While reading a selection of these blogs, there is a great deal of ‘throwing ideas out there’ kind of writing.  Bloggers have ideas and opinions and are putting themselves and their ideas out there.  This vulnerability is risky.  There are agreements and disagreements and modifications and building and changing going on.  But isn’t that the big idea?  To exchange thoughts?  It brings me to the Bible verse “as iron sharpens iron, so does one man sharpen another.”  There is nothing to lose here- as a reader or a writer or a collaborator.  I didn’t 100% agree with an article questioning homework, but just exploring the idea of it makes me think.  And that is the big picture.

Reading blogs is sometimes getting a snapshot of an idea.  Some blog posts are not fully developed ideas.  there are essays, reports, narratives, opinions, etc.  Reading and writing go hand-in-hand.  It is hard to do one exclusively of the other.  Blogging is current.  Even if the topic is Oedipus and Greek mythology, the conversation, the connections life and learning are clearly modern.  Commenting encourages a forum of thought.  Expand and question and get direct response from the author of the original blog.  Bloggers create their own meaning as they converse (much of which is done without expecting a response, just an audience).  It is an outlet for self-talk, that innate desire to be heard without having to make a lot of noise.  Commenting is a quite, unobtrusive means to an end.
Most of the blogging I read here was well-stated and of appropriate length and depth for its intended audience.  With the ease and maneuverability of a mouse, I can scan for eye-catching words/paragraphs that get ‘to the point.’  I read faster and I find myself typing faster, too.

On that note, blogging has a well-deserved spot in our teaching and student learning, if only we could allow the time and access.  The criterion for learning is well-supported by blogging and its benefits, which far outweigh any risks.  Connectivity, ownership, recognition, etc. are the rewards.

Kids are very good at doing that.  They will play (Habit 7 1/2) and enjoy the learning process, whereas I am crunched for time and get impatient and frustrated if my own learning is not progressing smoothly.  I am excited about learning and passing it on.  We have 4 computers in my classroom this year for the students’ use.  We set rules for time and sharing and the kids have done enormously well with them.  They can do more than I give them credit for sometimes and, realizing that, I have given them more responsibility and exploration with their assignments.  I am seeing the ‘digital learner’ in all my students.  I am also encouraging my students to encourage their parents to learn along with their children.  In our little classroom, we can becom a network of learners!  I am super excited to be a part of the future~