Edmodo is a social networking application that is used for educational purposes. Teachers can setup their students on Edmodo for a virtual classroom environment. Teachers can assign homework, quizzes, polls, assignments, references, a classroom calendar, and much more without making copies. In addition, teachers can connect with other classrooms, post questions and have discussions about a topic. The students can respond to the teacher or to their classmates, privately or publicly. Meaning, only the students in their class can read the postings, which is public, or directly send a private message to the teacher. Another great feature Edmodo offers is it automatically generates parent codes. This will allow parents to log in and keep track of their child's progress.
Last year, I helped first grade teachers use Edmodo when they came into the computer lab. First grade students were given a ticket with their username and password so they can sign in.
In addition, some teachers took pictures of their students, and we were able to upload the pictures to the student's Edmodo profile. As the year went on, one teacher awarded badges to the students which made them access their profile to see their badges.
Once the students were familiar with Edmodo, they used more advanced features such as, completing quizzes, creating discussions, and logging in at home. They absolutely loved it!! Soon, the teachers would only use Edmodo in the computer lab. The students were writing and practice their typing skills, they were practicing good citizenship, and they were helping each other navigate through Edmodo. They took ownership and was engaged with the activity.