It’s the start of a new school year, and I am beyond excited for all the things we will do this year in our English class.  I want to welcome you back to the blog if you have already blogged with me last year, and I want to welcome all the new bloggers in 7th and 8th grade who will get to start a brand new blog this year.

 

Why do we blog? 

There are a few reasons why blogging is a good way to develop writing skills and ‘find our voices’ as writers.

1. Blogging gives us a REAL AUDIENCE.  You know how sometimes when you write for school you think, “Who’s going to read this, anyway?  Just my teacher.”  Well, with blogging you get a larger audience which can be inspiring to some writers.  You know that your friends will get a chance to read your stories or poems or rants . . . and that makes you want to say what you have to say!
2. Blogging give us the chance to give and receive FEEDBACK.  One rule we have on these class blogs is that our feedback must be POSITIVE and ENCOURAGING!  Writing is HARD WORK, and writers need LOTS of encouragement, so this gives students a chance to get positive and specific feedback that reminds them they are doing a LOT of things right!
3. Blogging gives us the chance to mix media forms.  We can use images, video, and audio to enhance our written words.  That helps us to be CREATIVE!
4. Blogging is a MEDIA FORM, and designing a blog gives students the chance to express themselves through this medium.

So, welcome back to you all!  I can’t wait to see what we can create here together.