Every year since we have launched student blogfolios at OJCS, I look forward to the Student Blogging Challenge. It is such a great way for students to become familiar with their blogs and see the power of connecting with students all over the world (as I blogged here).

Due to COVID-19 creating unpredictable classroom environments for so many, the Blogging Challenge has been put on hold for this year. But that hasn’t stopped us from continue to add new posts to our blogs, showcasing the various things we’ve been working on in class. Some students have even gone above and beyond to blog about their personal interests on their own.

One important aspect of blogging is recognizing that the things you say and share have a global audience. Commenting helps us feel heard and appreciated and adds value to our work. It also helps to hold us accountable for the things we’re posting online, and increases motivation to post something we have edited and are proud to share with the world.

This week, we began to discuss what makes a quality comment. We’d love to share this with you so that you can begin checking in regularly on our student blogfolios and leaving your own quality comments!

To find all our student blogfolios, scroll down on our sidebar until you see them all listed.

We’d also like to remind you of our commenting rules:

• Address the author by their blogging name (that means use their alias if they are using one, even if you know their real name)
• Be polite
• Be appropriate
• Agree or disagree with the blog and tell the author why
• Add an opinion or thought that could help the blogger improve
• Give details and ask questions
• If you are a parent of the blogger, please comment with your first name only to help continue keeping our students’ identity safe.

Feel free to share these blogs with your family and friends. It is so exciting every time someone gets some love and attention on their blog 🙂