Commenting is very useful in the world of cyberspace. It provides feedback, constructive criticism, encouragement, and it also creates a sense of fellowship. Back in the day, many people had pen pals or sent postcards to people in foreign countries; communication was mainly restricted to people in your social circle. Thanks to the Internet, we can now interact with millions of people, and we do so through social networking and commenting on their blogs and other personal pages.
The CoolCat Teacher blog mentions in their first point that commenting on someone's blog lets them know that you "hear" them, which is important. A lot of people, especially young teenagers, use blogging as a means of expression. Perhaps they don't have a trusted adult or confidante to tell their struggles to, so they resort to blogging. By commenting, we can share our stories and personal troubles, and help those in need not feel so alone in their strife. We can also encourage others through commenting. Many people document their weight loss journey via blogging, and many find it useful to track the progress of others to encourage them to reach their goals.
The Blue Skunk blog says that people like to be heard and know that there are others that read their blog and are interested in their lives, which ties back to my point earlier that blogging is a form of expression for a lot of people. A kind comment can definitely make anyone's day, and it's always great to know that other people are interested in your life.
Alena Glassford made awesome points about how "the computer is the new paper," which is completely true. Everything is rapidly turning electronic or digital. Things have progressed so much since my elementary school computer classes, and she mentions the rapid development of technology. I mentioned how it was funny that little kids have cell phones now, and that it is crucial how we as teachers must keep up-to-date with technology because our careers depend on it. Education is always transforming and evolving to adapt to new technology, and if we are going to be effective teachers, we must adapt with it as well.
Emily Sehi found a cute blog that features crafts for kids, and features crafts especially for boys. She made a good point by mentioning that boys can be more difficult in art class because many of them are not interested in arts and crafts. I said that we as teachers must adapt to the class and make it interesting for them so they can be engaged in learning.
Brittany Lowen created a mashup of books for Thing #8, and one of the books featured was Holes by Louis Sachar. I have never read that book, but I've read Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Sachar, which was one of my absolute favorites books when I was in grade school, so I mentioned I was happy to see it because I really enjoyed reading his hilarious books.
Ryan Whipkey's blog entry stated that blogs have a place in the classroom to help inform parents. I completely agree with him, especially when it comes to older students. After elementary school, parental involvement isn't as encouraged as it was in elementary school because the student is developing their own study habits; plus, there aren't any more spelling words to go over or school pizza parties to chaperone, so parents take a backseat to their child's education as they get older. A blog would be an easy and simple tool to help engage parents and keep them up-to-date on their child's education.
Chassity Halpin explored the Google Translate tool for her Thing #12 entry. I absolutely love Google Translate, and I use it all the time to see how things are pronounced in different languages and to translate phrases. I am one-quarter Vietnamese, and I have some of my cousins from Vietnam as Facebook friends, so sometimes I copy and paste their statuses onto Google Translate to see what they are saying. Most of the time, it doesn't work out, but it's still fun to use!
I visited my cousin, Andrea's blog. She's a talented photographer, and I love looking at her photos! She posted an entry about genealogy, and I commented on how much I enjoy it, too. We have a pretty exciting family history (we're related to Pres. Rutherford B. Hayes)!
Laura Steele of 105.9 the Rock has her own blog on the classic rock radio station's website. She had a link for a list of the best Led Zeppelin love songs of all-time (just as an aside, I am a H-U-G-E Zeppelin fan)! I thought it was a good list, so I commented that I thought so.
Commenting is a useful, but sometimes overlooked, action and can help bond and encourage Internet users.
