This post contains a portion of my lesson plan for teaching the Blogging for Seniors lesson. My classmates will post a comment in reply to this post that will fulfill the request by our professor to provide feedback on each presentation. Each post will include two “positive comments” and one “improvement.needed." Optional: set up your own blog in advance or shortly after your own presentation that summarizes the plan for your lesson, and invite comments. It should be possible to email your comment to our professor.

Title: Blogging for Seniors

Part III of a hypothetical Computer Class Series
for Seniors at the Public Library

(Part I & II – Windows, Mouse & keyboard techniques, Word Processing, Internet Basics, Research Basics)

Part III – Exploration of Internet Tools


Lesson Plan

Introduction:
This short lesson assumes familiarity with email, internet surfing and word processing, and possibly some exposure to social networking, and photo sites like Flickr or Photobucket. It has as its target audience seniors or people at least 55 and over but doesn’t exclude anyone. I am assuming the areas mentioned above were covered in the hypothetical Parts I and II. I am envisioning this ideally as an introduction to a hands on session in a public library where seniors or retirees can get coaching for the first steps into the “blogosphere.” Alternatively, it can be conceived of as a video slideshow tutorial that appears on a public library website, especially if the library has a webpage for seniors.

The objective of Part III of the computer course for seniors is to explore some of the more interactive tools available on the Internet that might appeal to this group. A short lesson on blogs is well aligned with the overall goal of the course. The library as a cornerstone of community building and lifelong learning makes it an ideal place to teach people about blogging, which is basically writing (with choice of appending images, video, etc.) but with the ability to publish the output and invite comments (or co-authors) as well as archive the posts and identify the posts with “tags” which would allows one to search for posts on specific topics. So blogging is about community building, learning new technology tools as they develop, as well as the aspect of self-expression.

As more baby boomers pass into the Third Age (defined here as over 55), they will have more of an interest in passing on their legacy, whether that be in the form of storytelling, writing about their professional expertise, values, philosophy of life, or memories, for family, friends, or the world. Whether or not they want to start a blog, seniors certainly will have reasons for wanting to follow blogs, since they offer perspectives often not available in the mainstream media, as well as ability to connect with people of like mind or situation in life. Commenting gives readers a voice, whether on individual blogs, or blogs sponsored by newspaper websites or company sites.

Interests may range from the political to the personal, so class should give people the tools to pursue what they are really interested in and also to simply be aware of the phenomenon that is blogs.

At the end of the session, patrons should be able to:

• Know what blogs are and identify them on the Internet
• Know the features of blogs and evaluate blog hosting sites based on these
• Know the benefits of blogs for seniors
• Know how to find blogs and subscribe to them
• Learn the basics for starting one and posting comments


Through attaining these new skills, the larger objectives of the computer course can be addressed: involve seniors in community, give them the tools for self-expression, and help in passing on their legacy, whether that be personal or professional, and give greater meaning to lives of seniors who are isolated. Research has shown that seniors can benefit from technology ordinarily thought to be the domain of younger people and those still in the workplace who have exposure to it everyday.

Learning about blogs and how to blog can be a consuming hobby or even a way to bring in income; however, the scope of this lesson cannot include the income aspect.

Expanded Learning Objectives:

Know what a blog is
Know a little about the influence and significance of the blog phenomenon and be able to identify one on the Internet when surfing/researching
identify the main features of a blog and decide which ones are important to you
Know how to find blogs that might be of interest using different search engines designed for blogs and learn to subscribe to them
Think about possible interests or subject matter for a blog
Follow simple steps on a site like Blogger.com to start one’s own blog and learn to comment on others’ blogs