Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms - Will Richardson

This author is a gem! It startles me to be pulled so happily through a text about these new Web tools in the context of good literacy instruction - Gary Graves, Senior Research and Evaluation Advisor, Technology in Education, Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory

This book brings teachers a bold vision and on-the-ground Monday morning practicality. It will move educators to think differently about technologys potential for strengthening students critical thinking, writing, reflection, and interactive learning. Will Richardson demystifies words like "blog," "wiki," and "aggregator" making classroom technology an easily accessible component of classroom research, writing, and learning.

This guide demonstrates how Web tools can generate exciting new learning formats, and explains how to apply these tools in the classroom to engage all students in a new world of synchronous information feeds and interactive learning. With detailed, simple explanations, definitions and how-tos, critical information on Internet safety, and helpful links, this exciting book opens an immense toolbox, with specific teaching applications for:

o Web logs, the most widely adopted tool of the read/write Web

o Wikis, a collaborative Webspace for sharing published content

o Rich Site Summary (RSS), feeding specific content into the classroom

o Aggregators, collecting content generated via the RSS feed

o Social bookmarking, archiving specific Web addresses

o Online photo galleries

This book makes it possible for anyone, no matter how inexperienced, to harness this amazing technology for the classroom today!