A lot of people visiting my blog have read one of the quotes I posted:

“Actions are like typewriters. They don’t have backspaces.”

Yes, it is true, I came up with this. But, I’m not going to talk to you about that right now. I’m going to tell how my quote relates to blogs, even though it seems as if it doesn’t.

When you post something new on the Internet, wherever it is-MySpace, Facebook, your blog-the second you publish it, the whole world can see it. That’s how blogging relates to my quote. But, is this the end? No, far from it! Who you are online should reflect who you are offline. It’s always bad to pretend to be something you’re not. For instance, if I were to go out on the web and say, “Yeah, I think global warming is not happening,” I would be lying, especially if I was doing everything I could OFFLINE to stop it.

“Actions are like typewriters. They don’t have backspaces.”

This quote is completely true. Your voice online should reflect your voice offline.
Now that you know all this, you might be wondering what blogging is. Well, blogging is an online way to express yourself and/or your feelings about something. A blog is a website where these things are posted for the world to see, read, and comment on.

A few weeks ago, my English teacher, Ms. Sterne, told us that we were all going to have our own blogs. Like most other people, I was completely excited. That night, she had us create an account on Learner Blogs. A few days later, Mrs. Deisley, who is really, really good at blogging and such, talked to our class about having an “online voice,” posting, and she showed us some other people’s blogs. It’s amazing to see how “small” the world is with the Internet! Anyways, she taught us how to be safe on the Internet; this means whatever you post, anytime and anywhere, anyone can view it.

Blogging is cool. Having a blog is a way to express yourself. But, since everything is being published on the Internet, blogging comes with a few extra rules. The most important being:

“Actions are like typewriters. They don’t have backspaces.” -Samantha D.

Photo: Typewriter, uploaded by Garda

“But words are things, and a small drop of ink,
Falling, like dew, upon a thought, produces
That which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think”.
–Lord Byron

I spent Friday morning exploring the world of blogs with 150 7th graders. Their wonderful English teachers are giving them a gift: their own individual blogs. Assessed only for completion they will be geared towards passions, interests, and development of individual voice. The student excitement was contagious, and their engagement evident. I cannot wait to see what they will discover about themselves and one another, who the writers are and who the community builders will be!

Process
I spent the first part of each class brainstorming with the students to identify what blogging is and how it is different than writing to an audience of 1.

We discussed Lord Byron’s quote, and the students–in groups of about 40 separated by gender (we are piloting single gender classes at Lovett with great success)–were very clear about his poetry. “We have the ability to be influential with our words,” they exclaimed. (I was impressed…) We talked about words, reflection, our voices, conversation and commentary, and the difference when you write in a social context.

After determining what makes blogging different than traditional classroom writing we started reading. We spend the majority of the class looking at a wide variety of blogs, everything from Cute Overload and Daily Kitten to World Changing and Huffington’s Post to Bethany’s Post on Spiders (and the comments!) and 7th Grade Students Blogging in Singapore. We read about first time horse ownership, basketball, tap dancing, and why Dino Guardio should be Coach of the Year. (OK, tonight’s UNC domination of Wake Forest will have me eating crow tomorrow…)

It was fascinating to explore these sites with them looking at text, design, structure and discussing images, video, and copyright. They were blown away by the Clustr Maps, and intrigued by blogrolls and links. Be Funky avatars and Vokis were tempting diversions for the boys, while the girls wrestled with “does mine have to have just one ‘theme’”?

We’ll be in the labs on Tuesday and Wednesday getting started, and then I’ll move into my observing, commenting, and tweaking role–working with teachers and students. I look forward to sharing their voices from time to time. And I hope this community with help them grow. The classroom home sites are English 7 Blue and English 7 White.

PS: If you’d care to see the initial overview with links to the various blogs we considered, I’ve attached the document below.

intro-to-blogging.doc

Meet Tyrone, @tkidd132 on Twitter, a member of my personal learning network. Currently, Tyrone is an 8th grader at a traditional middle school in Philly, but he hopes to be accepted at the progressive, inquiry-driven Science Leadership Academy next year. Interestingly, Tyrone and I met “f2f” (face to face) last weekend when he and I, Erin Dixon, and another 200+ educators and some students, met up at SLA to contemplate “School 2.0″ as part of EduCon. It was an education conference, but rather than a traditional conference setup, it was more like a wonderful conversation that you hate to see end. Since then, I’ve stumbled upon Tyrone hanging out with all of us on EdTechTalk last Monday night, and I’ve kept up with his comings and goings through our shared Twitter connection. In person, Tyrone is a little bit shy and reserved- but get him in a conversation with you–or online–and he puts it all out there. He is so engaged and inspired that he’s already calling for a “student conference” about what learning environments should look like in the future. And he wants to write…

Now meet Arthus. Arthus is 15 years old, and he also attended EduCon. However, meeting Arthus was a bit like meeting a celebrity: Arthus writes his own blog, Newly Ancient; he is one of the contributors at Student 2.0, a blog written by select students from around the world; and, at this particular event Arthus was leading his own workshop on student voice. Something tells me he really understands the power of the platforms he’s chosen–if you take a look, he’s clearly got a voice. The following map came from the Student 2.0 blog, indicating Arthus and his friends are drawing thousands of visitors from around the world:

I highlight these students because there is something “different” about them–something really special. They are engaged learners, and they are curious. And even though they may not find their own schools “relevant” for the learning they want to do, they have found a network. They’ve harnessed the Internet by reading, connecting along interest lines, reflecting, and writing…and they have found “voice.” They have something to say and they’ve found an authentic audience. As importantly I think, they’ve discovered they can be responsible for their learning and they enjoy it. You’ll note their writing and participation in this conference are not for “a grade” and are not “required”. The network and authentic audience gave them all the motivation they needed. A voice heard.

I wonder then: How might we as a middle school provide more opportunities for our students to “find their voice” and take more responsibility for their learning process? Who might we bring into their network? What kind of community might we provide for these voices here within these sacred walls? Do students have to “go outside” to find that kind of affirmation and learning opportunity? Maybe yes, maybe no….it depends on what you’re after.

Your thoughts?