blogging – Pernille Ripp

4 1/2 years. That’s how long I have been spreading my random thoughts on the internet. What started out as a way for me to simply get things out of my mind, has grown to be an integral part of me. I never knew I would be a blogger. With that title comes many things; access to a vast network of people who know so much more than me, heartfelt discussions, emotional reflection, and even the occasional kick in the stomach when someone goes to the dark side on one of my posts. Yet I didn’t set out to blog, I merely started out wanting to write. So if you have been looking to start a blog, a few maybe not so traditional tips from me to you.

Start your blogging journey for yourself. Don’t think of the end game or where you would like your blog to go, think of what you would like it to do for you right now. I wanted a place to reflect out loud, I didn’t think anyone would read it, and that has made the biggest difference.
Don’t write for an audience, yet. I notice that when I start thinking of who may read a post my writing gets jilted and jagged. I start to change my voice to appease the imaginary eyes. So write for yourself, keep readability in mind, and don’t get hung up on whether people or not will read it.
Don’t share just the good. The internet is filled with amazing, and yet our classrooms are filled with attempts. So share the attempts, share the magnificent, share the catastrophes. Be as real online as you are in person, so if anyone who reads your blog comes to your class they wont wonder what happened.
Get to the point. I can get long winded too, but I try to edit myself. Blogs are meant to be quick doses of reflection, not papers of thought. Get to the point, stick to the point, and then find an image that underlines the point. Be brief and powerful.
Don’t map it out. I never knew what I was going to blog about in the future, I still don’t. And while some bloggers are incredibly good at sticking to an area, don’t make it too narrow. Your blog should allow you to grow as a person and if you box its focus in too much, you will hinder your own growth.
Change the world with kindness. I wish I had thought of this when I first started, I was much more determined in my message and much more one-sided. Now I try to push change with kindness. No one wants to hear how wrong they are or how awful what they are doing is, so be nice.
Keep your purpose in check. I think when we start to blog to get something, whether it be followers, comments, or even more work, it shows. And it shows it an icky, not so good kind of way. I have been guilty of this myself and I have later cringed at my posts. Don’t put yourself in cringe worthy positions, write from the heart, write it out, don’t write for terrible purposes.
Be thankful. I don’t expect anyone to read this blog, still. So for every person who reaches out to me, I try to give my thanks, sometimes more successfully than others. Blogging is something I do for me but the fact that others find it helpful as well never ceases to amaze me. Stay humble, stay thankful, don’t ever take others times for granted.
Create your own path. Whether you only blog when you are inspired (yup) or blog on a set schedule, know that there is not a right way to blog. Make it your own, make it work for you, and just figure it out.

However you start or continue your blogging journey make it meaningful to you. Make it something you are thankful for. Don’t wait for the world to acknowledge your genius, even if no one reads your blog, be proud. And if you think I should discover your blog, please leave me a link to it in the comments. I would love to add more inspiration to my life.

I am a passionate teacher in Oregon, Wisconsin, USA, who has taught 4th, 5th, and 7th grade. Proud techy geek, and mass consumer of incredible books. Creator of the Global Read Aloud Project, Co-founder of EdCamp MadWI, and believer in all children. I have no awards or accolades except for the lightbulbs that go off in my students’ heads every day. First book “Passionate Learners – Giving Our Classrooms Back to Our Students” can be purchased now from Powerful Learning Press. Second book“Empowered Schools, Empowered Students – Creating Connected and Invested Learners” is out now from Corwin Press. Follow me on Twitter @PernilleRipp.

being me, blogging, Student-centered

Common Concerns With Student Blogging Answered

July 15, 2014 Pernille Ripp

When I moved this blog to WordPress some posts did not survive, so in an effort to move some of my favorite posts with me, I will be republishing them here. This one first appeared in February, 2012.

You teach a child to blog and the whole world opens up to them. And yet, with that whole wide world comes a whole lot of responsibility. Some of the more frequent questions I receive is how I keep my students safe when they blog, how do I prevent cyber bullying, and how do I convince parents/districts that this is worthwhile. While I may not have all of the answers or any quick fix solutions, I do have a lot of passion for this.

First things first; student safety is paramount. I use Kidblog for this reason. It allows me to control who sees our posts, who comments, and also how open I want our account to be. But I don’t just give students their account information…there is a lot of preparation before then:

We talk at length about blogging, why it is important to us, why it is a privilege.
We visit other student blogs and we discuss whether we agree with their posts, with their etiquette and we decide how we want to represent ourselves.
We discuss what constitutes an actual blog post and what we share with the world. We discuss the difference between Edmodo and Kidblog, and there are many.
I show them scary videos of giving out information on the internet to strangers, we discuss how the Internet is like the mall.
We talk, reflect and then have further discussions before we even do our first mouse click. we create a paper blog to get a feel for commenting and I show my own blog to show them the power of blogging.
And this isn’t an only at the beginning of the year conversation, it is an always conversation. We always discuss safety, we always practice it, and we remind each other whenever need be.

Then there is the ugly reality of cyber bullying, and yes we face it head on and battle it. I have never had another child bully a classmate through blogging. They revere it too much. That is not to say that all of my students love each other, they don’t, they are 10 years olds, but they do respect each other. And I think that is the most important ingredient to prevent cyber-bullying; respect. We respect each other, and the differences we may have. We respect the privilege that it is to have a blog, to have a voice to the world. We discuss how this is a big deal and how we would never want to hurt someone purposely or even shine ourselves in that light. There is no anonymity on our blog, I make sure of that, and the students would have to sign their name to any comment that they leave. While they may not always get along we still have a sense of community that we work hard on achieving and maintaining from the very first moment we are together. I love my students as if they were my own kids and I think they feel that we are a family. That feeling takes us far.

But what about bullies from outside the classroom? I have our blog open for worldwide viewing, see this post on my optimal settings for global collaboration, so surely there must be nasty comments from strangers? The power of Kidblog is that it allows me to moderate every single comment and post that gets put up, so not only do the students have a spam filter, they also have me protecting them. In the four years I have been blogging with students, about 5 nasty comments have been left. No student ever saw them because I deleted them first.

Finally, the apprehension of parents. I have been incredibly lucky with my parent support but I have also worked hard for that. I have been completely transparent with the purpose and scope of our blogging. I have shown them examples and the direction in which I want to take the students. The communication is paramount to the success. I am not trying to exploit the works or thoughts of their children, and I am not bringing them into danger. They know I work hard to keep them safe and I think many of them appreciate the inherent internet safety message that these students embrace. But there is an opt out; blogging is not mandatory, nor is it part of their trimester report card grades. I have never had anyone take the option, they hear about it before they come to my room, and it is highlight for many. Parents understand that and I think they love seeing their child’s thoughts on so many times, their growth as a writer, and how their child is handling the responsibility.

Student blogging has changed the way I view my students and their voice. It is now an essential part of our classroom, our community, and of our curriculum. We revere, we tame it, and we use it properly; sometimes for fun and sometimes for serious study. There is no one solution to everything but there are several ingredients that have to be present if student blogging should be successful; respect, communication, transparency, and expectations. With those in place you will go far.

I am a passionate teacher in Wisconsin, USA, who has taught 4, 5th, and 7th grade. Proud techy geek, and mass consumer of incredible books. Creator of the Global Read Aloud Project, Co-founder of EdCamp MadWI, and believer in all children. I have no awards or accolades except for the lightbulbs that go off in my students’ heads every day. First book “Passionate Learners – Giving Our Classrooms Back to Our Students” can be purchased now from Powerful Learning Press. Second book“Empowered Schools, Empowered Students – Creating Connected and Invested Learners” can be pre-ordered from Corwin Press now. Follow me on Twitter @PernilleRipp.

Be the change, blogging, new year, Student-centered

Ideas for Integrating a Student Blog into Your Curriculum

July 15, 2014 Pernille Ripp

When I moved this blog to WordPress some posts did not survive, so in an effort to move some of my favorite posts with me, I will be republishing them here. This one first appeared in October, 2012.

One thing I have loved about blogging and what it does for my students is how easily it has been to integrate it into our curriculum. I knew when we started that I didn’t want an extra layer of “stuff to do” because we already have too much “stuff to do.” So if I were to have my students blog, it had to be as authentic and as meaningful as possible, without it becoming another homework burden. With that in mind, here are some beginning ideas for integrating blogging into your classroom.

Those daily journal responses we have to do as part of writers and readers workshop, those go on our blog instead for those who choose it. Some students prefer to type, others relish the pencil and paper, I love that they have a choice.
Writing about our reading. I love when students write about the books that they read or give recommendations. When we blog about that it opens up a dialogue, rather than a static finished product. Here students can become experts on their books and connect with others that loved it (or hated it) just as much as they did.
Science detectives. I love adding video cameras and digital cameras to our lessons. They offer students a different way to document their learning and they always provide me with a much deeper insight of what students now versus a worksheet. So why not post it on our blog for others to see and learn with us. This is a great a way for parents to see what is happening, as well as for the kids to be questioned by other classes or scientists. This adds a whole other dimension to our experiments.
Editorials or just plain old opinions. I love when students use their blogs to form, discuss or expand on their ideas. Our blogs are used to comment on the happenings in the classroom. I ask the students to become reflective learners and process their role as a student. It never ceases to amaze me what I learn from students when they open up on their blog.
Deepening social studies. I believe in project based learning and social studies lends itself incredibly well to this. So I encourage students to expand their thinking about their project through their blogs, as well as to post finished products if “postable.”
Group writing. I love it when students write blog posts together, whether it be for a story or to share a common experience. Blogging as a team or group shows off their ability to conform to a common voice while adding individual flair.
Reporting on events. When we go anywhere or take a virtual field trip I ask students to share their experiences, show of their expertise, and give me their honest opinion. Field trips don’t end after you get back, they should be digested and discussed and blogging is a great medium for that.
Furthering their mathematical thinking. I used to have students do exit slips on which they explained something we learned in their own words and while I still use them once in a while, I love using our blog instead. I have students create a problem that fits into what we discussed and then solve it for, or explain their thinking behind the problem. We can then invite others into our math class and students get to share their knowledge.
Let me know how I am doing. While not part of our curriculum, this is a huge factor in the success of our classroom. Students have to have a mouthpiece in education and by voicing their opinions on our blogs we are able to engage other educators and students in the debate. Change starts with us, so we should be providing students with an outlet for their opinions.
Finally, and most importantly, it has started a global conversation in our classroom and brought the world in. Student blogging is one the easiest ways to trylu help students shape their global citizenry.

These ideas are beginnings, there are so many things you can do with student blogs, you just have to jump in and look for the natural fits in your curriculum. Students don’t need more work, they need more authenticity in their educational experience. Blogs can help us do that.

blogging, new year, Student-centered

My Kidblog Settings for Optimal Global Collaboration

July 15, 2014July 15, 2014 Pernille Ripp

When I moved this blog to WordPress some posts did not survive, so in an effort to move some of my favorite posts with me, I will be republishing them here.

Those who have followed this blog for a while or have found it because you are searching for student blogging resources, know how deeply passionate I am about student blogging and global collaboration. I am therefore often asked what my settings are for Kidblog and for my students’ use of the site so I thought I would share these. I have found these settings to offer the safety needed for my students while still allowing them and the world to have a dialogue.

Posts Settings:

I find it incredibly important that anyone can read our posts and so far my school district has agreed. I do, however, give parents a way to opt their students out of blogging if they do not feel comfortable with their child doing it since it is so public. However, no student has ever been opted out. Safety is my main concern, as well as how these students represent themselves, so I do moderate all posts before they are published. I do not get an email but simply check every day. My students blog too much for me to be notified each time one of them writes a new post.

Comments Settings:

Again, we do not have password to leave comments on our site nor do you have to be an approved member. We blog to start conversations with others around the world and as long as I am moderating all comments, I feel we can do it safely. Every once in a while do I need to delete a comment before a student sees it but mostly because it is a spam one or a duplicate one. In the four years I have blogged with students, I think we have had 2 insensitive comments left. I deleted them – no harm done.

Finally, Student Settings:

This is where Kidblog keeps proving its brilliance and relevance; this year they added that students could edit their own profiles, thus customizing it to fit their needs. This has been a huge hit for my students because they feel more in control of their blog and the image they are presenting to the world. I also like that they can change their password since this is an important computer skill for them to be aware of. I can still access all of their accounts without knowing their password.

So there you have it, our settings for our classroom student blog, I hope it was helpful, as always if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to ask. And no, I am not a paid spokesperson for Kidblog; I just love their blogging platform.
I am a passionate teacher in Wisconsin, USA, who has taught 4, 5th, and 7th grade. Proud techy geek, and mass consumer of incredible books. Creator of the Global Read Aloud Project, Co-founder of EdCamp MadWI, and believer in all children. I have no awards or accolades except for the lightbulbs that go off in my students’ heads every day. First book “Passionate Learners – Giving Our Classrooms Back to Our Students” can be purchased now from Powerful Learning Press. Second book“Empowered Schools, Empowered Students – Creating Connected and Invested Learners” can be pre-ordered from Corwin Press now. Follow me on Twitter @PernilleRipp.

Be the change, blogging, new year, Student-centered

6 + 1 Steps to Better Student Blogging

July 15, 2014 Pernille Ripp

image from icanread

When I moved this blog to WordPress some posts did not survive, so in an effort to move some of my favorite posts with me, I will be republishing them here. This post appeared in September, 2012.

When I started blogging with my students, I had no idea what I was doing. I knew I wanted them to write, I knew I wanted them to connect, and I knew I wanted them to reflect openly on many issues and not just blog their writing assignments. Sometimes their blogs blew me away and other times I wanted to encourage them to hit delete rather than publish. Over the years as I have seen our blogging reach a wider audience, we have fine-tuned what it means to blog and it is something that I continue to work on with every batch of new students. So how can you take your blogging from just writing to actual global collaboration and reflection, well, these tips may help.

Be a blogger yourself! I show this blog to my students and we discuss what I do to keep an ongoing dialogue going. We discuss what my writing looks like and who I am writing for. The students notice the care I take with my posts and also that I (usually) comment back. Because I am dedicated to my own blog, I know how much work it is and also how fulfilling it is. Why would you ever ask students to bare their souls if you haven’t bared your own?
Make it authentic. Yes, I have students write about curriculum once in a while, but rarely is just a typed up version of something they already wrote. So if you want them to blog about an in-class topic such as science, how about making them keep a science inquiry diary where they discuss and reflect on their discoveries and answer questions from others?
Discuss the difference. We tend to assume that students know the difference between blogging and writing but they usually don’t. So make a chart, a list, a poster, something and use the students’ own language to discuss the similarities and differences. Post it and bring it up again, particularly if you see students’ writing not developing the way it should.
Create expectations. Again, ask the students; what should a great blog post look like? Then hold them to it. I have certain requirements the students have to follow and they also add their own to them, after all, this is being published to the world. While I would not have my students write a rough draft and then type that up, I believe we can hold them to a certain standard when it comes to their blogging. It should be punctuated correctly, spelled mostly correctly, and it should be a blog post, not just a couple of lines.
Make the time for it. And keep it! I have an urge to blog most days and I do wait until inspiration strikes, however, that takes training in a sense. I love to blog and I love the conversations that follow blog posts, but this is something I have grown accustomed to. I didn’t start out that way and neither do most of my students. So dedicate class time to blog, discuss their blogs, and celebrate the comments the students get. Make it a big deal because it is! When we grow complacent about our student blogs, they lose their deeper meaning and students can take the global connections aspect for granted. The blog then becomes just another forced writing assignment. So make them a big deal and keep them that way.
Prepare, Discuss, and Reflect. Before you start blogging, do all of the necessary preparation. Then while you blog discuss how it is going, fine-tune the expectations, and maintain a blogging presence in the classroom. Reflect once in a while; how is the blogging going? Should we take a break? Have students run the discussion, it is there hearts and minds on the line, not yours.
Ask if they want to. This extra step may sound crazy, after all, we are the teachers. but some kids don’t want the whole world to see their writing even if their parents are okay with it. So ask students how they feel about starting this journey and respect if students don’t want their work published. I sometimes had students wirte a blog post just to me and then told me not to publish it, this always led to great discussions about the post and their feelings.

If you need more help, please visit my blogging resource page. I even have a letter for parents on blogs that you can make your own. But in the end, if you do student blogging right, it may just turn into one of the most rewarding experiences for the students and for you. And even if you don’t do it right, it is never too late to fix it. Happy blogging!

blogging, Student-centered

14 Steps to Meaningful Student Blogging

July 15, 2014August 23, 2014 Pernille Ripp

When I moved this blog to WordPress some posts did not survive, so in an effort to move some of my favorite posts with me, I will be republishing them here. This post first appeared in May, 2011 and continues to be one of my most read.

Students getting ready to teach others about blogging

So you have heard about blogging with your students and you are considering taking the plunge but just not sure what or how to do it? I am here to tell you; blogging with my students has been one of the most enriching educational experiences we have had this year, and that says a lot. So to get you started, here is what I have learned:

Pick an easy platform, both for you and the students. I used Kidblog with great success, it fit our needs, it is free and it offers easy moderation. There are other great alternatives out there such as WordPress or EduBlogs
Teach them how to blog first. We did an excellent paper blogging lesson first (found on the blog of McTeach), which brought up why we were blogging and how to do it appropriately. This got the students excited, interested as well as got them thinking about what great comments look and sound like.
Talk safety! We assume some students know how to be safe, but don’t assume it; teach them the do’s and dont’s. I came up with the lesson of why the Internet is like the mall and it really worked. I also sent home safety plans for students and parents to discuss and we discussed it throughout the year. To see all of the forms I use for this, please go here.
Teach them how to comment. In order for blogging to be effective, comments are needed, but if students don’t know how to properly comment they will lose out on part of the experience. We discuss how to thank people, how to answer their questions, and most importantly, how to ask questions back. This is all part of common conversational knowledge that all kids should be taught any way.
Start small. The first post was an introduction of themselves. It was an easy topic and something they really liked to do. They then got to comment on each others post as well which started to build community.
Include parents. Parents always know what we are doing and are invited to comment. The students loved the extra connection and parents loved seeing what the kids were doing.
Connect with one or two classes to be buddies. While comments from around the world are phenomenal, the connections are what it is all about. So reach out on Twitter or through the most excellent #comments4kids and set up something more permanent. The students relish getting to know one another and the comments become even more worthwhile. Thanks Mr. Gary’s class in Egypt and Mr. Reuter’s 6th grade class in Merton, Wisconsin for being our buddies.
Speaking of #comments4kids, this excellent site created by Will Chamberlain is a must for anyone blogging with students. Link their blog to it and ask people to comment, tweet it out with the hashtag #comments4kids, and use it to find classes to comment on.
Visit other classroom blogs. Show them how other kids use it and have it inspire them. Blogs can be found through Twitter or the comments4kids site.
Let them explore. My students love to play around with font, color, and images. They taught each other how to do anything fancy and also let each other know when font or color choices were poor. This was a way for students to come into their own as creative writers and also start to think about creating their online identity.
Don’t grade! Blogging is meant to be a way to practice writing for an audience and learning to respond to critique, not a graded paper. I would often tell students my requirements and even make them go back and edit but I never ever chastised them for mistakes made.
Challenge them. Often students would ask to write about topics but we also had a blogging challenge almost weekly. This was my way of finding out what they really thought about fourth grade, their dreams, their hopes and their lives. The kids always wondered what the next challenge would be and looked forward to writing them. We would also share creative writing pieces from class, create diaries of work we did, and share our op.ed. pieces.
Map the connections. We have a world map in our classroom that we use to push pin people we connect with, it is amazing to see it grow and what a geography lesson is has turned out to be. Students are acutely aware of where Egypt, Alabama, New York and other places in the news are because they have connected with people there.
Give it time! Some students took to it right away, others weren’t so sure, and yet they all ended up loving it. The sheer mass of paper I have had to print to create their writing portfolio is staggering and it shows how ingrained it became in our classroom. I now have kids blogging when they are sick, out of school or just because.

So here it is, take the leap and believe in your students’ ability to stay safe and appropriate on the internet. Stay tuned for a student-created video tutorial on how to use Kidblog, kids teaching kids, that is learning worth doing. To see our student blogs and maybe even leave comment, please go here.