Chatting it up online

"Chatting It Up Online" by Pamela Livingston. This article discussed the process of students participating in a live chat with an author. The article was interesting in that many people may not realize what opportunities there are for chatting on line with a "famous" person. I can see how this would interest the avid readers of this particular author. I can also see how this might spread interest to students who were not yet readers of this particular series. The advice regarding the set up was very informational and really would be helpful to others wanting to set up such as session for their students. It was also very helpful to have the issues outlined which were discovered during the preparation process, such as dealing with the light from windows and how the school network limited access.

Q1. What difficulties did you encounter during the preliminary process?

A1. The author outlined several issues concerning the school network, which they bypassed, testing the connection during the time of day the chat would take place, having the questions before the day of the chat, and even down to blocking the sun glaring on the screen.

Q2. What were the benefits to this type of encounter, versus writing a letter to the author?

A2. The benefits for the students were that their questions were answered very quickly, as opposed to waiting weeks for a return letter and also the boys were addressed by name, which involved them directly in the exchange.