Well, if you must know, day one just plain got away from me. I'm not sure how that happened, but suddenly it was Tuesday night and I just thought about the blogging course that I was all keen for just two days ago.
The assignment for day one involved doing some analysis of design and layout and clarifying the purpose of your blog. Honestly, my purpose is to put some of my ideas into writing so that I am forced to clarify my thinking. I'm not trying to generate business for my infinitesimal consulting business or start debates with people who are better known than I am. I'm thrilled when I get into a conversation here though, don't get me wrong.
On to Day Two
See--I separated that with bold text! Did it look better??
The assignment for day two is to write a list post. At first I thought I just didn't have a list in me, but then I remembered that just this morning I was making a list of magazines I think make great reading for 11th grade students. One of the assignments I hope to give early on in the year will involve reading an entire magazine from cover to cover in several settings. I don't want kids to just power through in an hour but dip in for several shorter reading sessions. (I think this has to be a paper assignment). Then students will do a reading level analysis, and share thoughts about writing quality, audience, and style. We'll make a bulletin board of favorite articles.
On to the list:
Magazines I'd like to have in my classroom:
Scientific Mind. Cool stuff in here!
The Week. A global perspective on the news that most students haven't seen before. Plus interesting, well-written feature articles.
Sports Illustrated. The writing is usually strong--especially with the features rather than the weekly "news" of sports.
People. Yes, People. While there are some issues that make me cringe, there are other profiles that can be touching, inspirational, instructive and even cautionary. Good material for teens!
Wired. I'm not sure about this one. I like it, but I don't know if students would.
Reader's Digest. Fun and usually pretty easy to read. The "breaks" with the little jokes were always a favorite of mine when I was a teen. I haven't read this in years.
Both People and Sports Illustrated have extensive websites with content that is not the same as the paper issue. I suspect many students are only familiar with the sites.
What's not on the list: Harper's, The New Yorker, Time, Newsweek. I won't get into why, but they are definitely NOT on the list.
What am I missing??
Reflection: What kinds of lists might be appropriate for this blog?
In the past, perhaps lists of sites or resources. Now I'm not so sure. I think professional resources for teachers might make a good list.
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1 comment:
Thanks for sharing your progress. I was curious about the class...now I'm following along with you:)
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