Easy Blog Jr.: Blogging made easy for our youngest learners

Thanks to @Phillip_Cowell, I am one of the lucky people to have gotten to try out Easy Blog Jr. right after it hit the app store! What is Easy Blog Jr.? Well, it is exactly what its name claims to be, a simple and straightforward app that allows the youngest kids in our schools to independently post to a Wordpress blog.

Here is the introduction video to give you a better idea:

This is their instructional video to show you how to set up Easy Blog Jr. with student profiles and link them to your Wordpress blog.

I have tried this app today in my class and all I had to do was to tell the kids "If you can't read the instructions, just press the speaker button and it will tell you what to do." I didn't do a thing, they were able to independently follow through the steps!

My first four examples of using Easy Blog Jr. are on my class blog. We are currently learning about Trees, Wood and Paper in Science. The children observed redwood, pine, and basswood using their senses and used the app to record a part of their observations. Click here to see one example. If you're wondering why my kids are all geared up with headphones and a mic, well we have iRig mics. I like to use them because it really does help to pick up the sound of their voices, and I can allow the rest of my class to enjoy the centers they are in! The examples you'll see on my blog so far are some of my most soft spoken girls, but the iRig picks up their voices really well.

My favorite parts about Easy Blog Jr.:

• I created my class profiles in just a few minutes before school started this morning
• Left handed option for each profile!
• Clear audio instructions
• Large buttons
• Clean and simple interface

P.S. @Phillip_Cowell's daughter is the voice of Easy Blog Jr. ;)

UPDATE (November 22nd 2013): I have been using Easy Blog Jr. as a regular part of my classroom for over two weeks now, and I have to say that the amount of student initiated learning and action that takes place each day has grown tremendously! If you are looking for a way to motivate young learners to THINK and REFLECT on things they learn in class, look no further. My kids come to me EVERY DAY in choice time with work they have produced independently, reflecting on the various things we've learned in class.

Each time I hear "Can I put this on the blog?" my follow up is "I would love you to, but first tell me WHY." and the kids know they have to explain/justify how it's connected to something we've learned in class. Take a look at my class blog to see examples of Easy Blog Jr. and how my kids are taking the initiative to reflect on their own learning!