• No School - Spring Break - Mar.14 - Mar.18
  • No School - Spring Vacation Day - April 15
  • HS Theatre Spring Show - April 8-9
  • End of 3rd Quarter - Mar. 31
  • HS One Act Plays- April 13 at 7pm
  • No School - Prof. Development Day - April 25
The student voice of Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio

The Leaf

The student voice of Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio

The Leaf

The student voice of Sycamore High School in Cincinnati, Ohio

The Leaf

Bringing in Blogging: American Literature students use new way to express ideas

“What do students normally do with their posters and English papers when they’re done with them?” asked Breen Reardon, English teacher, to his fourth bell literature class.

The answer from the majority of his students was that their completed projects are often thrown away or deleted off flash drives.

To prevent trifold projects from collecting dust under beds and keep students’ hard work from going to waste, the junior American Literature classes have converted their year-long research paper to blog form.

Throughout the course of the year, each student has selected one topic of interest to immerse in and study. After reading books, articles, and watching interviews, the juniors have been asked to make their own blog websites, and use this method to report their findings.

Story continues below advertisement
This blog, created by Audrey Moeller, 11, is centered on the evolution of the fictional character Frankenstein. Blogs have been created on a variety of topics, and will continue to be updated throughout the year. The blogs can be made public and seen by anyone around the world. Photo credit by Lauren Saxon.
This blog, created by Audrey Moeller, 11, is centered on the evolution of the fictional character Frankenstein. Blogs have been created on a variety of topics, and will continue to be updated throughout the year. The blogs can be made public and seen by anyone around the world. Photo credit by Lauren Saxon.

“I think blogs are a great idea,” said Talia Bailes, 11. “They are a way to get us to express what we’re learning in class and apply it to the everyday world.”

Each student’s website is posted online and can be made public for anyone in the world to see. Rather than making a poster or power point for one-time usage, the blogs being created are more permanent.

“I enjoy blogging and integrating technology into our everyday English curriculum,” said Grace Hertlein, 11.

As the rest of the year progress, more and more posts will be uploaded to the English students’ websites on their respective topics.

The first few blog entries have been posted on each site; here are a few blogs and their topics you may be interested in:

  1. Space Exploration: www.nakulnarendran.wordpress.com
  2. Dreams: http://jennadamec.weebly.com/
  3. Icons of today http://iconsoftodayandyesterday.weebly.com/
  4. Situations in Uganda  http://mattgreenmachine.weebly.com/
  5. Music http://jollyhancher.wordpress.com/

More to Discover
About the Contributor
Lauren Saxon, Print Editor-In-Chief
I’m a senior at SHS. This year, I’ll be working as The Leaf magazine’s editor-in-chief. After four years on staff, I have learned a tremendous amount about writing, design and leadership. Some of my interests include sports, Spanish language and culture and reading. My iPhone is full of songs by Drake, Beyoncé and Ed Sheeran, and my room also doubles as my own library stacked with books written by Sharon Draper, Maya Angelou and Ernest Hemingway. I play Girls Varsity Basketball for my school, and I am a die-hard Philadelphia Eagles fan. Journalism has always been my favorite class, and although I plan on studying engineering in college, I hope to continue my passion for writing and designing after my time here at SHS. Reflecting on my high school career, joining journalism was the best decision I have ever made. During my last year on staff, I am excited to continue to serve as the voice of the student body and will cherish all the knowledge and friendships I gained from Journalism (Convergence).
Activate Search
Bringing in Blogging: American Literature students use new way to express ideas