Collaborative writing in real time

How I Use It

I used PrimaryPad two different ways with 2nd graders, although there are probably many more.

First I

assigned them the task of creating a class "I Wish" poem. Each student was to contribute one line that began with the words "I wish..."

Chaos ensued as students accidently deleted each other’s work.

I think this might not be a problem with older students, or might be solved by giving them a the simple rule of "no deleting."

For the next

class, I set up five different pages with different general interest topics. Not having so many writers on a page at once helped, but it still took awhile for them to learn how to avoid deleting each other’s work.

When I facilitated the group discussing sharks, PrimaryPad became a chat tool to develop oral and written language skills. Students were excited to read my questions, and were eager to respond, all the while picking up new spelling words.

With the timeline slider, I could go back and review how the written discussion

unfolded and developed. Next time I use this will be for groups of older

students working on a report or a project.