Blogging???

Bogging????

I heard the word blog in the McDonald’s commercial about the little old lady stating she needed to blog about the blueberry, nut oatmeal but did not really comprehend what it was. I did not realize that the Internet was full of personal blogs, educational blogs, business blogs, self-help blogs, etc… In fact you could probably find a blog about any topic and interest. I knew the Internet was full of information which I assumed was just information. I never really paid attention to the give comments sections or question section of websites or blogging pages. I actually didn’t really know the difference between a blog and a website. I asked my daughter and she knew. Blogging would be a new tool for me to use.

I never really branched out when surfing on the Internet. If I found what I needed then I was satisfied and closed the window. I check my email, face book, daughter’s school website frequently. I also search online for new lessons and activities for my class. I have also shopped online a little which resulted in my credit card number being stolen. When my job is done I close the window. I am a single parent, rancher, elementary teacher, adjunct faculty at Dine College and friend. So my highest priorities do not include engaging in Internet activity. Also when I run into trouble with technology I usually just shut the computer down. I had trouble beginning our personal blogging page but I managed to get it right after 3 or 4 tries I think. If a link does not work I go elsewhere. If several links do not work I usually give up and shut down. This is my experience online.

When I came across personal blogs and began to read them I felt a sense of disassociation that I could not see the person in real life and as I read their entries I felt like I was invading their space. So I am a person who likes face to face contact with people I know and would like to know. I had to step back and remember that these blogs are for sharing information and getting feedback to reflect on our thoughts and actions. I also realized that these bloggers were trying to expand their prior knowledge and gain new experiences and insights to what they were doing as well as reach out to others they normally would not associate with. So after pondering this I read again and felt much better and enjoyed reading what other teachers or runners (searching workouts for my daughter) are doing. While reading a teaching blog site, I realized how many teachers love what they are doing and how much they wanted to share. This encouraged me and inspired me even though I did not know them personally.

When I read some running and training blogs, I realized just how many experts were willing to share information and if one asked a question how many people were willing to help by answering the question. The tone was that of equality in terms of the topic and assistance with inspiration for the teaching blogs. No one talked down to anyone and responses were encouraging especially in the cross country training blogs. I did not come across any negativity with the blogs I encountered. So concerns are few but I can see that if people do not follow the code of conduct interactions could be negative.

I came across some blogs that had 3 hits and some that had over 1000 hits so when Wikipedia states that not all blogs are read I found that to be true. The main idea is to share and reach out. I enjoyed the videos that people created on some running blogs about training. Most answers to questions were to the point and short which made them easy to read and comment on. I also found that visuals on teaching blogs helped get the gist of the activity across in a simple fast way rather than trying to explain through words and more words. I know I will enjoy using this new tool.

These blogs I liked:

Teaching Blog Addict

Secrets to Coaching a Successful High School Cross Country Team

Nike running

http://inside.nike.com/blogs/nikerunning_training-en-US/

http://www.teachingblogaddict.com/2011/04/oh-places-well-go-join-tba-as-we-travel-.html