In short, blogging creates a real audience for students. They have someone other than their teacher who will be looking at their work, and they begin to take it much more serious. Blogs are a perfect place for reflection, to share ideas, and connect with people all over the world.
Here's some more info about blogging in the classroom in this Edutopia article.
If first graders can do it, anyone can do it!
You'll want to have (ongoing) discussions about digital citizenship.
Here are a couple of examples of letters home to parents to get their permission and get them on board with the idea.
It's always helpful to share a previous blog with parents, so they can immediately see the value. Since you don't have a class blog to share, you can share other classroom blogs to give them an idea. Below are a handful of examples:
So, now that you've got the parents on board, where do you start?
Once the blog is up and running, you'll continue to have tons of ideas and ways to use the blog! Here are 50 ideas to get you started!