If you want the kids to blog ... plan for it

I have found it tricky to get used to including blogging into daily planning. It hasn't quite come naturally to me ... yet.

This is an area I will continue to develop because the children enjoy it so much and I believe it is a great way to encourage and support writing learning. If the children blog more then they will get more traffic on their blog, which will make them write more - more posts = more traffic = more posts = more traffic.

Learning how to use Google Maps - more fun for me than the kids!

I loved learning how to use Google Maps to share my Winter holiday with the class. It incorporated so much learning, Reading, Writing, Geography, and Research and the children loved seeing them and learning about others holidays too.

Click on the link to check it out too.

Where have you been all my life Story Bird?

This term I was introduced to the wonder that is Story Bird. As my Teacher Inquiry this year is around the use of digital technology and its benefits on struggling writers, Story Bird has been a welcomed addition to our weekly programme.

The children love the graphics and the addition of words (which I have previously selected) takes away the stress some children face when writing. Every week each piece of poetry produced has improved greatly as we have discussed the layout and structure as well as shared them with the class. My next step is getting these onto the children's blogs more frequently so they can be shared and enjoyed with family.

Crazy 8's

8 ideas in 8 minutes
Here are a few ideas for a Plastic-Free Tairawhiti