This summer, I took the time to send my teacher an email,(see below) thanking him for the opportunities he gave me, one of which, would be (writing) this very blog.
Hello!
I wanted to thank you for my blog, or the opportunity of having a blog. I understand that I could've started a blog either way, but you helped in a way that I didn't know I needed. When starting my own blog, I was uncomfortable and embarrassed.
You, or your way of learning eased me into it. Now I am comfortable posting various blogs, whether it's reviews, letters, rants or anything else. You have so much freedom in what you share. Posting blogs can be an outlet for teens, because it allows us to have a voice.
During my life I've had trouble expressing my opinion in a way that was respecting to others, and still allows me to actually share. I'd much rather not even say anything. Blogging, however is great for that, especially when taught how to properly.
I have to admit, I have taken a bit of a hiatus, and I don't post every week. Now that I'm getting back to it, I remember why I wanted to start blogging. I recently posted one that I'm super proud of, which kind of helps with my becoming a better human. It's called "A Letter To My Younger Self". And that's basically what it is, a letter to my younger self. 
So yeah, thanks again. May new opportunities bring new knowledge... 'Cause knowing stuff is pretty cool.
People might be asking themselves some questions right now. Why would I be thankful about a silly little blog? A pile of pixels isn’t going to help me have a future in a successful career, is it?
Actually, it might.
Knowing how to verbalize your opinion in a respectful manner is extremely beneficial, especially in careers that involve public speaking, a lawyer for example. In a serious work environment, you can’t speak to your co-workers, let alone boss, using slang or derogatory terms. Blogging helps you practice planning sentences, so that no matter what the topic is, you can converse to your audience without offending them, or sounding like you have no idea what you’re talking about.
Blogging also helps teens have a voice in a world that gives teenagers a reputation of being lazy, arrogant and immature. People expect us teens to act like adults, when they treat us as they treat children. It's quite an oxymoron.
Reality is, teens have some amazing ideas which often go unheard. If people with power took the time to hear our opinions, they could further in their career, and target their audience in a more effective way.
Reality is, teens have some amazing ideas which often go unheard. If people with power took the time to hear our opinions, they could further in their career, and target their audience in a more effective way.
At least based on my experience, teachers in blogging classrooms often allow their students to voice how/what they want to blog. When writing essays and reports, you are constantly (collecting) factual content, and you never share what you think about your topic.
Almost all of the teenagers that I know will jump at an opportunity to talk about what they are passionate about, and have some pretty awesome opinions. They aren’t going to try half as much on an essay about something their teacher chose, as they would on a project that they choose or have experience in.
Not to mention, parents and teachers constantly nag about young adults being on our cell phones, and digital blogging isn’t much different. You couldn’t count how many times I’ve been told that texting is ruining my grammar and spelling, with all the emoticons and abbreviations.
Well actually, blogging has improved my writing skills, by quite a bit. When blogging, people are more cautious about spelling, because the audience is much more broad. After I write my blogs, I have learned to take the time to look over them, and ensure that there aren’t any grammar or spelling errors. Where before, I would hardly ever read over and edit my work, because the audience is limited to just my teacher.
Blogging has many positive aspects, and when taken into account, I find it takes a bit of a new name. To me, it's more like Social Literacy and I genuinely encourage you to take part in it.
This guest blog was written by one of our SCCDSB students, Madelaine B. She was a member of @TeachermanHT's class in Sarnia, ON and currently blogs at http://sonicminds.weebly.com/
