Blogs and Wikis at IACON 2008

IACON 2008 is where it IS HAPPENING in Iowa this week.

I will be presenting a Web 2.0 Tools workshop with Will Coghill-Behrends and Rebecca Anthony from University of Iowa. They will be discussing ePortfolios and Social Networks. They will cover Classroom 2.0 (even talk with Steve Hargadon over Skype) and then introduce the group to Ning - Your Customizable Social Network.

Classroom Blogs

• Selection and Integration: Readings/Listenings/Watchings/Doings - Use a blog for listing assignments for class.
• Blog-bib - An annotated bibliography on blogging.
• Weekly Teacher Blog - 3rd grade teacher's blog. This is the electronic version of the Friday newsletter for parents. Notice that there is no commenting capacity.
  
• Mrs. Sempek's Wonderful 4th Grade Class - A look at the classroom from the students' eyes. Recent posts show sign language. Look at the Sept and Oct posts to see their writings.
• Keying In - Mrs. Olson reflects on "Practicing Keyboarding While Communicating with the World." This is for the students and their parents and the rest of the world.
  
• A Trip to Burritt on the Mountain - Takes the 4th grade students on a virtual visual and textual tour of a museum before they visit so that they will get more from the experience.
  
• BG Blogging - Creative Writing blogging from Middlebury University

Overall Blogging Examples

• Keyboarding Research and Resources - Used a blog to create a database of research that is searchable by tags/labels.
• Dr. Z Reflects - Dr. Z's humble attempt at blogging.
• Edu.blogs.com - Evan McIntosh. Comments/reflects on using tech in ed.
• Captain's Blog - Journal of Captain Mark Bromwich in Afghanistan.

Blogging Utilities

• Google Reader - Google's great aggregator for blogs. You must have a Google account for this to work.
  
• Bloglines Reader - On-line RSS Feed Reader. Get an account.
• Technorati - This is the Google for Blogs.
• Google Blog Search - This is the Blog search for Google.
  

Create Your Own Blog

• Blogger - Quick and easy blogging spot.
• WordPress - Takes a little longer, but includes tagging and couple of other treats. It's worth the extra time.

Wikis

• Wikipedia - The encyclopedia created and edited by "the masses".