Blogging . . .

When we first began blogging for this program, I was quite intimidated.  I was fairly certain that even within the cohort there would be only a few who would read my musings.  Likely, each person would read and respond to only the required number of blogs and then move on to their next reading, reflection, lesson plan or assignment.  Admittedly, I was tempted to use this approach.  I was certainly interested in what my classmates had to say, but like everyone else in the cohort, I felt pressed for time and needed to quickly move on to my next priority.

During the Fall Quarter, I found myself starting to think of how I would compose my Blog when I would have an experience in a classroom that I really wanted to share with the cohort.  This was quite a change from the initial, "hmmm, what should I write about this week?"  Those blogs where I felt truly inspired seemed to draw the most comments.  Coincidence?

I read several of my cohorts posts and did not simply post a response to the first two I read.  I kept reading and waited until I felt that I had something worthwhile to add to the conversation.  Throughout this process I have realized that despite the fact that we are a somewhat diverse group of people, we all have one very strong common interest.  We all have different perspectives that are worth exploring.  Every comment posted to my blogs has made me think a bit more about what I posted.  That seems like success.

When I have read commercial blogs for our curating assignment and just for my own personal interest, I have noticed that sometimes the most interesting, although not necessarily the most educational parts, are the comments.  I am fairly conservative.  I am not trying to spark a debate or write a provocative piece that will have everyone chiming in with their experiences.  However, I do feel some level of validation when I see a comment "awaiting moderation."

I certainly hope that I continue to grow in my Blogging experience.  I find that writing is so helpful for helping me to think about what I think.  Putting the words down "on paper" and reading them aloud, as if I am reading them to my classmates, makes me think more carefully about what I want to say.  Often, while editing, I realize that there was much more to the experience than I had originally thought.  The process of determining how I want to convey it to my audience gives me the chance to, dare I say it, reflect.

CURATING

EVERNOTE NOTEBOOK - Struggling Readers (k-3)

The information in this notebook was curated by Nikka, Molly, and Alicia.  If you should peruse it and find anything interesting, please let us know.  Also, please feel free to suggest additional links to ideas to help Struggling Readers in Primary Grades.

Thank you.