Video Title: Zombie Journal versus Blog: Kidblog Overview and Tutorial Objective: Using a personal Kidblog account, students will publish a blog post with links, video, and pictures as needed to convey their message. Using a personal Kidblog account, students will comment on other students’ blog posts with evidence that they have read the post. Target Audience: 4th-5th grade students (9-12 years of age) Contextual Framework: Traditional means (paper & pencil) for writing can be arduous and uninspiring for the digitally-inclined student. Currently at the elementary level, students have limited interaction with digital literacy. Students need to interact with web-tools that promote 21st century literacy skills. With blogs, they can publish their writings, while interacting with hypermedia. In the case of this video, the Kidblog platform will be used to enhance students’ computer and digital literacy skills. Project Description: This instructional video will train students how to navigate and construct blog posts. It will be part of a series of instructional tutorials on using specific educational technologies, which will facilitate learning experiences within the traditional classroom. As a result, the instructional video should act as a supplemental resource for teaching students how to create blog posts. The instructional video will review the following topics:
How to log into and navigate through their Kidblog accounts How to create, save, and publish a blog post How to upload multimedia How to read and comment on other’s blogs
To access the video and additional instructional resources, students will need Internet access, a computer, and a Kidblog account to perform the tasks taught within the instructional video. Overall, this instructional video will teach students how to create blog posts using Kidblog and allow parents to review the concept of blogging. This video will not focus on writing techniques. Project Rationale: Fourth and fifth grade students will have a difficult time focusing on a mere screencast; however, students can benefit from learning through a video tutorial—a helpful learning tool within the online or “flipped classroom” (Baseghian, 2011). Therefore, because some students have a fascination with Zombies, a Kidblog screencast, with a theme revolving around zombies, could be more engaging. Basically, the Zombie theme will be used to excite students’ interest in blogging.
Blogging for Teachers: By creating blog posts weekly, teachers should model the use of blogs to Communicate with students and parents after hours Collaborate with students, parents, or other professionals Remix content and share it with students, parents, staff, and other professionals Connect with professionals around the world Connect the classroom with classrooms around the world Promote writing conventions in digital literacy to develop language skills Assess students reading, writing, thinking, and communicating Post tasks to complete project-based learning tasks with students Reflect and share practices with other professionals o Engage in Personal Learning Network (PLN) o Perfect the teaching craft o Share ideas for that work for teachers Post assignments or questions for students to respond Share learning theories Provide instruction for extra assistance Post writing prompts Post inspiring daily assignments, which promote interactive web-based technologies Write a description of a specific teaching unit or project Provide tutorials on how-to use certain technologies at home Showcase student work and class activities Publish examples of good work Post class photos of class activities Provide teaching tips for parents or other professionals Describe difficulties students are experiencing in class and suggestions for improvement “Flip the Classroom” o Post content related to learning objectives o Post videos of direct instruction o Post calendars, assignments, syllabus, rules, etc. o Post various forms of media for students to preview o Create book clubs o Create literature circles
Blogging for Students: With the truly public nature of blogging, students can use their blogs to: Create an online portfolio for assignments o Showcase products of Project-Based Learning o Showcase their best writing pieces Comment on teacher’s posts or other media shared Collaborate and complete group assignments o Provide different tasks to each group member o Provide links to each members blog as a bread crumb effect Respond to writing prompts or thought-provoking questions Curate and share a student-centered blog topic Create personal journal posts Write various genres and across the curriculum Publish writing instantaneously for an audience of their peers Improve their writing practices and to develop succinct writing for their audience Evaluate and respond to other student work (peer review) Engage in digital literacy and multimedia Become aware of the word choice and conveying the exact meaning they intended Promote meaningful discussions Review their growth as a writer Communicate with the class regardless of a tendency to be shy and reserved Connect with other writers in a real-world platform for writing Engage in higher level reflective, metacognitive writing Complete a WebQuest (online and structured research)
Student Basic Blogging Checklist Student publishes post
Yes
No
Uploads pictures to blog successfully
Yes
No
Uploads video to blog successfully
Yes
No
Student creates hyperlinks effectively
Yes
No
Students read and comment on other blogs
Yes
No
Blogging Rubric 4
3
2
1
Creating Posts Student successfully Student published posts published posts according to according to the assignment the assignment requirements requirements. and has created posts on their own accord.
Student published post on an inconsistent basis but may have saved drafts.
Student does not have any saved drafts or published posts.
Some multimedia was present. The multimedia does not always enhance the content. It seemed as though the multimedia was used for the sake of using multimedia.
The blog was all text and the use of multimedia was ignored.
Student rarely participated in the blogging community with comments. Most, if not all, participation was limited to simple remarks.
Student did not show evidence of participation in the blogging community through the use of commenting on other’s posts.
Some of the images, media or text created by others does not display appropriate copyright permissions and does not include accurate, properly formatted citations.
No images, media or text created by others display appropriate copyright permissions and do not include accurate, properly formatted citations.
Multimedia: Integration Appropriately used of all types of multimedia within posts. (i.e. images, video, and/or hyperlinks) Multimedia related to the post subject and enhanced learning/understanding. A good variety of multimedia has been used.
Appropriately used of most types of multimedia within posts. (i.e. images, video, or hyperlinks) Multimedia related to the post subject and enhances learning and understanding. Its use can be limited.
Community: Commenting Student participated actively in the blogging community with comments on other weblogs. Their comments were respectful and promoted meaningful discussion.
Student participated moderately in the blogging community. There was some evidence of out-of-class participation. Their comments promoted some discussion.
Digital Citizenship: Citations All images, media and text created by others display appropriate copyright permissions and accurate citations
Most images, media or text created by others display appropriate copyright permissions and accurate, properly formatted citations.
Resource Baseghian, T (2011). The flipped classroom defined. Retrieved from: http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2011/09/the-flipped-classroom-defined/ Richardson, W. (2010). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (3rd Edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Company. Solomon, G. & Schrum, L. (2010). Web 2.0 how-to for educators: The indispensable companion to web 2.0: new tools, new schools. Eugene, OR: ISTE.