How To Set Up A Blog
A blog is a great way to publish your work and encourage people to take you seriously as a writer, thinker, reader, etc. Two that I read regularly are:
I read these because they give me ideas of what to read, and they are thought-provoking and interesting. Also, I know the writers personally and value their creativity.
I. Student Mentors
Here are some former eighth-graders' blogs. Read them and think about what makes a good blog.
http://16ddanelian.blogspot.com/
http://16kselsey.blogspot.com/
http://16chamilton.blogspot.com/
http://16hgordon.blogspot.com/
II. Blogging Requirements
1. Now that Ms. Ahart has set up your blogs, you are ready to start blogging! Remember, your URL follows this formula: www.17firstinitiallastname.blogspot.com.
2. To create a new post, go to blogger.com. Sign in with your school 17firstinitiallastname@k051.org account. Click on the pen icon to create a new post.
3. Suggestions for writing blog posts:
- Brainstorm and draft your post first. Use Google Documents/Drive for your final document.
- Copy and paste your document from Google Drive onto blogger; this helps decrease the risk of losing the document.
- Not having Internet is not an excuse for not doing your blog post! If you have no connection, type and print out the assignment for the due date, then post as soon as possible.
- Save your work. When your work is complete, click on Publish. This is the only way others can view your post.
- Add a Label to your post; write a word or short phrase that shows the topic or assignment.
4. Personalizing your blog: You can personalize your blogs by changing the title, design, and by adding gadgets.
- For your blog title, write something simple and meaningful to you. My title is Reading and Writing to Expand Our Universe and it is based on a quote from Madeleine L'Engle. It relates to the purpose of the blog which is to include writing on reading. You could also just write a simple title such as My 8th Grade ELA Blog.
- Add gadgets: Click on “design” at the top right hand corner again. Click on “layout” on the left hand side. Click on “add gadget”. When you find one you want, click on the “+” sign. Be sure to save changes! As you customize your blogs, feel free to utilize all the tools available to you on blogger. The following are required:
- Labels: Label each post according to your focus (for example, “character change” or “theme”). You can also label posts according to topic (“friendship” or “sports”) or title (“Hunger Games”).
- Blog List: create a list of student blogs from your class and label it your homeroom number; you can create other blog lists as well. You can add in the blogs once I add them to our home base blog, www.msgalangenglish.blogspot.com or enter the URL manually. For instance, add the URL of my blog.
- List: think about adding a “Favorite Books" list or "Recently Finished Books" or "Books I Want to Read". Include title and author.
5. Be responsible, honest writers and make sure all your posts meet academic standards.
Additional Guidelines
- Consider your audience: myself, your peers, and everyone else part of the MS51 community. Therefore, all content on your blog must be related to the class. Please do not use this blog as an online journal.
- My expectation is that we are a community of readers and writers. I will be monitoring all blogs and trusting that your words that appear online will come from a place of respect for your fellow classmates as well with a tone that is appropriate for school.
- Do not plagiarize (see agenda book for more information on academic integrity). This will result in a 0 for the assignment, contact with parents, and possibly detention.
- To keep your blog looking academic and professional, do not add any distracting gadgets (such as pets or advertisements). Also, please type in readable colors (no pink or yellow) and fonts (avoid ones that are cursive or all caps, especially). Do not make the background black and type in black font.
For Homework:
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Parent-Student Contract Regarding ELA Blog
Name:________________________________________________Class:_____________
Blog URL:_____________________________________________.blogspot.com
Blog Title: ________________________________________________
Dear Parents,
Your child will be writing regularly on an online blog for ELA this year. The privacy settings are designed to protect your child and can be viewed only if you type in the URL. Please help make this project successful by:
- reviewing guidelines for internet safety and guidelines for appropriate internet behavior, especially for a school-related online project
- reading your child’s blog and sharing positive support and encouragement (see blog URL above).
From time to time, we may be posting photographs of the class. Is it permissible to have your child’s photograph taken and/or posted? Circle one: YES / NO
Signature of Parent/Guardian_________________________________________________________
I understand that this blog is to help me become a better reader and writer. I understand that this is a school project and all postings and comments will be related to our reading and writing community. I will follow the guidelines that we went over in class.
Student Signature_______________________________________________________________
For Homework:
Due: ____________________________________
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