Have you heard of Tumblr? Tumblr is a social media website where you can create and follow other blogs that are similar to your interests. It's one of the most popular, if not the most popular, blogging websites for teens and young adults. I think it would be something great to use in the classroom and here's why:
1: It's very popular.
As I've already said, Tumblr is extremely popular amongst high school and college aged students. Most of your students have either heard of Tumblr and may already have their own blogs. With that being said, it won't be hard to learn since students are already accustomed to it.
2: It promotes a sense of community:
Tumblr allows you to "reblog" (repost) blog posts and pictures that you like from the people you follow, thus creating a sense of community. It's easy to access your followers because they all show up on your "dashboard" (Tumblr newsfeed), meaning that you won't need to have to search too hard for a certain follower.
3: It's easy and fun!
Tumblr is a very fun website to express your opinions, post and share pictures, and communicate with your followers. You can easily search different posts through what is called a tag. It would be a fun tool to bring into the classroom.
So, how would I bring it into the classroom?
This could be an assignment for Catcher in the Rye, for example. It would be a week long assignment. Each student would be required to make a new Tumblr account and follow the rest of his/her students' Tumblrs. Every night they are to reblog different pictures and quotes and make a nightly blogpost as if they were Holden. Each post would be related to his likes and beliefs. At the end of the week, we could have a discussion on the blogposts they wrote, the pictures/quotes they reblogged, and why those posts were posted. I think it would get students to think like Holden if he were alive today (he would definitely be the kind of person to have a blog) and compare it to how he was depicted in the book.
What do you think? How could you use tumblr in your classrooms?
I really think this is a great idea. I never thought to incorporate Tumblr into a classroom but after reading your post it makes a lot of sense. Tumblr allows the students to incorporate not only text, but pictures and videos, thus allowing the students more creative outlets to express their thoughts. I also think this is a great way to get the students excited about learning. Tumblr is something most students are familiar with so it wont feel as much like homework to them.
ReplyDeleteI personally have never been on Tumblr but I always hear about it. I agree that it would capture the students' attention since it is pretty popular in the social media category. Capturing their attention is extremely important so that they can become engaged in the lesson.
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