Google Blogg Yolanda Tomlin

What is a blog?  A blog or weblog is an online form of communication where users can share their ideas in a public forum  The blogging phenomenon began when random users decided to share their daily lives with anonymous online viewers through online diaries

Mena Trott  As the co-founder of the one the premiere blogging software, Mena Trott as been totted as a leader the “social revolution” of blogging  Her talk at the 2006 TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) Conference highlights the intensely personal nature of blogging and how blogging has the power to change the way we communicate with friends and blur the lines between strangers 

Google Blog Google began a free online blogger service in 2003 that allows anyone to set up their own blog. Users may also search the catalogue of blogs and respond to other postings.

To begin:  If you already have a Google account you can simply sign-in. If you don’t, you will have to create a Google account.

After you have established an account you then need to name your Blog and establish your blogs address (URL). Your blog’s name should reflect the audience and the nature of the blog.

Template: The design of the template can be chosen at this time but can always be changed.

Congratulations! Your blog has been created! Now what?

Once you have established the format of your blog, you will need to decide the nature of your blog. Blogs can be divided into two different categories: By media type:  Vlogs – video logs; a blog that has video  Sketchlog – a log containing a portfolio of sketches  Photoblog – a log containing photos By subject:  Political blogs  Fashion blogs  Project blogs  Niche blogs.....basically if you want to write about it, there’s a blog for you and if there isn’t, you can simply create your own

Personalizing your Blog  You can add various elements to your blog to reflect the purpose of the blog or simply reveal more about yourself – the blogger

To personalize your blog you simply choose the customize button on your blog’s home page:

Adding Elements: To see the various elements that can be selected, choose “Add a Page Element”

 You can choose to add one of several elements to add to your blog: –A list of your favorite books, movies, etc. –A poll for visitors to your blog to take –Personal profile –Logo –Newsreel –Picture(s) –Welcoming message

RSS Feeds  One of the elements that can be added to your blog is an RSS Feed  An RSS Feed can come from a variety of sources including newspapers, news based websites, and iTunes  An RSS Feed can added to blogs to generate conversation, stimulate responses or simply to add interest to a user’s blog

To add an RSS Feed:  Choose “Add To Blog” under the Feed option  You will be directed to a window that asks you to provide the URL for the feed  Once you copy and paste the URL into the address bar the RSS Feed will automatically be added to your blog

 Now that you have entered an RSS Feed into your blog you can use this as a means to generate comments or elicit responses about current issues

Uses of Blogs  Blogs can be used in various ways in education  The most useful use of blogs is to make the learning experience a more personal experience for students by giving them the opportunity to respond to the issues discussed in the class  James Farmer discusses the ways blogs can be used in education in his article “How you SHOULD use Blogs in Education”

Conclusion  Like other new technologies, blogs can be useful instruments when implemented thoughtfully  Care should be taken when implementing blogs into the classroom that they are used effectively to enhance the educational process