Make Writing Realistic: Publish Worthy Student Blog Post
Teaching writing can be engaging for students. But have you thought to bring writing into the classroom that may turn into a love of writing for your students? Why not introduce blog writing to your students. Your students can learn so much from blog writing. So why not challenge your students to write a blog post? Give them the tools to learn a real-world skill that can impact their learning. Here are 3 steps to student blog writing.
1. Brainstorm Post Topics
Having your students brainstorm or look for a topic that will it solve a problem or teach something can be a possible blog post to consider. They can then research a topic of choice by gathering facts or statistics, if necessary. Your students can build their research skills. They may develop and strengthens their confidence through expressing their own opinions or giving their perspective.
2. Get Post Feedback
When your students begin to write, have them introduce the topic with a personal story, antidote, or experience that their readers can relate to or empathize with. Next, have them explain why the topic is important. This is where those facts and statistics come in. And finally, what is most important is to have your students close the blog post with a challenge or call to action to their readers. Continue to have your students share their writing with each other to get feedback, spark conversation, and dialogue about their blog post.
3. Share Out Post
Find kid-friendly blogs as example for your students. Introduce your students to website with engaging blog posts that may interest them. Give students blog posts to read regularly. Have your students use highlighters to identify key parts of a blog post. Then have them pair up or meet in small groups to share their thoughts or findings with each other about different blog posts. When your students are done, you may (with permission from your site administrator) have their blog post featured on a classroom or school website so your school community can keep up with the happenings in your classroom.
Final Thoughts
Teaching your students how to blog write is a creative way to engage them in writing. Blog writing in the classroom can be a powerful learning tool. Not only students can learn from each other, it can strengthen their writing skills because it’s a different kind of writing. Blog writing is a real-world skill that students can continue to use long after they leave your class. It can give them the freedom to express their opinion or give their own perspective. Getting your students to share their blog post with their school community can be a great incentive to write. Check out the resource below.
Tips To Try:
You can guide your students in creating well-researched, engaging, and visually appealing blog posts that are ready for publication.
1. Focus on Planning and Organization
- Brainstorming and Outlining: Start by helping students brainstorm ideas and topics they are passionate about or knowledgeable in. Encourage them to create an outline to organize their thoughts and ensure their post has a clear structure, including an introduction, body, and conclusion.
- Research and Credibility: Teach students to research their topics thoroughly and use credible sources to support their points. Emphasize the importance of citing sources and providing evidence to enhance the credibility of their blog posts.
2. Emphasize Clear and Engaging Writing
- Hook and Introduction: Guide students in writing compelling introductions that hook the reader’s attention. This could be an interesting fact, a question, or a personal anecdote related to the topic.
- Voice and Style: Encourage students to write in a clear, conversational tone that reflects their unique voice. Teach them to vary sentence structure, use descriptive language, and avoid jargon to keep their writing engaging and accessible.
3. Incorporate Visuals and Formatting
- Use of Images and Multimedia: Show students how to incorporate relevant images, videos, or infographics to complement their text and make their posts more visually appealing. Discuss the importance of using high-quality visuals and giving proper credit.
- Formatting for Readability: Teach students about formatting techniques that improve readability, such as using headings and subheadings, bullet points, and images, videos, numbered lists, short paragraphs, or infographics to enhance their blog posts. Visual elements can make the content more appealing and help illustrate key points. Teach them how to properly attribute sources for any multimedia they use. Encourage the use of bold or italicized text to emphasize important information.
