How to start blogging with students

By the next session, everyone agreed to try to put something on the blog, either ready to use with students, or ideally actually use something directly with students.  Below are some ideas for setting work on the blog, complete with some examples where it’s been done already.  If you have more ideas, that you’ve tried or would like to try, or questions, or any other comments, please leave a comment below to add to the ideas in the post:

• Homework stage 1: Set a homework task on it – literally just write the homework up there so all students can see it – here’s an example 
• Homework stage 2: Set a homework task on it where the task involves a question and students add a comment to the post, responding to the question – here’s an example.
•  Homework stage 3: Set a homework task including a link to a document or a website, so students have to follow the link and then do something – either in their books or by responding via a comment, as above – here’s an example.
• All the homework above could also be done as classwork – either by booking an ICT suite or a laptop trolley
• Welcome them to the blog and ask them to comment on what they think and how they’d like you to use it (could be set as class or homework).  Here’s an example
• Put some good links up, either in a post or in your blogroll, and set a task using them – here’s an example
• Put some information up on the blog for students to read, then set a test in the next lesson based on it
• Post a number of pictures, or links to articles with opposing views, different news stories etc, and ask students to evaluate (e.g. which design do you like best and why?  Which view do you agree with and why?)
• Put student work up there – particularly useful for student revision presentations like these ones
• Put student work up and then get the other students to evaluate it by posting a comment – like this example
• Post a link to a tutorial – like this one.

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