Edutech for Teachers

Cool Tools for the 21st Century Classroom

Journal Your Memories with OhLife

September9

ohlife logoI don’t know about you, but I’ve found that the word “writing” sometimes causes my students to cringe!

Unfortunately, it’s true! Some students would prefer to do anything besides write! That’s why I try to develop assignments that motivate them to willingly hone this essential life skill.

If you find yourself experiencing those same looks of panic, shock and awe when you mention writing assignments, then check out OhLife, a free online journaling tool that promotes writing fluency, technology use, and typing skills. What a winning combination!

Here’s how this “cool tool” works:

After signing up for an account,OhLife sends users a friendly email reminder on a daily or weekly basis  asking “How’d your day go?” Simply reply to the message and just like that, it’s saved in your OhLife account. And the result? A collection of life stories displayed in a nifty online journal. Have a cool photo to add to an entry? No problem! Just upload it as an attachment, and OhLife does the job of neatly embedding it into the post. Although the journal is private, students can export their writings as text and share with teachers, family and friends. Oh, and did I mention that all of this edugoodness is free?

But wait… My students don’t have access to school email! No problem! If you can create accounts for them (i.e. using the gmail+1 trick), then they can log into OhLife and create entries in this manner.

And by the way—OhLife is not a social network or a blog, but a medium to remember life’s most memorable moments. Plus, it promises no spam, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Classroom Connection:

Whether you utilize OhLife as a means for students to journal their learning experiences, their lives or both, it’s a great tool for motivating students to write. Imagine the various writing activities a resource like this presents for teachers!

For example, OhLife can be used as a way to determine background knowledge prior to beginning a new unit of study as well as digital exit ticket in which students can reflect upon their learning at the conclusion of a lesson, activity and/or project. Because the entries are compiled into a personal memoir, students could even write a post comparing what they knew with what they learned at the conclusion of a chapter! Or what about using OhLife as a formative assessment tool!

Another idea is to create a class booklet highlighting favorite lessons, funny stories, field trips, photos and more! This can then be shared with the students at the end of the marking period, semester and/or year.

With OhLife, your creativity is the limit!

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One Comment to

“Journal Your Memories with OhLife”

  1. January 8th, 2014 at 6:03 pm       Elizabeth Ellis Says:

    HI there! I love this OhLife.com and have shared it with my fellow LA teacher. Quick question–you said that students can use it using the Google+1 trick…maybe I’m a little behind with Google+ stuff, but I don’t know this trick. Help?


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Hey, edu-tech gurus!

Looking for some technology integration ideas to enhance your classroom lessons? Then be sure to check out my "Tech Tips" for the latest and greatest Web 2.0 tools, applications and web sites that can be incorporated into activities and/or projects. Although some posts may not be applicable to your content area or grade level, be sure to check back often as I will be varying ideas in order to provide resources across the K-12 curriculum.

Be sure to add this awesome tool to your tech-box!

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