Welcome to the third step in our free professional learning series on class and student blogging!
The aim of this step is to:
- Help you understand how posts are used on class blogs.
- Provide tips on how to write effective posts.
- Teach you how to publish your first posts.
Introduction To Posts
Your posts are where you’ll publish your main content such as:
- showcases of student work
- information about what’s been happening in class
- assignment information or learning resources
They are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order with the most recent post at the top of the page.
By default, your home page is your blog post page and this is where you’ll see your new posts published.
If you look closely at a post you will see it is normally made up of:
- Post title – This tells the reader what the post is about. Be specific. A great post title grabs your reader’s attention and makes them want to read on.
- Date published – You’ll normally see this displayed at the top of the post.
- Written by – Most themes display the name of the post author. Your username is automatically displayed unless you have changed your display name. Even if the teacher is the only one with an account, student work can still be showcased. You could introduce the name(s) of the students at the top of the post.
- Comments – Readers can click on the word ‘comments’ or click on the post title and scroll down to write a comment in response to your post. Comments allow students and other readers, to engage in discussions, share their thoughts, and connect with your class blog. We will be exploring the topic of quality commenting in step four.
- Your post content – This is the main information that you want to share or reflect on. It could be a mixture of text, links, images, videos etc.
- Categories – These are used to help readers locate posts on your blog. Categories are often used like chapters of a book; they provide a general overview of the topics you blog about.
- Tags – These are used to help readers locate posts on your blog. Tags are more like the index at the back of the book and explode the topic into many bits.
Watch the following video to learn more about the difference between pages and posts.
Here’s a quick summary of the difference between posts and pages.
Who Writes Posts On Class Blogs?
If you look closely at class blogs you’ll see on some blogs only the teacher publishes posts. On other blogs, both the teacher and students publish posts — or the students publish posts on their own student blogs. Some class blogs are written entirely by students.
Different Approaches To Publishing On Class Blogs
Here are a few examples to check out of different ways that posts are published on class blogs.
- On blogs like Swoop Into Kindergarten and Room Three @ Auroa Primary School the teacher publishes all the posts, however, student work is showcased in the posts. For example: photos of work, videos, slideshows etc.
- Becky Versteeg also weaves links to student blogs in posts on the Team 2 Eagles class blog. The student blogs are also listed on the sidebar of these two blogs.
- In Blogging with 2/3 Moore, Julie Moore publishes some posts and allows students to guest post as well (student blogs are also earned and these are listed on the sidebar).
- On the Chickering Reports blog, all the posts are by students. They often create audio and video interviews with members of their community. Most of the posts on the Live Learn Blog are written by students.
It’s really up to you which approach you use.
Consider A Progressive Approach
If you do decide you want your students to publish posts we recommend the best approach, regardless of student age, is to introduce blogging slowly in the following order:
- The teacher writes posts on the class blog.
- Students write comments in response to posts (the focus is on teaching students quality commenting skills).
- Students write posts on the class blog or their own student blog.
Many educators with successful blogging programs use the following scaffolded approach:
As Jan Smith says:
The big idea is to go slow to go fast.
If you don’t lay the groundwork by building a community of trust, risk, support with your kids they fail big.
Reading and commenting have to be the core, or else a blog is just a digital bulletin board.
The progressive model Kathleen Morris has used is as follows:
- I establish the class blog and wrote the posts while teaching the students to write quality comments.
- As students became more familiar with blogging, some students started publishing guest posts on the class blog and learned posting skills.
- Depending on student age and computer access, either certain students who have demonstrated enthusiasm, parent support, and blogging skills, earned their own blog or all students had their own blogs as digital portfolios.
Throughout all stages, quality commenting and parent participation is taught and encouraged. Starting initially with more of a teacher-controlled blog is a great way to get comfortable and set expectations.
We’ll show you how to teach quality commenting skills, how to connect parents with your class blog, and how to add students to blogs so they can publish posts later in this professional learning series on class and student blogging.
For now, we’ll focus on teaching you how to write your first posts.
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First Post Examples
What do you publish as posts on your class blog? Pretty much anything you want to share with students, families, or other educators you’ll publish as a post. What’s been happening in class, student work, assignments, homework information, documents — there’s so much you can share!
Here are some examples of first posts, or posts for the new school year, to check out for ideas:
- Mrs. Yollis’ Welcome Back :: 2017-2018. This includes a personal video message from Mrs. Yollis and a screencast showing how to leave a comment.
- Baldock & Grantham Class blog — A Sneak Peak at your new classroom for 2018. The teachers published a few images of the classroom a week prior to school starting.
- Mrs. C Class Connection — Welcome to blogging. High school teacher Kae Cunningham included a video to explain what a blog is. She also included links to the history of blogging and asked students to respond in a comment.
- Welcome to Mrs. Fernandes’ First Grade Class 2018-2019! Mrs. Fernandes has written a welcome post to new students prior to the summer holidays. It includes a list of school supplies.
- Mrs. Moore’s Class Blog — Our First Week. This includes a video overview of what the students have been doing in the first few days of school.
- The Cross Chronicles — Kelly Cross published a series of welcome posts over a week or so.
- The first post was a short welcome video from Kelly.
- The second post included photos and student work from the first day of school.
- The third post has some fun photos of students celebrating their third day of third grade.
Check out The Edublogger’s Class Blog list for more ideas on what the teachers post on their class blogs!
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Integrating Blogging Into Your Day
Integration is key. No teacher has time for add-ons, so it’s a case of considering how can a blog enhance your regular classroom program.
Consider this:
- Can some traditional analog tasks be replaced (and enhanced) with digital tasks in your classroom? For example, well known blogger, Linda Yollis, swapped a traditional pencil and paper history lesson for a blogging task. Students responded to one another in the comment section from the point-of-view of the biography figure they studied. Helen Keller was responding to Louis Braille and President Lincoln. Neil Armstrong had a conversation with astronaut Mae Jemison. Parents got involved as well. Here blogging wasn’t an add-on but a swap for a more effective activity.
- Can certain tasks be done better or more quickly with a blog? For example, can you spend less time on things like publishing assignments or parent newsletters by housing all this information on your blog?
- Where can you slot blogging into the day? Many teachers start the day (or class) with a routine. It might be running around the oval, silent reading, doing a weather report or looking at the news of the day. Are these routines still valuable? Could they be discarded, rescheduled or alternated? Could blogging be slotted into your opening routine?
Also consider:
- Can you add blogging to your literacy block instead of a traditional writing or reading task?
- Could a maths prompt be posted on the blog and students share their explanation through a comment or post?
- Could your inquiry or social studies topic be explored through creating a post or multimedia for the blog?
- Could some physical displays of artwork and other creations become digital displays on the blog with rich reflections?
- Could traditional homework tasks become more meaningful blogging tasks? Eg. working with a family member to share insights in a comment.
Once you get the hang of it, it becomes easier to understand how blogging can be integrated into your classes.
How To Publish A Post
1. Go to Posts > Add New.
2. Give your post a title and add your content.
3. Add your tags and categories (learn about categories and tags here).
4. When finished writing click Publish.
3. Presto! Your post will now display on your blog so others can read!
Below is a quick video tutorial on publishing a new post:
Previewing Your Draft
Before you publish your post it is a good idea to use the Preview option to see what it looks like to your readers.
You preview a post by clicking on Save Draft and then click Preview. This opens up a draft version of your post in a new tab.
Then just go back to your draft and make any changes you want!
Introduction To The Visual Editor
The area where you write your post is by default in Visual Editing mode which uses WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) option for formatting.
It works similar to any word processing software.
Simply write your post, highlight any text you want to format and then click the appropriate button in the toolbar to add formatting such as bold, italics, number list.
The Toolbar toggle icon is used to view the advanced formatting options including heading styles, underlining, font color, custom characters, undo, redo.
You switch between Visual Editing mode and HTML editing mode by clicking on the Visual or Text tab.
Below is a quick video tutorial on the visual editor:
Putting It All Together: PDF Guide
Feel free to print the following PDF guide on how to publish a post, or download it to your computer and then upload it to your blog for your students to refer to.
These instructions explain how you would do that.
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Open in new tab Tips For Writing Better Blog Posts
Reading online is different from reading on paper.
Ultimately, you want your content to be read. The easier to read and more engaging your posts are, the more likely they are to be read!
We’ve outlined five tips to help you write better posts on your class blog.
1. Use short paragraphs
Posts with really long paragraphs are harder to read online.
Consider these tips about paragraphs:
- Break your posts up with paragraphs.
- The more paragraphs the better.
- Short paragraphs are better than long (they can even be one or two sentences long).
- Make the first sentence of each paragraph make your readers want to read on.
2. Use Headings
Use headings, and, where appropriate, bullet points and numbered lists, to break up the post into manageable bite-sized chunks.
To create a heading you simply:
- Highlight the text you want to change into a heading
- Select the Heading Style you want to apply from the advanced formatting toolbar (you access the advanced formatting toolbar by clicking on the Toolbar toggle icon). Heading 1 is your post title. Start at Heading 2, then Heading 3 for sub-headings under that and so on.
- Preview your post to make sure that Headings you’ve used have broken your post into manageable chunks
3. Remember to link
When you write about a website you should link to it as your readers often want to check it out in more detail. Refer to Add Links support page to see how to add a link or watch this video below.
4. Consider colored text
While you’re less likely to use colored text in posts on a personal/professional blog, it can engage students and draw attention to specific information on posts on a class blog.
You’ll see examples of it used in posts on Miss Jordan’s Class blog and the Student Challenge blog.
You change the color of text as follows:
- Highlight the text you want to change
- Select the text color you want to apply from the advanced formatting toolbar (you access the advanced formatting toolbar by clicking on the Toolbar Toggle icon)
- Preview your post to make sure the text is readable and you like the color (darker colors are best).
5. Enhance posts with images and media
When you look at class blogs you’ll notice they enhance their posts with images and other types of media including videos and by embedding online tools.
We’ll show you how to add images, add videos, and embed content later in this professional learning series on class and student blogging.
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Read more tips for making your blog posts easier to read.
Commonly Asked Post Questions
Here are the answers to commonly asked questions we receive into Edublogs Support:
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What does the “Not found” message on my homepage mean?
By default, the front page of your blog is set to display your latest posts.
If you delete the default “Hello World’ post before you publish a new post then your front page will display ‘Nothing Found’, ’404 – Not Found Error’ or something similar depending on the theme you are using.
This message is displayed because there is nothing to display on your front page.
All you need to do is go to Posts > Add New and publish a new post.
Once the new post is published you’ll see it displayed on your homepage.
You’ll find more detailed step by step instructions on how to fix a Not Found message here.
How do you delete the Hello World Post?
Every newly created blog is the same default layout with posts displayed on its home page with a ‘Hello World’ post and and ‘Sample’ page.
You can delete this post at any time by going to Posts > All Posts.
Hovering your mouse over the title of the Hello World post brings up four action links.
Now just click on Trash. This sends it to your Trash folder where it is permanently deleted within 30 days of when you trashed it.
Remember if you delete all posts, and your homepage is your blog post page, you will see a “Not Found” message.
To remove that message you just need to publish a new post by going to Posts > Add New.
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Is it possible to publish posts to different pages on my blog?
We’re often asked if it is possible to add posts to other pages, rather than just the front page of the blog. This is commonly asked by educators who want to use one blog for multiple classes or subjects.
And yes you can! But it does involve slightly advanced blogging skills.
You do it by sending posts to different pages on your blog by assigning different categories to posts, based on the class or subject, and using a custom menu to create links to the categories from your top navigation. When students and parents click on their category they’re taken to all the posts for that class or subject. Check out Mr. Cartlidge’s Science Blog to see how it works.
You’ll find step by step instructions on using categories to organize multiple classes or subjects on your blog here.
Remember, it does involve slightly advanced blogging skills — so leave a comment or email us at Edublogs Support if you need our assistance.
Your Task
Blogging is about sharing, collaborating, and learning from each other. Here’s your chance to ask a question, comment, and get involved!
Complete the following tasks:
- Check out the post examples and then publish your first post. Leave a link to your first post in a comment so we can have a look at how you went.
- Or, if you’ve already published a few posts, share an idea on how your introduced blogging to your students or how you’re integrating blogging into your curriculum.
- Read through the most recent comments in reply to this post and leave a response to another person’s comment.
Sorry, I forgot to add my link. https://ssullivan4.edublogs.org/discovering-ace/
I am new to blogging and am planning on using our site for students to check-in and show what they have learned and what they are doing. I am excited to use the blog with my students, but I do have a question. When I try to see my blog with the link that was provided I am getting an ooops message, is that because I scheduled it for the blog to go live on the first day of school?
Hi! I went to your link and love what you’ve done on your blog site! I’m going to leave a comment on it for you. I taught 4th grade for 16 years and this year am going to a Media Lab teacher role which is new to my school. Maybe we can connect our students on their blogs. I’ll have Kprep – Grade 6 and plan to use Edublogs with 4th – 6th.
I will be introducing blogging to my students next year. Very excited to interact this way with future students
Did my first post. https://ksredl.edublogs.org/2021/01/26/things-to-do/
I will introduce blogging to the students by offering a 1 percent grade increase to each student who produced a substantial comment ( 4 or more full sentences) on the weeks lesson points
This is a simole interactive way to grade the students based off of participation, I like it.https://tyler67011.edublogs.org/2021/02/09/technology-in-the-classroom/
I have done a post but it is not showing up on my home page
https://madamechop.edublogs.org/sample-page/
Hi there,
Your first post is showing up on your home page here https://madamechop.edublogs.org/. For any support questions please use the support mail form at https://edublogs.org/contact/ where we can attend to any queries a lot faster.
Thanks!
I think the best way to introduce blogging and commenting would be to have your first post be something high-interest, current, and something that the students would have a lot to say about. Not just how did you spend your vacation, or tell me about your pets, you know?
I agree. Something to try and grab the students attention.
https://emilyscuteri.edublogs.org/2020/02/10/welcome-to-my-class/ Here is my first post!
Hey Emily, congratulations on your new blog! I like your use of colours and the clean, uncluttered look. Happy blogging!
I made a quick introduction post https://bhilditch.edublogs.org/2020/02/11/introducing-me/
Hey Brianna, thanks for sharing! Love the theme you used and the header, enjoy building your new blog!
Hello Bloggers,
I’ve published my first post. Since I am not currently in the classroom, I posted two youtube videos that I would use for first or second grade students to help them learn their math doubles addition facts. I like the idea of sharing helpful information with parents and students this way. Hopefully, once I’ve progressed further in this course, I won’t discover that I shouldn’t have posted these!
This is my first post, it’s just a little introduction. https://mahuclass.edublogs.org/2020/02/09/welcome-class/
-Jasmine Mahusain
This was great and easy to read, for the parents and students!
Hello, this is the link to my first post! http://alainacianchetti.edublogs.org/2020/02/04/welcome-to-our-class-blog/
Hello all, this is the link to my first post! http://alainacianchetti.edublogs.org/2020/02/04/welcome-to-our-class-blog/
My first blog post is below!
http://kennedyclassadventures.edublogs.org/
Well done with your first blog post, just love the little terrier…
Great job on your first blog! I love your use of cute, fun images and the whole layout of your site. Very impressive!
I love it and your whole page! I hope mine can be as amazing as yours.
This is a really cute first post! Love your blog!
My first blog post…. http://morganalbright.edublogs.org/2020/01/22/new-to-blogging/
Hi Morgan! Welcome to the exciting world of blogging with Edublogs. You have chosen one of my favourite themes, I like the clean, fresh look!
YAY Morgan. Good job on your post. Very organized and well thought! Keep up the great work, and I am looking forward to seeing more of your blog.
Morgan Albright,
Great job on your first post. Your update on what your kids are learning was very informative. I bet the parents love reading about it. I especially love the picture you used for your blog. It’s beautiful! What theme are you using?
Hi Valerie, Miss Albright used the theme Billie, which is definitely one of my favourite themes too!
My first post: http://pineridgedmm.edublogs.org/2019/12/03/hello-world/
As a digital multi-media teacher I thought introducing a classroom blog to my students would be a great way to expand their learning and incorporate Literacy into my curriculum.
I’m using my class blog to interact with students as they are reading novels with our curriculum. I learned about this in a recent training session with AP. I’m excited about using it as are my students. Other teachers in my department are asking about using it as well. My first blog is about how to get into the first chapters of the novel they are reading.
Here is a link to my first post…I was so proud of myself as I am severely technically-challenged! I have been learning along the way with my students and we are learning and laughing together every time we meet to blog!
http://mstabata.edublogs.org/2019/09/29/hello-world/
Check out all our posts while you are visiting our blog!
Awesome, well done with your first post. You’ll soon be blogging like a pro once you get over the initial stage fright!
I have only written a few posts and I am waiting to have some details of our school social media photo sharing policy to be clarified by the leadership team before I start blogging properly. Here is one of my posts. I am trying to keep my blog quite simple and accessibility friendly as my students need distractions to be reduced.
http://jemimat.edublogs.org/2019/10/07/an-exciting-start-to-term-4/
Hi,
I was just letting you know as I was scrolling through the comments, I clicked on your link, and it denied my access because I am not subscribed. Just thought you would want to know because it could be a problem for others.
I have started to post images of recent and past events that my hospitality classes have catered for. They are categorised into different classes and year levels so that it can be tracked. Also, I published some new posts that embed YouTube playlists. Here is the link: http://hospitalityclassroom.edublogs.org/
I have set up a couple of posts so far. This is my students’ first assignment. http://galenaphoto.edublogs.org/2019/09/23/emotional-portrait/ I plan to have enrichment activities as well for them to deepen learning.
Your site is so cool! I’m also a Photography teacher… I love your list of Video Resources!
https://lddewar.edublogs.org/2019/08/19/photographs/
http://mimillercvsu.edublogs.org/2019/09/15/where-im-from-poem-videos/
I like the “tease” aspect of your post. I will definitely stop back to see what your students have accomplished.
Here is my first blog post! http://laurasnowed.edublogs.org/2019/09/15/welcome-to-my-beginning/
Ummm, its kind of crazy that it is now out there!
I agree, once you hit publish it is there for all to see.
It looks like you are having fun with this new opportunity.
Nothing like a bit of stage fright before you hit publish 😉 Glad you having fun while learning about blogging.
Barry
Edublogs Support
Good on you for “putting it out there”. I like your about page and the photo gives a personal touch to your blogging voice. Also like the blogging challenge you have on the side of your blog. Well done.
http://mrsbing.edublogs.org/2019/09/03/chromebooks-are-here/
I’m still working on how everything looks, but I’m happy I was able to figure out how to write my first post.
Congratulations on your first post! I have made mine as well http://laurasnowed.edublogs.org/2019/09/15/welcome-to-my-beginning/
I think your format looks balanced. I think I am going to edit my theme- it looks too basic, or too generic, or something- I just don’t love it, yet!
I think you’re doing a great job. I like how simple and clean your blog looks. I’m excited for your student and their new Chromebooks too! I hope that they enjoy the blogging experience.
I am still working on the aesthetics of my blog and trying to figure out who really is the audience, parents, teachers, students, visitors so it is still a complete work in progress, but if you want to take a look and offer any suggestions, please feel free https://ismiley77.edublogs.org
You said you are still working on aesthetics, but I think it looks fantastic!
Great point! I have to think about that, as well. Where and when will I publicize this? Will I link my blog to our school teacher website pages?
I really appreciate all of the videos and tutorials, I find that I keep having to go back to them for the aswers. This course is really helpful! So glad there is one for the students as well.
Thank you for the infographic on pages vs posts. I think it will be important to distinguish the difference with my students as well.
I have two posts so far. Feel free to read them if you wish!
You can access the posts here: https://mskvcooksenglishclass.edublogs.org/
Thank you!
-Katelyn C.
This course is very helpful!
http://sintija.edublogs.org
I have some problems with my poll, the vote button doesn’t show as I want to, but I think I will leave it for now. I tried to add some tags but I don’t think that they were necessary for this post, because it’s just introduction, however I added them just for practicing.
Hi Sintija,
Your blog is looking great and your introduction post is lovely. Did you end up fixing your poll? It’s working fine for me 🙂
Good thought with tags. Categories are required but some bloggers don’t end up using tags much. However, if you’re going to have lots of content on your blog in future it can help. Up to you!
Kathleen Morris
Edublogs Community Manager
@kathleen_morris
I really liked how you included photos, graphics, and a video into your posts. It makes it more engaging. I liked what you included for an introduction/about, blog assessment, and guidelines. I feel like the blog is very inviting and welcoming. I think this is a great way to get students interested in English. English is also my content area/area of certification. Great job!
I am the kind of person who dives into stuff before figuring it out completely, I don’t know if I am wreckless or adventurous though I incline for the later. This is my blog’s link https://mrmblog.edublogs.org/ please check it out and give me your impressions. One of the tasks I took to empower blogging was asking my students the next question: @ReadingWritin18 #3BHW Using simile from Handel and Grethel answer the next questions: What are some effects of poverty nowadays?
Okay, I completed my first post as simple as it is.
http://dcrowningshield.edublogs.org/2019/02/25/welcome-to-our-class-blog/
Well done! The first of many posts perhaps! 🙂
For my first post, I modified the “Hello World” that is automatically added to the blog. Here is a link to what I did: http://tigerspride.edublogs.org/2019/02/07/hello-world/.
So far, in class, I am using the blog as a draft and teaching space, for this class, at the moment, almost exclusively. I use the main blog — the class blog — to post announcements and assignments (mostly assignments at this point) and have student prepare responses using their blogs or through comments on the main posts. Students have not yet been “encouraged” to comment on classmates’ posts, but they have been told that this is possible and allowed, and some have taken advantage of it. I am waiting to “encourage” it until I have modeled it thoroughly for them with my posts to their blogs and have discussed what makes a good response.
It sounds like you have a good plan in place! Just checking you know your blog is password protected? That’s totally fine if that’s what you intended.
Kathleen Morris
Edublogs Community Manager
@kathleen_morris
Tchikwendy, I wasn’t allowed access to your blog.
Done, thank you!
So I’ve been making some changes to my blog http://teed3018.edublogs.org and have 2 posts: a welcome post, and an assignment instructions post. Post on this blog will be mostly by students in the next few weeks.
I’m a long-time blogger and 1st time blogging teacher (the class is creative-writing) and this has been quite the day. Students are quite overwhelmed with setting up their pages and making them look good. Additionally, I found out (after setting up everyone’s blog) that our school email system is not actually workable-email for the students! That was crazy, so…all the students had to set up their own blogs (and couldn’t use their awesome blog titles that they first chose cause they were already taken and associated with their non-working school email accounts…erk….). However, we eventually figured that out and now they are setting up their posts and pages. It is delightful watching them engage with their own blogs!
Oh no! I definitely understand your frustration. I have had classes like this when trying out different tools. If you’re still having troubles getting students set up be sure to email support@edublogs.org and they’ll be happy to help.
So great you got to see the students enjoying their blogs in the end!
Kathleen Morris
Edublogs Community Manager
@kathleen_morris
I am setting up my pages and posts now, and I am thinking how complicated this might get, but we shall see!
Thanks for sharing your experience with this. Thankfully I did know in advance that my students email addresses were non-working for mail outside the system, but I still had some students that added the information and had to start over.
Also, for many, getting them connected to the class blog — even though I had set up user names in advance — was a step I was unclear about until no one could see anyone else. But, for all the fits and starts, my class seems excited about coming and working with their blog everyday, even to complete assignments.
Thank you for sharing this, I will make sure I check their accounts before we set up students blogs. I can’t wait to get started!
I’ve been using a blog for the last two years with my students. I write the posts. In the past, I have had students comment, question, add things, but this year I cannot get students to engage with the blog. Most barely look at it.
I am going to work with my teacher team to decide whether we want our groups to have their own pages they post to or if they will post replies to a teacher’s post. I included a welcome post on the blog for practice!
Hey, I have the same issue! My first idea was for my students to each have their own blog, but is has been a struggle! I will try to stir things up and get them to fall in love with blogging, but for the following weeks I’ll have them reply to a teacher’s post.
First post- http://jlukjanowicz.edublogs.org/2019/02/05/science-play-project/
I like that your first post offers something that will draw students in. Giving them something to think about and to try, which also makes them want to check back for more opportunities is awesome! I try to do this with my students as well.
Your blog got me going on life experiences. Every time my kids slide down we hi five… and boom… electricity is exchanged… great way to teach science.
This is my first post: http://bgpbloggers.edublogs.org/2019/02/05/welcome-to-our-learning-journey/
We are about to start a blogging club in a few weeks, after school, so we intend to teach the children how blog effectively. I am really looking forward to seeing what the children would like to post about.
I am going to work with my teacher team to decide whether we want our groups to have their own pages they post to or if they will post replies to a teacher’s post. I included a welcome post on the blog for practice!
This is great! I love that you linked the school website to your page. That is a great start!
I like the simplicity of it! And the colour choice is great, it’s easy to read! Good job!
Ok, I wrote my firts post, is just a presentation since is the first time I am going to use Edublogs to share with my students.
http://ainhoacsdma.edublogs.org/
Next I want to write a post about how can thay create their avatar and star commenting
We have a class blog.
The pupils write all the blog posts on their AlphaSmarts (Old-fashioned mobile word processors) and download their work onto the blog. I do everything else (preparing the blog page and adding pictures). I also take the photographs of their paintings and illustrations that accompany their posts . The beauty of using AlphaSmarts is that the children can use them anywhere: lying on the carpet, hiding in the class tent, sitting in a corner or even having peace and quiet in the corridor outside the class. I try not to correct the grammar and punctuation too much. Children enjoy reading one another’s posts. Parents love to read them too and give their children praise.
https://deanburnep.edublogs.org
This sounds really good, this is my aim eventually. Could you tell me more about the AlphaSmarts please?
Thank you!
Alphasmarts are mobile wordprocessors. They are a bit old-fashioned now, I suppose. But my children love using them, and thrill in calling them “retro”. After the children have written on their Alphasmarts, they can download the content directly onto the computer using a short cable. Children can do this themselves and love to see the words appear on the computer screen.
I have been so amazed at the response from my grade 3 class when introduced them to blogging. We have started with paper blogs and moved on to commenting. The enthusiasm is awesome and so inspiring – other classes want what we have!
https://theojcs.edublogs.org/2018/12/10/grade-3-blogging-leaders/ – here is anaxample of one of my first posts, getting the school involved in what our class were doing and how we can help other get started.
I think… I’m getting the hang of it. I’m going to incorporate the blog today in class and have my juniors help establish suitable guidelines for behavior on our classroom blog (and the internet in general). I’m excited to see what they can do here! http://millerclass2019.edublogs.org/2019/01/18/welcome/
I have a few posts up now, here is the most recent:http://wahsdesign.edublogs.org/2019/01/21/police-protection-shield-designs/
I am setting student portfolio blogs up now, some are catching on quicker than others…
I completely agree… which can be problematic as it is hard to move on whe others are still workign on the step before. Can you offer advice on how your students are progressing at different levels and how you have supported those falling behind?
I just ran into this today. Some students had their blog all set up and ready to move on while others struggled with logging in. I had those that were ahead team up with someone who needed help and they worked together to get everyone to the same place. One other problem I have is our technology is older and dies quickly! UGH
The detailed instructions on each of these posts has truly helped me develop my understanding of blog pages, and the mechanics involved. Truthfully, being out there is less scary with every step. Thanks!
https://mrsdsroadrunners.edublogs.org/2019/01/04/your-future/
Wow, your layout is really interesting and appropriate! Nice job with the font selection, I wish I had more options with the theme I am using.
Hello mrsdsroadrunners,
I was so surprised to discover that your blog resembles ours in style. So I will definitely be returning to your blog to see how it develops. (And maybe learn something from you. I hope you don’t mind).
http://deanburnep.edublogs.org
Wow….that’s a lot of information. Actually overwhelming. I am interested in getting my students started right away. I needed more time or should have started earlier. LOL
I will try and get some help to possibly move things along for my kiddos sake. But, I am mostly concerned about their safety so will not rush it.
Let’s know if you need more help with something specific or you are welcome to contact the team via email support@edublogs.org at any time. There’s no harm in taking things slowly either. You can get the students used to commenting first before posting if this suits you!
Thank you Kathleen, I have received lots of support. Things are still going slow, but progress is being made. http://camstlasater.edublogs.org is our primary site if this is how we share what we have going on. 🙂
My creative writing students are super excited about getting started with blogging. I am working through the PD course as quickly as possible so I can guide them as well. We have a whole week of computer lab time scheduled next week and they will be completing the Student Bootcamp course on the Edublogs site. My hope is that students will find writing freedom and become inspired to push themselves and take risks with their already pretty darn good skills!
This is my hope as well! I’m really trying to speed it along but still retain all the info! I’m glad the support staff for the blog is readily available though, and that I can always come back and reference these resources.
I am very happy to read in this comment and others that the students are excited with the idea of Blogging. I will present my new blog to my student next friday. I hope I am ready that day and I hope they like it.
I teach dance analisis, so my students are dancers and not very used to write and publish their ideas and thoughts…. I am kind of afraid but willing to introduce them in this new and exciting way of sharing and learning…
Here is my link: http://tselby.edublogs.org/
I plan to use this as a digital portfolio as of now, but that might change quickly the more I use the blog and figure out how it all works. As of now I am also planning on using this blog with one class. This may also change quickly as I gain more confidence.
What a great introductory post! Many bloggers (myself included) tend to change how they do things as they go along.