Tag: blog

New Teacher Academy

Today we had a 4-hour technology training for new 3rd grade teachers. My partner, Julie Franklin, and I titled our session “I’m a Thewy Third Thaumaturge.” If you don’t know what those words mean, use your computer’s dictionary to look them up (highlight the word and ctrl click on it to “Look Up in Dictionary”). Four hours is a long time, so we tried to pump it up with music, glow sticks, and a disco ball, but actually, the thing that made it most memorable was the earthquake! We shared all our ideas on this website if you’d like to see what we did. One tool that I would encourage you to check out is the photo sharing site we used called Yogile. It makes it very simple for people to upload pictures to one webpage. Once the photos are uploaded you can view it as a slideshow or gallery. Take a look at ours here. Another site that does something similar but turns the pictures into a book is Keepsy. We didn’t get to use that one, but you can still take a look at our sample here.




4th Graders Blogging!

Today 4th graders at Chamberlayne Elementary started blogging. Your class can start too! Each Henrico teacher has a blog space on http://blogs.henrico.k12.va.us Just log in with your email name and password and start posting! I can show you how if you have questions, or I can teach a lesson in your class like I did today. If you would like some ideas about what to post, BrainPop has a nice guide here. The protests in Egypt are a current topic in the news, so I posted a question about it for students to comment on to give them practice. You can see the post and comments by clicking here. Before your students start making comments though, it’s very important to go over the rules and guidelines. You can make up your own, but here are a few to get you started (borrowed from here and here):

1. Use first names only – do not reveal personal information (that includes parents posting).
2. Stay on the topic of the original post – don’t say hi, or comment on something unrelated in someone else’s comment.
3. Proofread before submitting – check punctuation and spelling. Remember this is published online for anyone in the world to see.
4. Write in full sentences and words – no “text” talk.
5. Make a point – Don’t just say, “Great job,” “I agree,” or “You’re wrong,” explain why. Be sure your contribution to the discussion is meaningful.
6. Be respectful – Do not make comments that are unkind, impolite, or rude. Those comments will not be approved anyway, and you may lose the privilege to post comments in the future.

For more information about starting your own Henrico blog click here.


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Teacher Spotlight – Ms. Norris

Ms. Norris, a fourth grade teacher at Laburnum Elementary, won the Henrico 21 award last year for her “Puppet Interviews Project” that I shared on my blog here. She’s continuing to do great things with technology in her class this year. One of the projects that has really impressed me is her classroom blog. She posts topics, and the students write comments about them. It’s a simple idea, but it has proven very effective. Her students are enthusiastically writing and responding on the blog. You can check it out by clicking here. Be sure to leave a comment! I’m sure her students would love hearing from you! If you’d like to have your own classroom blog, Henrico teachers can go here, type in your email name and password and get started! If you are outside the county, you can use the free site that Ms. Norris uses called KidBlog.


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