Using Edmodo in the S/L Classroom

I found out about a website called Edmodo towards the end of last school year.  I thought it sounded cool, but didn't really know how I could incorporate it into my SL classroom.  I registered for it and then just started playing with it for awhile.  For those of you who haven't heard of it, it is basically like a Facebook for educational purposes.  It's a very safe environment as kids cannot look each other up or write on other kids' walls.  

At the beginning of this school year I added all my kids to my Edmodo class and gave them the opportunity to change their profile picture (there are images to choose from) and write a little bit about themselves.  They were all very excited to create these profiles!

I then started creating pre & post tests and other quizzes on there to get baselines for the kids.  Creating them is super easy as you can choose Multiple Choice or True/False format.  You create the questions and provide the possible answer choices.  So far I have created quizzes for Vocabulary, Story Comprehension, Irregular Verbs/Plurals, Articulation Placement, etc.  Once you create the quiz you can choose a due date and assign it to any group(s) you want.  You can also have the grades automatically added to your Edmodo grade book after the kids take it!




It's a really neat idea because my kids actually beg to take quizzes on Edmodo!! 

In addition to completing quizzes, the kids can also write on the group wall or my wall.  Sometimes we have 5 or 10 minutes left of a session so they log onto Edmodo and answer my prompt which may be "Tell me 2 things you learned today" or "What was your favorite thing you learned this week?"  This is good feedback for me as I can reflect on my lessons and figure out what things went well and what things I need to change or spend more time on.  As an extra step with answering question prompts, I always stress the need for basic writing mechanics (capital letters, periods, etc.).  


Is anyone else using Edmodo in their SL classroom? What do you use it for?