Omnivorous Surfer

One of the stumbling blocks to having students blog is the necessity of using an individual's email address when accounts are set up. Another is the need to assure the student's safety while online, while a third is that many sites require users to be at least 13. Kidblog addresses all the concerns and, even better, it is FREE.

Kidblog was designed by teachers for teachers, primarily for elementary and middle school use. The teacher has administrative control over her/his class accounts, and students' blogs by default are private, viewable only by their teacher and classmates. If desired, a passworded guest account can be added so parents can view their student's blog posts and comments. Rare for free accounts, there is no advertising! If you're interested in learning more, see the About Kidblog page.

I recently read an excellent blog post, Middle School Blogging: Students Constructing Their Own Knowledge, which shares examples of students' blogs and the reactions of both students and parents to the experience.