Welcome to 8th Grade English

This blog is for you! Throughout the year, you'll be checking here for homework calendars, assignment due dates, PowerPoints or videos you may have missed, pictures from class, and you may even have an assignment to post a comment once in a while! Enjoy!

Sunday, May 13, 2012

My First Blog Entry

My name is Megan McDermott.  I've been teaching secondary English for 14 years.  My first six years of teaching took place in rural districts in outstate Minnesota.  I began teaching high school, and quickly learned that middle school was the place I wanted to be.  It was a great place to learn about my craft and get my feet wet.  For the last eight years, I've been teaching 8th grade at a middle school in the Prior Lake-Savage School district, which is a Southern suburb of the Twin Cities Metro Area.  I absolutely love my job, and have had many opportunities to learn and grow as a teacher.  

I've actually used blogging in the past for personal use- to chronicle my daughter's life for friends and family who were far away.  When Facebook became popular and life became busier, my blog use tapered off... actually, it stopped in 2008.  But I am interested in starting to write again, as Facebook certainly doesn't afford me the same space or format in which to write about, well, life! 

I'm very interested in integrating technology into my classes.  Our Minnesota State Standards were updated last year to include many media standards, including teaching students to comment in an online format, and to create a safe and effective online community.  I think blogging is a good start.  As for using it in my class, I'd like to post pictures of things going on in my classroom, like "students of the month", perhaps a homework calendar, and maybe even eventually lessons or extensions of lessons I've taught, including links or Web quests.  I'm excited to see what blogging can offer, and it seems like Blogger has changed since I last checked in several years ago, so it will be nice to have some guidance!

Megan McDermott   

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