Blogging is freedom
Blogging is voice
Blogging is connection
Blogging is personalized
Blogging is authentic
Blogging is possible!
Yesterday, Beth shared the March 2020 SOLSC overview. I hope you are gearing up for March and a month of pushing yourself to share stories and moments each day. The March SOLSC really changed my life in many ways after my first year of Slicing in 2015. Becoming a blogger has enriched my life and expanded my world view, my writing skills and the community I am proud to be part of.
It also made me envision how my students might feel the same way. School writing can feel so stifling at times when students are locked into writing a certain genre for weeks or months on end. If this is the only writing they ever get to do (essay after essay), where is their room for their voice? Is their space for their ideas and stories? How will they live like writers if they are only writing for assignments?
Blogging is a way to help students develop voice, a sense of audience, build digital citizenship, sharpen writing skills and connect to each other in new ways. I teach my students how to blog in the beginning of the school year and then leave the blog open as one of their possibilities for expression. Students can blog from home, in the morning after settling in, or at other free choice times. If you are considering blogging with your students, now is the perfect time to jump in so you can be ready for the…..
APRIL 2020 CLASSROOM SOLSC!
You’ve got questions? We’ve got answers!
What exactly is the Classroom Slice of Life Story Challenge?
The Classroom Slice of Life Story Challenge is modeled on the Slice of Life Story Challenge. Students take on the challenge to write a slice of life story each day of the month, which will now be April. Some students may choose to do this in a notebook, but students who wish to connect with other classes will write their stories as blog posts. The teacher provides the link to the class blogs on a Padlet. Teachers who are participating can visit the Padlet, click on the link to other classes’ blogs, and read and comment on student writing. In the past, some teachers have teamed up their classes and students have been able to comment on other students writing!
Who can participate in the Classroom Slice of Life Story Challenge?
Two Writing Teaches is a community that believes in the power of educators writing. Therefore, only educators who take part in the March 2020 SOLSC are invited to sign up their students for the Classroom SOLSC. The Classroom Slice of Life Story Challenge is for students 18 & under. Individuals who are not part of a classroom community must have an adult sponsor to participate. That same adult sponsor should leave a link to their child’s/student’s blog on their behalf. (We expect anyone under 18 to have an adult sponsor and reader.)
Will TWT post each day in April about the Classroom SOLSC?
No. Beginning on Sunday, March 29th, Classroom SOLSC posts will come out each Sunday in April. The posts are meant to provide inspiration and encouragement for educators who are coaching students in the challenge. The link to the Padlet will be part of the post. The Padlet will be the place to find other classes who are participating in the challenge.
Will there be prizes for the Classroom SOLSC?
No. TWT does not award prizes for participants in the Classroom SOLSC. Individual teachers have often chosen different ways to celebrate students who have taken part in the challenge. Some teachers have awarded students badges for accomplishing different writing challenges on the way to blogging for the whole month.
Where and when can I sign up?
If you plan to participate in the SOLSC in March, you may sign up for the Classroom SOLSC by entering your information into the Padlet. The Padlet will be open for educators to add their information, beginning today on January 17th. ( If you do not take part in the March SOLSC, your classroom information will be removed from the Padlet.) You can sign up on the Padlet anytime before April 2, 2020.
Helpful Resources for the Classroom SOLSC
A Classroom SOLSC highlighting digital safety
Padlet of ideas for student writers
Guest post from Shelly Surridge on her experience with Classroom SOLSC
Setting up a class for blogging
Top Ten Reasons to take on the Classroom SOLSC by Erika Victor
Reflections on Classroom SOLSC 2018
TWO WRITING TEACHERS 
I will not be signing up this year. April is not a good month for us to blog. We have state testing all month and Easter break for a week. April is also National Poetry Month so we write a poem every day. Good luck with the challenge. I’ll watch from the sidelines this year.
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