Improve Student Discourse Through Blog Commenting

As our school district continues to work on improving student discourse, there are some definite strategies a teacher can use to help train students on what a high level answer looks like. One of those strategies is blogging. This morning, I had the pleasure of attending Ms. Leach's 6th grade writing class. Her students were commenting on the teacher blog post. In the comment, students were asked to elaborate on their answers by including examples, evidence, and justifications that supported their stance on if the voting age for the President should be lowered to age 11. By commenting on her blog, all students were answering the question and giving their own opinions. What an awesome way for students to work on being able to write out the answer to a great discussion question while at the same time sharing their answers with the remainder of the class.