Home from Connecticut. Used the day to spend with my daughter and explore the new technology that inspired me during the Institute. I downloaded Picasa and spent a good part of the day organizing photos (haphazardly--still in the learning stage). And creating a collage that I want as my desktop screen. Haven't figured out how to do that yet, but have figured out how to put that same collage into my blog.
So often we get caught up in all of the business and things needing attention. Today it was nice to look at my life as I organized and downloaded pictures on a small scale and be grateful. Snapshots of time.
Part of becoming good at something is exploring. Today I participated in exploring technology and blogging. It is a wonderful life!
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Why blog?
I am at the Communities for Learning Summer Institute, 2009. Two years ago I started this blog with what I call my Passion for Literacy Statement. And the statement just sat there--no one read it or commented on it (not that I told anyone to read it or comment on it--I thought they would just come). The in-interactivity made me feel that if I were to use this spot it would be like a journal or diary and I already do that somewhere else. So I abandoned it.
I also felt that to use this blog I only needed to post my finished thinking and I just don't have time to finish pieces of writing. Plus I don't have a lot of finished thinking. So I abandoned it.
At our fellowship this summer, Angela, one of our fellows, gave me two amazing insights. She talked about the purpose of blogging as different from that of publishing an essay or book. Blogging is a place to evolve one's thinking by putting writing in a place where collective thinking can happen.
First--she talked about how to engage other readers who are bloggers. She described the way to get others to read a blog is to first read their blogs, comment about their thinking and make connections that help other bloggers to realize that reading your blog might be of interest to them and that we both benefit from reading what each other has written.
Secondly, she talked about blogging as a place to crystalyze and to stretch thinking--not as a forum to print final thinking. That makes so much sense to me and it lifted up the pressure I felt to only put on my blog finished pieces. As I read your work and comment on it, my thinking evolves as it does when you read my writing and it causes you to wonder, or it makes you think of a concept in a slightly different way.
So I am going to venture into the land of the blog once again. I am going to start small--read and comment on others' blogs at least three times a week, write in this space in a regular way and look to use this cyber-space to interact as a way to learn and to stretch my thinking about literacy, leadership and educational issues.
I also felt that to use this blog I only needed to post my finished thinking and I just don't have time to finish pieces of writing. Plus I don't have a lot of finished thinking. So I abandoned it.
At our fellowship this summer, Angela, one of our fellows, gave me two amazing insights. She talked about the purpose of blogging as different from that of publishing an essay or book. Blogging is a place to evolve one's thinking by putting writing in a place where collective thinking can happen.
First--she talked about how to engage other readers who are bloggers. She described the way to get others to read a blog is to first read their blogs, comment about their thinking and make connections that help other bloggers to realize that reading your blog might be of interest to them and that we both benefit from reading what each other has written.
Secondly, she talked about blogging as a place to crystalyze and to stretch thinking--not as a forum to print final thinking. That makes so much sense to me and it lifted up the pressure I felt to only put on my blog finished pieces. As I read your work and comment on it, my thinking evolves as it does when you read my writing and it causes you to wonder, or it makes you think of a concept in a slightly different way.
So I am going to venture into the land of the blog once again. I am going to start small--read and comment on others' blogs at least three times a week, write in this space in a regular way and look to use this cyber-space to interact as a way to learn and to stretch my thinking about literacy, leadership and educational issues.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)