Creator: Reddit.com | visit site
Grade Range: 8 - 11
Reddit democratizes news through voting on the headlines that matter to you. Though informative, it is not eye catching. Simply "upvote" or "downvote" a headline to bring it higher (or lower) in the news column. Curate the best stuff on Reddit by creating a Subreddit. Note: New accounts are unable to make a Subreddit without time spent being active in the community. Search or view the various Subreddits for a topic of your choice. To make a Subreddit, choose "Create your own Subreddit." On the left-hand side are the boxes for your Subreddits (under the Multireddit label). Subscribe to various threads of interest through the subscribe button. As you subscribe to the threads, your Reddit page will change to show these subscriptions. Some threads are Ask Me Anything (AMA), and the poster will answer when you ask. As Reddit is Social Networking, be sure to look at the comments of others before sharing with students. Since you can curate your own topics, this may not be a major concern.
In the Classroom
Use Reddit to show the uniqueness and value of topics by the upvotes and downvotes. Also discuss the thinking behind the upvotes and downvotes. Comments to the posts offer more detailed information to portions of the topic that can lead to different points of view, deeper analysis, and discussion of related topics. Since the average person and professionals use Reddit, students can ask a question to get crowdsourced answers such as "How to write a better term paper?" View the various topics that have high or poor ratings and determine whether the ratings are based upon facts or opinion. Students can find various topics for term papers or research by viewing the Reddit topics. Reddit is also popular for finding peer review journals and tutorials.
At Home
Share Reddit with your teen who likes to read stories that are a little more quirky or may go beyond what the mainstream publications publish. If your son or daughter is researching a topic, be sure to have him/her search Reddit to find little-known articles and facts on their topic.
Tags
microblogging, social networking, news,
Subjects
Current Events, English, Language Arts, Reading, Science, Social Studies, Social Studies, TeachersFirst Edge, Writing,