Fix-It in Five

When I first started student blogs, I assumed students would enjoy it. After all, we were using technology! It was, at the time, a cutting-edge tool! Unfortunately, I didn’t think ahead of time about the power of blogging as authentic, interactive form of expression. Instead, students wrote posts in isolation. I dicated the topics. Nobody commented. Nobody embedded pictures or multimedia. I even  chose the titles for them with clever phrases like "Bell Work, January 17th" or "Exit Ticket May 6th." In short, they weren’t student blogs at all. They were student notebooks with a slightly digital flair. So, here are five things I did to move student blogging into a more meaningful experience. Please note that these are not meant to be solutions so much as ideas. I realize that teaching is contextual and my five fix-it ideas might not be relevant to you.

1. Student autonomy. I began with letting students design the physical layout of their blogs and create titles that fit who they were. This might sound superficial, but it was what kind of like letting them decorate their own room. It empowered them to own the space. Next, I encouraged students to find topics based upon their interests. From there, students began to write based upon their own interests. I encourage them to use labels to organize their posts based upon their own connective thinking.
2. Sometimes students still need ideas. I encourage them to brainstorm topics on a Google Doc. However, I also create visual prompts to help students access ideas and questions. Sometimes I post links that they might want to respond to.       
3. Treat blogging as a genre. Not everything is meant to go on a blog. Some things belong on Google Docs or sites or even e-mails. So, we treat blogging as a type of writing that is deliberately public and interactive. Let them understand how blog feeds, comments and embedded media work. I've learned that students won't add labels, pictures or links unless they see it modeled. For all the talk of Digital Natives, students don't initially get blogging and they aren't quick to go explore it themselves. We view blogs that we enjoy and we use some of those strategies on our student blogs.  
4. Multimedia: Often, blogs fail to take advantage of video, audio and visuals. Blogs became more dynamic when students could use multimedia to convey their voice. Yes, blogging nearly always corresponds to social studies, reading and writing standards. However, when students can be more holistic in their approach, the writing part can feel less intimidating. 
5. I pushed for interactivity. At first, I had to show students some sample discourse questions and stems. However, over time, they learned the art of conversation and the power of blogging to create nuance. Students want an audience. But it’s more than that. They want a conversation. That’s what blogging offers.