Blogging with the Fifth Graders

I thought this was a fun activity and it was very interesting to see how the students put their thoughts across. I enjoyed reading their comments about the magazine covers and seeing what they thought made a good teacher. I was surprised that some students were writing like they would in a text message and not using proper grammar and spelling. This worries me because it seems that language is getting cut out when you use digital tools. Some of the misspelling seems to be from typing errors. I would address these concerns by making it understood that blogging needs to be correct grammar and spelling just like hand written papers. I would teach them that first impressions are important and these blogs can be seen by many people, so you don't want to seem ignorant. Another concern I have is internet safety. I would teach my students internet safety in the classroom. I liked the way that the blogs were set up by using the treasure/gazer then number instead of the student's real name. This made it safer for the students. This activity made me more likely to use blogging with future students because I see that the students have the capabilities to do this type of activity if they have the right skills taught to them.