Blogging: How to Teach and Promote Quality Writing

In my 31 years as an elementary educator, I have never seen a project more powerful for sharing classroom learning, making global connections,  and building a positive digital footprint for young students than having a classroom blog. I recommend every classroom teacher consider flattening the walls via blogging. There are so many benefits!

Educational blogging is also a fantastic way to teach and promote high standards for writing. Students want their writing to get published and educational blogging is a great way to leverage that interest.  


I have two educational blogs that I use in our learning. Mrs. Yollis' Classroom Blog is a public blog where classroom events and projects are published. The comment section is where the blog comes to life. Students and parents interact in this online community. 

My second blog is called Yollis' 365 Blog, and it is a public photo-of-the-day blog. Students, family members, and other classes throughout the world contribute photos and text. The digital images are used to inspire creative stories, spark  poetry entries, and share information about hobbies and interests. 

Below are TWO videos I've made to help teachers begin blogging with their students.  

1. This is a video made by Mrs. Yollis' students called How to Compose a Quality Comment!  It offers FIVE tips to help take comments to the next level! I use this video to teach students about content. 

2. This is a video made by Mrs. Yollis' students called Tips to Ensure Quality Blogging. It outlines the rules for participation in our classroom blogs and the agreements the students make when publishing on our blogs.

Do you have any questions about blogging for my students?

How has your writing improved through participation on the blog? 

CUE Keynote: Connected Educator Month

Last weekend, I was the keynote speaker at the San Luis Obispo CUE conference! CUE stands for Computer Using Educators.

Since October is Connected Educator Month, the subject of my keynote was connecting. Connecting my classroom to learning opportunities via technology is a priority for me, and I am always looking for new ways to connect and learn.

Photo by John Miller

The first connections I made were through blogging. In my keynote, I chronicled how one connection with Australian blogger, Kathleen Morris, lead to numerous global projects for my students. Read about some of our global projects here. Kathleen and I met face-to-face after two years of collaboration when we presented  Flattening the Classroom Walls through Blogging at ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education). Here is my Educational Blogging wiki with resources and ideas for starting a classroom blog.

Connecting our students has never been more important. Here is a link to a great post called Digital Writing and Common Core by Joe Wood. Publishing, interacting, and collaborating digitally are Anchor Standards for writing. Below is a document put together by Joe Wood. He highlights some anchor standards over four grade levels (Kindergarten, 4th, 8th, and 12th). Check out what will be happening in kindergarten!

click to enlarge

Graphic by Joe Wood

I also encouraged educators to connect and learn with one another through Twitter.

Here is a presentation about using Twitter to build your PLN!
 (Personal Learning Network) 

According to Rodd Lucier, there are seven degrees of connectedness. Here are his Seven Degrees of Connectedness in an infographic put together by Silvia Tolisano.

Click to enlarge. 

Teachers, what are some ways that you've connected your classroom? Can you offer some advice to other teachers?

Parents, how has your child benefited from connecting and publishing online? 

Students, what do you like about publishing and collaborating online?