Somebody asked a great question; I have an equally half-great answer (is that possible, half-great?)

So, this guy, you might know him, named "voice-in-the-back-of-my-head," asked me "so, why a blog? Why not just a homework notebook, or your e-mail csdo account, or printouts sent home every day, or phone calls to each and every parent/kid, every day for a month? Are you kidding me!? So, naturally I shut Mr. Voice up, for a second.

Answer: it's just another way of piquing the interest of teachers and students who are always willing to try new things (i.e. blogspots), and make good use of it. If it's new, and somewhat interesting, interactive, fluid, it's potentially motivating, and engaging, and naturally conducive to ACTIVE PARTICIPATION. Plus, in 2009, almost 2010, our kids are native to the cyber-environment, so naturally, they're employing their tech-savvy skills with purpose: communicating on a academically relevant topic, that of course being science.

***For the smarty-pants people, look up discourses on "motivation" insofar as they stem from theories related to human development--such theories authored by the likes of Bloom, Maslow, but not limited thereto; learn about the educational implications, and the role of "motivation" on academic success, and the proven relevance of motivation on the whole of education. Kids, don't worry about that. 'Just wanted to add meat to the potatoes. I jest, of course.