C4K #1

Commenting on kid’s blog posts was such a joy! I loved delving into their little, yet vast minds. I believe it is a great way for us as future educators to get a feel for what children enjoy and dislike in the classroom, as well as allowing students to showcase their creativity and get feedback from people all over the world.

I absolutely loved reading about the Pt. England School in New Zealand. It was awesome to look around their class blogs and get a tiny peek into their educational culture. They seemed like a very interactive, involved, and motivated school and class. I really enjoyed how Stevie mentioned the good things that he AND his classmates did. I thought that showed great sportsmanship. I asked Stevie if he thought that the numerous team activities they did strenghtened his ability to work well with his classmates. Maybe he'll respond and shed a little light into that subject. Their class had a silly sports activity day where they played games like squeezing sponges to fill buckets up the fastest, and a fun tennis race that kind of sounded like a three legged race to me. I asked him for a little further explanation because he seemed to really love that game.

The following week I read a child's blog from Mr. Wolfe's class. All of the children in Mr. Wolfe's class had great things to say about him as a teacher. I definitely got the vibe that he enjoys making learning a worthwhile and interactive experience for his students. The child whose blog I read wrote a very short post saying he thought Mr. Wolfe was awesome! I decided to read more of his material later and I found out that he is in fact, a very creative and detailed writer. This finding furthers my theory that creating student/class blogs is a fantastic way to foster creative writing in young students. I believe often times children lose their passion for writing, or whatever the subject if it is made boring by a certain teacher. It takes a long time for one teacher to reignite the fire another let smolder.

We were given the pleasure to get a glimpse into the Mobile County schools for our third assignment. As I watched the video put on by Mr. Capps in the St. Elmo school, I began to feel very excited that this will be me one day soon. Not only did I enjoy watching the kids get so involved, I also liked seeing how much it fired Anthony up to see what he created with the children. I can imagine it's a pretty good feeling to realize you have created an exciting, challenging, and rewarding day for your students! The children, especially Josie, were thrilled to be on camera. It was obvious they were very proud of their self portraits as well as their ability to share their similarities and differences with everyone else. I think this a wonderful way to teach children art, self exploration, and professional and personal skills (by being on camera). Kudos to Mr. Capps and his adventurous explorers!

Lastly, I read about Natty's avatar in Sydney, Australia. Her blog was so interesting to look around on. It was filled with fun pictures, interactive clocks, information about her visitors and where she lives, and many more entertaining widgets. Natty is a part of the Student Blogging Challenge that takes place for ten weeks every March and September. She vividly and clearly described her Avatar which was a combination of many different animals ranging from a polar bear to a spider. I loved her bright imagination and spirit! I believe these blogging contests to be an innovative twist on Creative writing contests. Blogging keeps creative writing an integral part of the curriculum while also allowing students to interact, derive ideas, and learn about other student's cultures.