C4K #7, #8, #9, #10

For this Comments 4 Kids I was assigned to Mr. McClung's blog post titled Trail of Tears. The post is a video of the his class debating about if the removal of Native Americans from their land was wrong or necessary. Mr. McClung draws a spectrum on the board and has each student raise their hand and tell what their views are and where they would fall on the spectrum (to the right or left). I left Mr. McClung a comment telling him that his class seemed like they like to debate, which made his lesson really interesting! I also told him that I appreciated the visual illustration he used with the spectrum to help students grasp the idea they were discussing. I look forward to following Mr. McClung's classroom to get ideas for my future class.

My #8 Comments for Kids was on a student in Adelaide, Australia named Amelia. In this post Amelia talks about how she has recently moved to a new house and is trying to get use to it. I told Amelia that I also switched houses when I was around her age. I let her know that as unfamiliar as her surroundings may seem in the beginning, it's really exciting getting use to a new bedroom and it sounds like she'll love it. She seems like a good kid and I liked reading through her blog.

For my ninth Comments 4 Kids post, we were assigned as a class to take an in-depth look at Mrs. Yollis' Class Blog. Mrs. Yollis is a third grade teacher in the suburbs of Los Angeles, California. She recently received her Master's Degree in Integrating Technology in the Classroom, and it's clear through her class blog, she knows what she's doing. She uses her blog as a go-to for parents and students. Her students learn in her class how to comment and talk to other people online. They learn to use proper grammar, spark conversations, and get to know other bloggers. Mrs. Yollis is also very effective in getting not only parents, but families involved in her class blog. She encourages her students to encourage their family members to read when they are writing and leave comments with their thoughts. She also leaves post the tell readers what assignments her students are working on and how this relates to their school work. This is an excellent way to spread the word of what these 3rd graders are doing in the classroom. Mrs. Yollis is obviously very passionate about what she does and I think this rubs off on her students. In the videos her students make, it's clear that they are excited about their work, and excited to learn. She's done an excellent job in her blog and has definitely set the bar on what I will work towards in my future classroom.

For last Comments for Kids I was assigned to a student in Mrs. Yollis' class, Hannah, who is the owner of the blog Hannah's Hacienda. I commented on Hannah's post about an Iranian holiday her family celebrates called Seezdeh-Bedar. Hannah truly did an excellent job describing the holiday and the meaning behind it. She tells readers that this celebration is done on the 13th day after the Iranian New Year to celebrate the passing of the 13th(an unlucky number). Her family and community spend the day having a picnic in the park. She explains that at the end of the day they toss yellowed lentils into a stream to ward away sickness. Hannah also posted pictures of her and her friends playing together at the park during Seezdeh-Bedar. I let Hannah know that she did a great job and I enjoyed looking at the pictures. I commented that I had never heard of this holiday before and I enjoyed learning about her culture. This is a picture that Hannah posted to her blog showing Iranian families celebrating Seezdeh-Bedar.