Blogs are nothing new - simply a way for people to write content that gets shared with others online. How could your students use blogs? Well, it could be as simple as using a blog as a reflection journal for the class. But if you think a little more outside the box...
You could also have your students write a blog from the perspective of a historical figure or literary character.
You could have them blog as if they were a person living in a different time in history - or even as a time traveller.
Maybe even pull from the popularity of the new Marvel show, "What if...?" and have them blog about how they think different events (current or past) would have played out differently if different choices were made.
In science, you could even have students use blogs for their lab write-ups - updating each day as they acquire new information and develop and change their hypotheses.
How about a food blog incorporating photos of what the students make in Foods class?
You could also opt to open it up and let students determine what they want to blog about - remember, any practice with writing is a positive! They could be writing about fantasy football or video games and having a blast...while practicing and improving their writing skills. Possibly even in a foreign language!
No matter which path you choose, the key to blogs is their "public" nature. As we all know, students have more ownership of their work and put in more effort when they know it will exist beyond their teacher's desk. Blogs can be shared with just others in the class, with the school as a whole, or the public. They can incorporate comments and feedback. Depending on the tool you choose for blogging, you can control how "public" the blogs become and how to handle comments.
In terms of tools that are approved for use in NH, Edublogs is probably the best option. Teachers can set up classes and have control over comments, but students create their own blogs. Google Sites is another option, but it doesn't offer a traditional blog format by default - it would require a bit more design effort.
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