Blogging in the Classroom

Blogs can be used in so many ways in a classroom. Blog posts can be a better way of measuring student's writing than having them write an essay. This is public, so they know they have to edit it and make sure everything looks good. But it doesn't seem as cumbersome writing a full fledged paper. Sometimes you still need to make them write that paper, but for most writing exercises a blog would work. Also, it can help with discussions. Teachers can use blogs as a way to start discussions in their classroom. As long as you teach them online etiquette and the line between discussions and bullying, this would be a great way to get discussions started. I think these two ways would make blogging a meaningful tool in the classroom.

Helpful Blogs by Teachers

http://mathteachermambo.blogspot.com/ is a veteran teacher who has been teaching for 19 years. She is a math teacher and provides resources and ideas.

https://specialedandme.wordpress.com/ is a blog by a high school special education teacher. She shares ideas and resources for helping with IEPs and other important information.

http://teachersol.blogspot.com/ is a blog by a special education specialist who does a lot of philanthropic work and shares her experiences in her classroom. She is a part of the Washington Teachers Union and was the Vice President of the Special Education branch for three years. 

http://lifeinspecialeducation.blogspot.com/ is a blog by a special education teacher who shares resources and different technology that she uses in her classroom. She sells different resources on her page and provides an interesting perspective on special education. 

http://a2zeducationaladvocates.blogspot.com/ is a blog to help teachers prepare for all of the legal work they will have to do for themselves and their students. The authors of this website are both lawyers who work to advocate for children. 

http://speakingofhistory.blogspot.com/ is a blog run by an 8^th grade teacher that offers resources and activities to teach history. He is a Google Certified teacher and won the 2008 Teacher of the Year in Missouri. 

http://mscassidysclass.edublogs.org/ is a blog by a first grade teacher in Canada who updates her blog almost daily. She shares her students' progress as they learn and grow throughout the year. 

http://www.sciencefix.com/about-me/ is a blog/website by 7th and 8th grade science teacher Darren Fix. He has been teaching for 17 years and loves to keep up with technology. 

http://readingyear.blogspot.com/ is a blog written by two special education teachers, 3rd and 5th grade self-contained, who review books. They write books reviews and provide resources and ideas for teachers to help instill a love of reading in their students. 

http://www.learningismessy.com/ is a blogs written by Brian Crosby who has been teaching for over 30 years. He uses blogging constantly in his classroom and he shares how he uses if successfully. 

Teachers to Follow

Blogs and Teachers to Follow

@MrBornheimer is a science teacher based out of Michigan who is focusing on an inquiry based classroom. He is also doing the flipped classroom.

@ehaygood was a middle school science teacher and now is a Curriculum Coordinator, Project Lead the Way Coordinator, and is involved in many other organizations.

https://www.instagram.com/tattooedteacherblog/ is an elementary school teacher who creates resources to share and blogs about her classroom.  

@dancallahan is a training and professional learning specialist. He focuses on professional development for teachers.

@coolcatteacher is a teacher who tweets and stays current on educational research and classroom activities.

@rmbynre is a certified Google teacher and he uses everything Google offers in his classroom.

@NMHS_Principal is a principal who has done a lot to bring technology into his school. He has won many awards for this.

@shannonmiller is a teacher and librarian who speaks and shares a lot of research information.

@kylepace is an Instructional Technology Specialist who works for Lee Summit School District in Missouri. He is a presenter as well as a member of #edcamp.

@teachersabrina was a fourth grade teacher and now she does a lot of work in education reform.

@AngelaMaiers used to be a teacher and now she is a presenter and author about different aspects of education.

https://www.instagram.com/stepintosecondgrade/ is a second grade teacher who posts a lot of activity resources and pictures of her day to day life in class.

https://www.instagram.com/applesandabcs/ is an elementary teacher that posts a lot of lesson ideas and pictures of her life as a teacher.

@JenWilliamsEdu is a literacy specialist and avid blogger on @Edutopia.

https://www.facebook.com/TeachingTolerance.org/?fref=ts is Facebook page about tolerance in schools. They find great articles and research for educators.

@DanBrownTeacher is the director of the Future Educators Association and is interested in making and improving teacher.

@mbteach is a specialist that works on integrating technology in school.

@TheJLV is a teacher who focuses on education reform and the inequalities in the education system.

@feedtheteacher is a teacher in Brazil for tweets a lot about technology and gadgets in the classroom.

@tomwhitby is the founder of #edchat and talks a lot about inequalities in education. 

Special Education Organizations

Council for Exceptional Children

http://www.cec.sped.org/
National Organization

They have multiple social media outlets.
Facebook
LinkedIn
Twitter
Pinterest

The CEC has three different membership options.

• Basic- $65
• Full-  $115
• Premium- $205

Students receive 20% off of membership fees. They also offer school/district packages. 

Here are all of the benefits included for the CEC. Retrieved from: http://www.cec.sped.org/Membership/New-Membership-Options/Your-Membership/Compare-Benefits. 

The CEC offers several different publications including books, journals, magazines, and more. 

The Council for Exceptional Children hosts a national convention every year. This year it is taking place April 13-16 in St. Louis, Minnesota. They have workshops, keynote speakers, breakout sessions, and a lot more. For members it is $395, nonmembers $515, and students $270. You also have to pay for workshops if you want to attend them. 

Michigan Association of Administrators of Special Education

http://www.maase.org/index.php

State Organization

Membership

• Voting Members- $80
• Non-voting Members- $45

They don't list any membership benefits because of membership. 

They have a Twitter, but that is the only social media outlet.

 

MAASE has quite a few professional development events. They also have a winter conference. This year it is January 15-16. It doesn't give the cost for the conference. It takes place in Lansing, MI. 

About Me

Hello!

My name is Kaylee Stonerock. I am a Special Education major, with endorsements in Cognitive Impairments and Leaning Disabilities. I love reading, it is my favorite hobby and the perfect getaway from everyday stresses. I work somewhat full time at Home Depot. Somewhat because I only work 40 hours a week when I am out of school. I am currently in Paint, but I have worked as a Cashier, Service Desk, Appliances, and Head Cashier. I have been there for 2 and a half years. I help on different committees at my job and volunteer when I get a chance.

I am a Black Belt in Tang Soo Do. I received my black belt when I was 15. I helped my father teach classes from 11-15 and then took over my won location from 16-19. It was a lot of fun and taught helped my narrow down my choices for school. Some of the students I had helped me realize I wanted to work with Special Education students.

I have used PowerPoint, Elmos, projectors, iPads, and other basic technology in classrooms so far. I hope to get more experience with Smart Boards this semester. I want to use iPads and Smart Boards a lot in my classroom. I would also like to use Classroom Dojo, Epic!, and some time of blog website in my classroom. Classroom Dojo would be a part of my classroom management. I would keep it up all day and help students see their behavior in real time. Epic! is basically a Netflix for books. It has so many different choices for students. They are all e-books and students can pick what they want to read. I would love to have a blog for my students to create and contribute to. This will give them a way to express themselves.

Above are my parents and my two dogs, Myah and Ryley. I love dogs and love my two. My parents have been the biggest supporters of my education and I wouldn't be where I am today without them. 

Fall 2015 I was at Stocking Elementary for my Teacher Assisting. 

Winter 2016 I am at Lowell High School for Student Teaching.