Thing #4

Why Commenting is Important

Commenting is important in blogging because it provides feedback. It is difficult to continue a conversation when the only person you are talking to is yourself. By providing feedback on someones idea, you allow for the conversation to grow and continue opening up to new ideas and ways of thinking. One point I found important was in the blog How to comment like a king (or queen!). The idea was that one should not only leave a positive/negative comment but explain WHY they left the comment in the first place. This allows the reader to understand the commentator's point of view. The second point I found important was from 10 Techniques to Get More Comments on Your Blog. Technique #4 stated that one should interact with those who comment on their blog. In short, if someone leaves you a comment, then comment on their comment. Keep the conversation going. Show them that you are listening to them as much as they are listening to you. 


Five Class Posts

1. Ashley Saunders and Thing #12 - I commented on Ashley's post as I liked the information about the Google calender. I felt that this was a tool I would be able to make good use of in the future.

2. Howard Spurgeon and Thing #9 - I commented on Howard's post because, as an aspiring history teacher, I will be able to make good use of eye catching material throughout my classroom in order to supplement my curriculum. The website Howard provides ( http://www.signgenerator.org/ ) can provide just that.

3. Josh Clements and Thing # 7 - I found Josh's post helpful as Flickr goes hand in hand with Thing #9. Visual aid will play a big part in my teaching strategy. While I believe in lecture, I also believe that good visual aids can greatly enhance the learning experience.

4. Jillian Anderson and Thing #11 - I found Jillian's post helpful as is provided information on how to find blogs that interest me. This would be a useful tool to provide to students, in order to allow them to communicate with each other outside of the classroom, and to provide their own input and ideas on the subject provided.

5. Monica Marshall and Thing #10 - I found Monica's post helpful because I too detest having my email bombarded by multiple different sites. Her post provided information on RSS that will allow me to consolidate different sites into one, allowing me to keep track of my favorite sites without having to have my email flooded constantly.

Two Random Posts

6. Kathleen Lax and Thing #6 - I found Kathleen's post helpful as it provided information on streaming live video. This would be helpful in my opinion to students who feel they need to go over a lecture again or who may be out of class because of an illness. By streaming live/or recorded video, I could provide students who are home sick with a way to still listen to the class lesson so that they do not fall behind during their absence.

7. Amy Schoneman and Thing # 4: Amy's post was helpful because it displayed how feedback on blogs was helpful. Without proper feedback on our blogs, it is difficult to find new ideas and opinions on our own ideas and ways of thinking.