what we're doing right from the starting gate. I will continue to curate resources found on the #geniushour and #20time hash tags. I cannot stop. This I MUST do. I've heard of too many success stories to stop now.

What's next for YOU? Please...
     Keep writing about what you're trying in class, and WHY you're trying it.
     Keep sharing this writing online, and tweet it out for the world to see.
          (Use the hashtags so more teachers see your tweets!)
     Keep trying, tweaking, and trying again.
     Keep doing what you know is right.
     Keep asking others for help. We can figure this out together.

You do your share, and I'll do mine.
Let's keep passion-driven learning alive during school hours.

We Are In Charge of Our Attitudes

I just finished the book Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption, by Laura Hillenbrand. Woah. Among many things, it made me think of my word for 2014: Gratitude. With that in mind, here is how I'm going to approach the 2014-2015 school year... Have a STELLAR YEAR!

HappinessInYourLife.com

Source Unknown

Illinois State Beach

Our tire cover on the camper...

And this is how I try to live my life... thank you to my husband for introducing me to this quote...

Passion-Based Learning: Ready, set, go!

No matter the name, the goals are the same:
     Keep children engaged during school by letting them know you value them.
     Give children opportunities to collaborate, share their skills, learn what they want to learn, and share that learning with others.
     Help children stay life-long learners.

Names for this type of learning, that most likely happens outside of the "regular curriculum," include Passion Time, Genius Hour, 20% Time, Innovation Time... and the list goes on. Some teachers set aside time weekly for students to learn what they choose. Some schools have one day or one week a year dedicated to students owning their learning. Whatever you decide to do, your students and you will benefit - but I'm writing today to suggest guidelines for getting started. There are many decisions you should make before you begin. Don't let these scare you off - you'll have to make these decisions at some point during the process, so you might as well get going on them now.

Created by me with Diptic & Over apps.

Here is a brief "how to" guide for getting started:

1. Decide if you feel students need to focus this "choice" learning on your subject or a certain subject only. If so, your ideas for how to proceed will be different than if you leave student choice wide open. This will also help you determine the name you will give to this time.
2. Decide how much time you will dedicate in class, and stick to it. Which day(s)? Next, tell the students and parents, so they keep you accountable. Keeping parents in the loop is crucial - be sure to be proactive in this regard, and update them often through your class website or emails.
3. Decide if you will have a gradual release for ideas... Begin by asking students to teach their talent? Maybe a classroom-wide service project? A challenge? Learn something new first?
4. Decide your end result - Will students share throughout the year? Each semester? End of year? Will you require a product? An action? A presentation?
5. Figure out how your students will share. Will just their class know what they're doing? Partner with another class? The school? The world?
6. Decide if you will allow for pairs or group learning, or if you will require students to work independently. You will need to make this clear to students from the start.
7. Write down your expectations for class time. Some teachers have a small set of rules. These could include the following: be productive, learn something new, create, collaborate... Think of scenarios you'll run into (students watching YouTube videos) - will these fit into one of your expectations for students? Once you decide, put them on the board under your goal for the day.
8. Decide if, or what, you will grade. If you will grade, decide just how. If you will not grade, gather some reflections for the students to complete anyway. Reflection is a key step in this process.
9. I believe one-to-one conferring with students is essential. You will need to figure out a management system to monitor your own students' progress. Will you use a journal to keep track? A checklist? Goal sheets? Student sign-up? Will you have mentors come in to help? Do not check your email during this time, or do your own project (do that at home). Instead, confer with each student, as often as you can. Decide how you're going to keep track.
10. Research ideas as to how you will introduce the concept of passion-based learning to your students. You will want to explain the reasons behind your choice, and of course give them the "how does this benefit me" reason. This will also help you wrap your head around how you will keep students focused as they work. Ideas from teachers are here, videos are here, and picture books are here.

Once you get started, follow these steps Gallit Zvi laid out.

Count on tweaking your ideas from week to week and year to year... Students' ideas will provoke change in your classroom, and in your thinking!*

*Disclaimer: Be ready to be the loudest and most engaged class in your hallway...

Blogging Blunders

I've tried blogging in my 7th grade ELA class for two years now, each with a different tilt...

Quick overview of 2012-2013...
My goal: have students reflect on what we're doing throughout the year - mainly for Genius Hour

We set up our blogs through Kidblog.
Pros and Cons:
     + I was able to see new blog posts easily.
     + One class was on one page.
     -  Not all three classes were on one page.
           Resolution: I easily created a page on our class blog for this.

Results:
I assigned blog posts for reflections - for Dot Day, Cardboard Challenge, and Genius Hour posts.
These were graded blog posts, but students chose how I graded them (from Sylvia Tolisano's rubric).
I really didn't assign a ton of posts - I only give independent reading as homework, and I need to check out the laptop carts if I expect them to blog in class. I also saw this as just a substitute for a notebook - I was not assigning authentic blog post assignments... It was also hard to grade them using a blogging rubric, as those were not always the standards we cover in class. So... blogging really fell by the wayside for us. I needed to change things.

Quick overview of 2013-2014...
My goal: have AUTHENTIC blogging experiences, so they continue to blog

We set up blogs through Blogger this time, as they all have Google accounts through school.
Pros and Cons:
      + Students could design, adding background picture or gadgets, or... so many choices!
      - They took a lot of time to set up.
            Resolution: Took the time when the reruns of Big Bang Theory were on.
      - I did not set up the blogs so I could moderate
            Resolution: I found out I COULD, thanks to @alcp! I may do this next year.
      - Cannot check the blogs easily (like on Kidblog) to see if there are new ones. 
            Resolution: @TeachMrsFerrari taught me how through Feedly! <-- post from @langwitches
      - All blogs are not all in one place.
            Resolution: I made a page on our class blog for a list of their blogs.
      + It was fun making a ThingLink for each class like I saw another teacher do (It's been so long I forget who deserves the credit!), and the kids love it.

Results:
I did not assign blog posts (except for the first paper blog). This meant that those students who don't do anything extra never wrote any more blog posts. That was the major blunder. Another was that since there weren't that many blog posts written, there weren't that many to share, hardly any comments on them, and not many in-class role models to celebrate as a class.

With that in mind, we did experience some successes:

-May Joy's description of herself - I never asked students to write this, but she definitely got what I was hoping our purpose for the blogs would be!

-Annie's story was featured on the 100-Word Challenge Showcase!

-Christina wrote a review of Hate List before she was even finished with it.

     The author commented - and then REPLIED to Christina's question!

Click here for the full post.

- Colin used his blog to raise money. His most successful was his water campaign.
- Claire kept trying different things - her novel(s), Psychology Saturdays, Fan Fiction...
    Sadly, she hasn't kept this up over the summer...
- Annie tried many ideas this year... For one blog, she copied and pasted funny photos 
      & videos.
   She ran into a few people asking about the appropriateness of the "cheeky quotes" 
       widget she had, and what the purpose of her blog was... She was upset by this.
   She then began a new food blog and that, too, was copying other people's ideas.
   By the time our genius hour presentations came along, she had begun 
       this book review blog! Sadly, she has not kept this up over the summer...
   I love how she experimented with blogs (although I was worried for her, and realized 
       I did not give lessons on "how to blog") and finally found something that works for her.

Some statistics:
Nine of my 64 students blogged - inconsistently, but they did blog for a bit. 
Four of these created NEW blogs!
One of these is still blogging over the summer - Woot! Woot! It matters to that one... 
       Please take a moment to check it out and comment. I suppose it was my dream for ALL
       students to keep a blog over the summer! I'll keep dreaming...

Changes for 2014-2015...
My goal: model throughout the year how to blog authentically, while requiring certain posts and using ELA standards on which to grade them

We will continue to use Blogger. This is so they may continue with their blogs in 8th grade...

What I will do to prepare my students for blogging...
--Share this document with articles regarding using other people's ideas on your blog.
--Set up something like this post - good "How To" to start with.
--Discuss WHY people blog.
     Share Top Ten Things I've Learned About Blogging from a 5th grader.
     Share some of the reasons from Pernille Ripp's post What Does Student Blogging Exactly Do?
--Start with paper blogging from McTeach - BEST LESSON EVER.
--Teach how to (and why!) comment.
          Solid posts regarding leaving good comments:
               How to Be a Good Commenter from John Scalzi
               Commenting from @BalancEdTech
               Quality Commenting - student guest post from @langwitches
               Leaving Good Comments PDF from Solution Tree
--Teach students how to embed videos, add Clustr Maps, give credit where due, set comments settings to "anyone" and "never" for moderating (requests were going to email accounts that the students never check).
--Go to #comments4kids on Twitter, and comment on some together as a class. (Then 
     tweet out #ICommented from your class account when your class comments!)
--Find a class that is blogging already and comment on some of their posts TOGETHER 
     as a class.
--Purchase a world map for marking reader comment locations. (Purchase pins and 
     string, too.)
--I've thought about requiring students to comment, but I'll work that out with my partner 
     across the hall... Still not sure about this one.
--Include parents - we had our first blog posts (passion paragraphs) ready for Open House.
--Email parents or advertise on your class blog when there are when stellar posts.
--Require reflection blogs, using portions and variations of this rubric or this rubric (or both).
     Does anyone want to help me with this? I'd love to create a short rubric that fits the 
     CCSSs & allows for reflections, as well!
--Require some (how many??) independent reading blog posts, using these rubrics.
--This rubric can be our ultimate goal, but I won't grade them with it!
--At the end of the year, emphasize once again how blogging is usually used for authentic 
     purposes. Show them that it is okay to delete posts they no longer need on their blog, 
     in order to start fresh. What do they really feel a passion to blog about? Or not...??

Final thoughts:
I exposed these seventh graders to blogging last year - it was really the first time they'd 
     set up a blog and been let loose with it. They currently do not blog in 6th or 8th grade,
     so I feel it is my duty to at the very least expose them to the idea of blogging and
     leaving a positive digital footprint. I know now that I need to model and require 
     some blogs from students. Model, model, model, and practice, practice, practice... 
     These will be my main changes for this upcoming year. How do YOU approach 
     blogging with your middle school students??

I know I will have many more blunders...