The Social Networking Weblog

© Yukari*

I teach writing in a small, rural elemnary school. It's only part of my job. But it's something I really enjoy.

How times have changed… In my state we test writing skills on a keyboard as early as third grade. Kids are assessed not on typng skills, but on how well they can organize their ideas into paragraphs, whether they can form grammatical sentences, how well they spell, etc. The test is administered at school, over an Internet connection.

One of my favorite topics to use as a writing prompt in elementary school has to do with pets. I give the kids a choice. They can write an essay about why dogs are better than cats, or about why cats are better than dogs. Almost every third, fourth and fifth grade kid has an opinion on the subject. Usually it's a strong opinion.

It's seems funny to me that their ideas about pets are formed at such an earky age, but those ideas don't go away as they get older. And you can still find strong feelings on the subject on social networks like Facebook, where the dogsters and catsters are still well organized groups. They'll let you know why their dog is better than your cat. They'll tell you places to get you pet supplies and meds (like Sentinel). They'll share info about local vets and groomers.

We may have the image in our minds of that stereotype: a boy and his dog. But when the child grows into an adult, the pet goes with him…

• The Cure to Anti-Social Social Networking
• Vertical Social Networks
• Excessive Use of Social Networking Websites Leads To Low Grades In School
• Three Woofs for Dogster
• Social Networking Sites alive As Osama Is Dead

~admin

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