What is a wiki?
Wiki comes from the Hawaiian word "wiki wiki" which means quick. So a wiki page literally means a quick page on the Internet. Users can create web pages but allow others to collaborate as well as comment on the page. If you can type an email or a Microsoft Word document you can create a wiki. Wiki pages can incorporate text, audio, and video pieces embedded on the page. Users can look through the history of the page to see how it has developed and spammed or bogus versions can be reverted back to a good version. For those who need the audio and video to understand here is a great video from Common Craft.


How would I use this in my classroom?
Wikis can be very useful for the classroom teacher. Any time groups need to work together wikis allow the users to have a central spot to gather their work.

Here are some specific examples.

• Students' notes are a great use for a wiki. Each student is responsible for making sure the content is accurate because everyone can benefit from the collective group not just an individual.
• An encylopedia type collection of material. Students can collaborate and report out on their individual work and thus create a group work. Here is an example to check out with dinosaurs.
• Creative writing projects - You could create a page with an introduction and then let your students go wild. Students can correct spelling and grammatical items as well as develop or revise other writing traits.
• Teachers could use wikis for team meetings. Individual teachers can revise notes to accurrately reflect the meeting.
• Wikis can become curriculum resources. Students can use the wiki to supplement classroom activities and as new sites are created teachers can add them to the wiki. Here is an example to check out with the Houghton Mifflin Reading series K-5.

Don't be limited to these ideas. Any time you ask students to work together and collaborate on a product a wiki is definitely an option to consider.

Where to Turn to Create Your Own Wikis

• Wikispaces
• Pbwiki
• Wetpaint
• Check with your technology coordinator or integrator as one can be installed on any webserver (no ads)