How Do I Set Up A Blog?

ELA Blog Directions, Guidelines, & Set Up

We will be creating an online community of readers, writers, and thinkers using blogs this year.  It is an incredible opportunity to share your work with a REAL audience, rather than have your thoughts live just in your notebook.  We will be doing plenty of work together on how to make this way of reading response work for you.  For now, follow the directions below to set up your blog and then try out writing a reading response based on a book you read this summer.

1. Set up a google account at www.gmail.com if you don’t already have one with a “professional” sounding name that you can use beyond 8th grade.  Be sure to write down your password somewhere safe! Google requires that you are 13 years old or have your parent/guardian's permission to have an account, so please talk to your family about it when you give them the permission slip. You will also be using this account to access other google applications in other classes this year.

2.  Create your blog using the directions below

3. Turn in the permission slip and URL form by _______________________________

4. Write your first post, which will be a reading response based on a summer reading book.  Please write your response based on what you know about reading response from last year.  Due:________________________________________

Please try not to wait until the last minute to set this up! If you need help setting it up, please schedule a time to sit down with a teacher ASAP. We are happy to help.

How do I start a web log?

1. Go to www.blogger.com (a google app) and sign in with your gmail account.

2. Click on the “Create a Blog” button.

3. Follow the directions to name your blog and create its URL.  The name and URL do not necessarily have to match.  (For example, my blog is called “Books Upon Books,” but that URL was already taken, so my URL is www.Room116ELA.blogspot.com .)

4. Click on the “simple” template, and your blog is ready to go!  Feel free to adjust the design if you want.  

Privacy Settings and Options

1. It is important to first adjust the privacy settings.  Click on the blogger icon and then your blog’s name or just go to the “Design” link at the top right hand corner of your blog’s page. You will see a list come up on the side.  Click on “basic” to get to the privacy settings and click on “edit.” Answer “no” to both questions so that it won’t come up in a search.  Click on the “save changes” button. 

2. Click on “posts and comments.” Change it to “user with google account.”

Adding 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:

Blogroll: you can create a list of blogs you are reading on the sidebar. Everyone will be responsible for commenting on their book group's blogs, so this is a great place to put links to them for easier access.  Each time an author posts something new, it automatically moves that blog to the top of your list. You can add in those blogs by copying and pasting the URL once I add them to our home base blog, www.room116ELA.blogspot.com.

List: this is an online “Finished Book List.” As you finish a book, add it here. 

Additional Guidelines

1. This blog is a part of a school project.  Therefore, all content on your blog must be related to your reading and writing life in some way.  Please do not use this blog as an online journal.

2. My expectation is that we are a community of readers and writers.  We will be monitoring all blogs and trusting that the 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. 

For our own sanity, please:

• Do not add any kind of sound gadgets to your blog. 
• Please type in readable colors (no pink or yellow).
• Please type in readable fonts (avoid ones that are cursive or all caps, especially).
• Avoid backgrounds that make your blog hard to read.

So you want to start a blog...

We will be creating an online community of readers, writers, and thinkers using blogs this year.  It is an incredible opportunity to share your work with a REAL audience, rather than have your thoughts live just in your notebook.  We will be doing plenty of work together on how to make this way of reading response work for you.  For now, I want you to follow the directions below to set up your blog and then try out writing a reading response. Google requires that you are 13 years old or have your parent/guardian's permission to have an account, so please talk to your family about it when you give them the permission slip.

By Friday, September 13th: Create your blog, turn in the permission slip and URL form

By Monday September 16th:  Your first post is due, which will be a reading response based on a summer reading book.  Please write your response based on what you know about reading response from last year. Use this as an opportunity to show me what you now about how to write a response to a book. 

I am available during zero period Wednesday, Thursday, and Monday and am more than happy to set up a time to help you if you are having trouble.  Please try not to wait until the last minute to set this up!

How do I start a web log?

1. Go to www.blogger.com and click on the “Create a Blog” button.
2. Blogger is a part of Gmail and you will need a gmail account if you don’t already have one.  If you already have a gmail email address, simply type it in.  If you don’t, you can create one, using some combination of your first and last name if possible.    Don’t forget your password! Write your address and password in a safe place.  You can now also use this account for email, or use it just for your blogger account.
3. Follow the directions to name your blog and create its URL.  The name and URL do not necessarily have to match.  (For example, my blog is called “Books Upon Books,” but that URL was already taken, so my URL is www.Room116ELA.blogspot.com .)
4. Follow the directions to pick a template, and your blog is ready to go!  Feel free to adjust the design if you want.

Privacy Settings and Options

1. It is important to first adjust the privacy settings.  Click on the blogger icon and then your blog’s name or just go to the “Design” link at the top right hand corner of your blog’s page. You will see a list come up on the side.  Click on “basic” to get to the privacy settings and click on “edit.” Answer “no” to both questions so that it won’t come up in a search.  Click on the “save changes” button. 
2. Go down to blog readers and click on “edit.” If you want to limit who is able to read your blog, add those email addresses here. If you are uncomfortable for any with having your blog open to everyone, you can choose who your readers will be and enter them in this section.  Those users will have to go to your blog, request permission to see it and then be verified by you. My hope is that you are comfortable with sharing your work, but minimally I need to see it as well as your future book group.
3. Click on “posts and comments.” Change it to “user with google account.”

Adding 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”).  

Blogroll: you can create a list of blogs you are reading on the sidebar. Everyone will be responsible for commenting on their book group's blogs, so this is a great place to put links to them for easier access.  Each time an author posts something new, it automatically moves that blog to the top of your list. You can add in the blogs once I add them to our home base blog, www.room116ELA.blogspot.com.

List: this is an online “Finished Book List.” As you finish a book, add it here. 

Additional Guidelines

1. This blog is a part of a school project.  Therefore, all content on your blog must be related to your reading and writing life in some way.  Please do not use this blog as an online journal.
2. 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. 

For my own sanity, do not add any kind of sound gadgets to your blog.  Also, please type in readable colors (no pink or yellow) and fonts (avoid ones that are cursive or all caps, especially), and avoid backgrounds that make your blog hard to read.

New Monthly Non-Fiction Blog Post!

Starting now, you will be required to include at least one blog post per month that is in response to a NON-FICTION TEXT.  

You are looking for an article that is at least 5-6 paragraphs long that presents an idea that you can analyze and think deeply about.  Doing this assignment well requires finding an interesting article! Take the time to do that! Ask your family what kind of online news sources they read.  Great resources for this response are: 

The New York Times' Upfront Magazine (There are also copies in the classroom) 

USA Today's Opinion Section

The Daily News' Opinion Section 

The New York Times


You should use the same techniques for reading non-fiction that we have been working on in class.  Think about the main ideas (the explicit, or, what the author wants you to know) and what the author wants you to feel or think (the implicit, subtle ideas) and how the author achieves this (what intentional craft moves did he/she use?)  Your response will be structured like your non-fiction summaries, with an added third part - YOUR OWN OPINION.  Each paragraph MUST be 5-7 sentences long.  You must formally cite where your article came from (page R-3 in your agenda or noodle tools at ms51library.org) and provide a link if possible. Here is an overview of the structure: 

Part 1: a summary that includes what the author wants you to know? 

Part 2: an analysis of what the author wants you to feel and think and HOW the author achieved it (statistics, an appeal to emotion, loaded words, perspectives that are present or missing, etc.)

Part 3: your personal response to the article: formulate your own opinion on the ideas and issues presented in the text.
*******************************************************************

Here is a writing guide with questions to help you get started.  This is a review from what we did during the first unit.  Revisit your notes!

For Part 1 of a Nonfiction Blog Post, answer these questions:

1.  What is the overall main idea of the text (remember, you found this by looking at the main who+what of each paragraph)?  What is the entire text mostly about?  Include 3-4 details and try to directly quote at least one. 

     For Part 2 of a Nonfiction Blog Post, answer these questions:

        1. What does the author want readers to think or feel?

           2.. What are some craft moves the author uses to achieve this?  How do they work?  Try to include at least one direct quote here.

  
For Part 3 of a Nonfiction Blog Post, write your personal response, using these as sample questions:

         1. What will you take away from it?  

         2. How has your thinking been shaped or changed, and why?  

         3.  Do you have an opinion on the issue now?

3       4. Is there anything else you want to know?

  *********************************************************************
Use the Non-fiction Blog Response Student Checklist in order to help you prepare for and write your posts! 

How to Set Up A Blog!

URL/permission slip due by: Monday, September 10th. SEE ME IF YOU HAVE TROUBLE during Zero period on Monday!!

Your first post, which will be a reading response based on a summer reading book, due on Wednesday, September 11th.

How do I start a web log?

1. Go to www.blogger.com and click on the “Create a Blog” button.
2. Blogger is a part of Gmail and you will need a gmail account if you don’t already have one.  If you already have a gmail email address, simply type it in.  If you don’t, you can create one, using some combination of your first and last name if possible.  Don’t forget your password! Write your address and password in a safe place.  You can now also use this account for email, or use it just for your blogger account.
3. Follow the directions to name your blog and create its URL.  The name and URL do not necessarily have to match.  (For example, my blog is called “Books Upon Books,” but that URL was already taken, so my URL is www.Room116ELA.blogspot.com .)
4. Follow the directions to pick a template, and your blog is ready to go!  Feel free to adjust the design if you want.

Privacy Settings and Options

1. It is important to first adjust the privacy settings.  Click on the blogger icon and then your blog’s name or just go to the “Design” link at the top right hand corner of your blog’s page. You will see a list come up on the side.  Click on “basic” to get to the privacy settings and click on “edit.” Answer “no” to both questions so that it won’t come up in a search.  Click on the “save changes” button.
2. Go down to blog readers and click on “edit.” If you want to limit who is able to read your blog, add those email addresses here. If you are uncomfortable for any with having your blog open to everyone, you can choose who your readers will be and enter them in this section.  Those users will have to go to your blog, request permission to see it and then be verified by you.
3. Click on “posts and comments.” Change it to “user with google account.”

Adding 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”).  

Blogroll: you can create a list of blogs you are reading on the sidebar. Everyone will be responsible for commenting on a handful of other blogs, so this is a great place to put the blogs you plan on keeping up with.  Each time an author posts something new, it automatically moves that blog to the top of your list. You can add in the blogs once I add them to our home base blog, www.akindoflibrary.blogspot.com.

List: this is an online “Finished Book List.” As you finish a book, add it here. 

Additional Guidelines

1. This blog is a part of a school project.  Therefore, all content on your blog must be related to your reading and writing life in some way.  Please do not use this blog as an online journal.
2. 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. 

For my own sanity, do not add any kind of sound gadgets to your blog.  Also, please type in readable colors (no pink or yellow) and fonts (avoid ones that are cursive or all caps, especially).

Prompts to help you get started on your post...

This post takes the same material that we covered earlier in the year--that I posted HERE--in question form, just in case you are having a hard time getting started on your posts each week. 

• What is the major conflict of the book? How is it resolved? What theme or message does this reveal to the reader?
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of the protagonist? How do they help or hinder him/her during the rising and falling action? What kind of emotional journey has your character had in the story?
• What antagonistic forces seem to be working against the protagonist? How does the protagonist deal with them? Does he/she learn anything from them?
• Have you come across a deep "loaded sentence" that requires unpacking? What does it mean?
• If the setting is significant and symbolic, describe and unpack it.  Why do you think the author created this place to tell the story?

As always, please come during zero period if you need help developing your blog posts.

Tips for elaboration in paragraph two:

• cite more than one piece of specific evidence that supports your idea
• unpack the evidence thoughtfully: word choice, emphasis, figurative or symbolic choices

Creating Better Community Through the Comment

Part of the reason why I love posting reading responses online rather than just having them live in your notebooks is because it enables us to easily share about our reading lives.  I believe that by reading one another's work, great things will happen.  For instance: 

• You can get book recommendations
• You can get into conversations about books you have read, too, or topics that are interesting to you
• You will become a better writer because not only are you reading work, but you will begin to care more when you know that people are reading your work

So, in order to create a tighter knit reading and writing community, you are now required to create a "blog roll" (or "link list")  if you haven't already of the blogs that you want to keep up with regularly.  You are required to comment on at least 2 blog posts from your class weekly.  My hope is that you will get to know each other better as readers (and nonfiction writers) and that you will learn from one another. I will be checking these responses.

A good, thoughtful blog comment might:

• praise interesting ideas in the original post, specifically (don't just say "nice job")
• ask for clarification of any unclear parts of the original post
• add the responder's own thoughts to original ideas to build strength
• contradict or challenge (respectfully!) by explaining another aspect or asking a question to further dialogue
• contain connections (to the self, the world, another text, or another part of the same text) to deepen thinking about the post

Sample starters: 

• When you said __________ I thought________
• I love the line ____________ because___________
• When you said ____________ it got me thinking about________

***  AND good, thoughtful blog responses  always

• are respectful
• use standard vocab, spelling, and grammar (so that everyone can understand)
• show consideration of the original blogger's work and thought

Here are some examples of some interesting conversations that got started last year: 


On girls reading boy characters
A poem based on Banksy's street art
A poem about death based on a painting by Gustav Klimt



(Sidenote: As I already see the eyes rolling, please remember that we are about to hit the half way point of 8th grade.  It makes sense that work would get more involved.  Also, please remember my advice to carry a positive attitude!)

A Letter to 806

Dear 806,

I feel like I need to write this letter to different halves of the class: the half who is actively writing thought provoking posts on their blogs and the half who has missed either one or both of the last two posts (or more).  You are such a smart class and it is disappointing to see students blowing off not only homework credit, but an opportunity to really think through your independent reading book.

Overall, for the people who *are* updating their blogs regularly, I am noticing readers picking out micro details and making inferences about them, which is great.  The next step is either writing LONG about those micro details or stringing a few together to come up with a theory.

Beyond writing long, I want you to focus on EXTENSION.  Remember our the "Process of Critical Thinking in Literature" display in our room.  This is the last part of the critical reading process. Ask questions like: Does this relate to me? people my age? What is the author trying to tell me about this? I will be looking for smart extension work for your next post.

Here are some All Star Mentors to inspire you to write.  I encourage you to read these posts and see what they are doing not only as writers, but what does it seem they are doing as active readers while in their books?

Nathan is reading Linchpin by Seth Godin,  a nonfiction book about creativity and wrote some seriously thought-provoking posts about it.  It inspired me to want to pick up the book!

Talyah wrote about the book Something Like Fate and had some really interesting thoughts about friendship.

Adam came up with some great theories about the character Jack in The Lord of the Flies. I would love to now hear a bit of extension...what do his thoughts and these characters teach us about people? Life? Leave him a comment with your opinion when you visit.

I'm looking forward to being inspired by your next round of posts!
Ms. Robbins

A Letter to 804

Dear 804,

As I've been reviewing your blogs, I've noticed some improvements.  Most of you are trying to write in paragraph form, many are including interesting titles and I noticed some interesting comments.  I want you to continue to grow as writers, though, so here are some updates for you  and some examples of All-Star-Mentors...people in your class who are doing their reading response/blog work really well.  

• Most importantly, your blog needs to be about a theory you have about your book.  This is designed to build on what we covered in our very first unit.  I would now like for you to check back at this post every week and choose one of the 9 options to try out for you post.  Include the option you are trying out as a label to your post.  
• Remember, retell should only be used to give context for your ideas.  I do actually read your posts:) I can tell if you just wrote three paragraphs of retell!  
• Please, please write with an academic tone.  It can still be personal, but the work you post should represent your best self: capitalization, underlining or italicizing titles, etc.  

All Star Mentors from 804: 

Anouk did a great job about writing a post about Tina Fey's Bossypants that encourages conversation! She pulled out something that made her think deeply and wrote about it in an engaging way. 

I challenged Mark to write a blog post explaining why so many 8th graders still love the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, even though it's below your reading level.  He did a great job explaining and if you read all of his posts you can tell that he takes time to think of a thought-provoking topic.  

I am looking forward to reading posts that challenge me to look at the world in a different way or open my eyes to new insight! 

Sincerely, 

Ms. Robbins

An introduction.

Welcome to the world of blogging!  There are a few basic guidelines to make sure that this experience is one that helps you grow as a reader, writer and thinker:

1. A blog post is due every Wednesday.  That means I'll be checking Wednesday morning to see who posted in time.  This counts as a homework grade. 

2. Each month (except October), you are required to write three posts about your independent reading book and one post in response to a non-fiction article that you have read.  


3. Generally, your posts on your independent reading book should be focused on micro details (observation+inference) if you are in the middle of it, and macro details (whole book interpretation+extension) if you have finished. You should be using vocabulary that we have covered in class, helping those concepts sink more deeply into your brain (see next post for ideas).


4. Your post should be FOCUSED and ORGANIZED.  Have one main idea that you are exploring.  Use purposeful paragraphs to elaborate on that idea.  


5. Your post should be TEXT BASED and specific. 


6. Even though you should be using CORRECT GRAMMAR (capitalize! no texting abbreviations!) your post can/should SOUND LIKE YOU. This is not a formal essay, but an informal way of conveying to your peers what you've been thinking about in your reading life. 

7. Use the labels on the side of this blog to find MENTORS if you need them. Refer back to this blog if you need help or direction.

A "meets standards" mentor blog post for your poetry post assignment. Or, This poem should change your life. Seriously.

Kindness by Naomi Shihab Nye (see, kiddos, I copied the poem AND the poet into the post!)

Before you know what kindness really is
you must lose things,
feel the future dissolve in a moment
like salt in a weakened broth.
What you held in your hand,
what you counted and carefully saved,
all this must go so you know
how desolate the landscape can be
between the regions of kindness.
How you ride and ride
thinking the bus will never stop,
the passengers eating maize and chicken
will stare out the window forever.

Before you learn the tender gravity of kindness,
you must travel where the Indian in a white poncho
lies dead by the side of the road.
You must see how this could be you,
how he too was someone
who journeyed through the night with plans
and the simple breath that kept him alive.

Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside,
you must know sorrow as the other deepest thing.
You must wake up with sorrow.
You must speak to it till your voice
catches the thread of all sorrows
and you see the size of the cloth.

Then it is only kindness that makes sense anymore,
only kindness that ties your shoes
and sends you out into the day to mail letters and purchase bread,
only kindness that raises its head
from the crowd of the world to say
it is I you have been looking for,
and then goes with you every where
like a shadow or a friend.

(So I wanted to add a little introduction paragraph...I actually wrote this after I drafted my post)

I often hear the phrase "oh, she's so nice," or "he's too nice,"  or "be nice."  I hate this word because to me, it implies shallow, cold, "good" behaviors that someone could learn out of a book about manners.  I think that the word kindness carries so much more weight.  Naomi Shihab Nye's poem Before You Know Kindness I think really defines what the word kindness means--that it comes from a place of connecting with humanity, from a place of true empathy, from a place of brokenness.


(First, an OBSERVATION/INFERENCE paragraph--or two)
 One of the images that startles me every time I read this poem is that of everything dissolving. In the first stanza, she seems to be saying that the things people hold most dear in life can--and will--dissolve.  That we will experience loss in this world, no matter how hard we "counted and carefully saved." I think that line means that we cannot plan for everything and no matter how much we try to do things exactly right, there will be moments in life where our efforts will be of no use. 


She includes an image of seeing a man dead on the side of the road--that we must see him as a person before we can understand kindness; that we must truly break over his death.  In the following stanza, she uses a number of verbs to show that one must understand true sorrow in order to get to a place of true kindness: know it, wake up with it, speak to it. Those words mean that one must live in a place of hurt. The last stanza brings it together, because once someone understands suffering, then they know the secret of what really matters: "It is I you have been looking for," not the grade or image or money. 



(Then, an INTERPRETATION paragraph)
After reading this poem a number of times, I've come to the conclusion that the title of this poem implies that before we really know what kindness is, something else must happen--that life experience that causes someone to be kind. Someone can be taught to be nice: to share, to say please and thank you.  But kindness comes out of relating to the rest of the humans in the world who understand the most basic part of the human experience: suffering.


To live in a place of hurt the way Naomi Shihab Nye suggests sounds awful--like something to avoid.  But my old pastor used to talk quite a bit about how suffering is part of what makes us human.  Those who suffer connect to a thread that every other person who has ever hurt has felt. When one suffers, he or she realizes what actually matters and is able to let go of the shallow things they used to desire.  And, that when we understand suffering and join in with the throngs of humanity, we learn that we sought love and acceptance through the very wrong things. 


(Finally, an EXTENSION paragraph) 
There are so many ways to apply this and I think I will speak directly to my students.  I think it is important to think of the ways that you have been hurt. Gather up those feelings that you have survived through.  What was it that you wanted most while you were hurting? Now, look around you and try to discover who it is that might be suffering.  Ask yourself what true kindness looks like.  I think. I think that true kindness transcends 8th grade drama.  True kindness steps outside of social circles.  True kindness sees the humanity in one another and treats one another accordingly. And, when I glimpse moments of that among adolescents I truly have hope that maybe one day we will all see each other as people with hearts and stories and brokenness, rather than the other labels I watch students place on each other every day.  That is my hope. 

Reminder: What should a basic "meets standards" blog post look like?

This post is for students who are struggling with how to structure a basic blog post or relying too much on retell.  Please remember that your blog is a place for you to RESPOND to your reading, not to retell the plot or to merely "review" it.  I want to know where your mind wanders while you are reading or after you put the book down.  If you don't naturally do this, the discipline of having to write a response weekly will help you practice.

Keiame and Mustafa both have great mentor posts that demonstrate this.


Paragraph One: Draw your reader in with an interesting lead.  Give the reader a few sentences of context (character, setting, conflict) so he or she has the basic idea of what is going on.

Paragraph Two: Introduce your THEORY, or your idea about what the book is actually about. Your theory can be about any macro idea or micro detail that is interesting to you. Then, UNPACK your theory...which means you can elaborate on why you believe it or how you came to it to begin with. You can use textual evidence to unpack your theory. 

Paragraph Three: CONNECT your theory to the world outside of the story.  What does the author want you to know, feel or think?  Can you relate to it at all? What does this story have to say about the world or people?

Once you have mastered this basic structure, please feel free to experiment and be creative in your responses. There are plenty of great examples/all star mentors of this, especially HERE.  

Questions/Getting Started

Why blog?

This is an opportunity for your thoughts to live in the minds of other people, rather than stay hidden in your notebooks! My hope is that this will create a feeling of community among you as readers--and as writers.

What kind of reading responses am I looking for on your blog?


The key word is RESPONSE.  I'm not looking for a reading retell or even a reading review necessarily.  I want you to find something in your independent reading life that sparks a thought you would like to explore with writing and share with your classmates.  Responding can mean that you find one single line that speaks to you and you feel compelled to write about it.  Responding can mean that a theme of the book got you thinking.  Responding can mean that you are so angry or so in love with how a character reacted that you can't *not* write about it.  It's all about responding from your voice, mind and heart to what you are reading.

What kind of expectations do I have?


You will have one thoughtful response per week.  If your post is only a retell of the book (or anything that resembles that) you will have to re-do it, so it's not worth even posting just a retell.  This is also how I will hold you accountable to your reading life.  For instance, you may post about a book a few times if it takes you two weeks (or longer, if the book is especially challenging or long).  Maybe the first week will be about a "micro" idea (see your class notes! miiiiicro!) that caught your eye.  Then your second week post will be about a macro (stretch that arm across the sky!) idea that you noticed throughout the book. Or, any combination.

Are there other requirements?

I would like for you to start "following" at least 3 other blogs.  Create a "blog roll" on your sidebar.  You will need to read and comment on these blogs, and my hope is that you will get to know that person as a reader and writer.  I'm sure I don't have to tell you this, but.  Please do not post anything that is inappropriate or mean in any way.

Every 4-5 weeks we will take a break from posting online and we will work on our writing craft by printing out and revising one of our favorite posts.

Other news...

I'll be posting an "All Star Mentor Of The Week" post every week--spotlighting a post that is brilliant, unique or thought-provoking.  All Star Mentors will also get a high five, a sticker and be announced in class (honor! accomplishment! glory!)!

Please peruse the 2009-2010 All Star Mentors I have posted here to get ideas on the kinds of posts that I find to be excellent. Use them as guides (and feel free to leave an encouraging comment/word of thanks for being brave enough to share with everyone) and mentor texts.

My classroom computers are your computers. Let me know if you need time to post because you don't have access at home.

HAVE FUN!

How To Get Started!

These are the directions that each student received in class:

How do I start a web log?

1. Go to www.blogger.com and click on the “Create a Blog” button.
2. Blogger is a part of Gmail and you will need a gmail account if you don’t already have one.  If you already have a gmail email address, simply type it in.  If you don’t, you can create one.  Don’t forget your password! You can now also use this account for email, or use it just for your blogger account.
3. Follow the directions to name your blog and create its URL.  The name and URL do not necessarily have to match.  (For example, my blog is called “Books Upon Books,” but that URL was already taken, so my URL is www.Room116ELA.blogspot.com .)
4. Follow the directions to pick a template, and your blog is ready to go!

How do I set up my blog the way I want to?

1. It is important to first adjust the privacy settings.  Go to the “Design” link at the top right hand corner of your blog’s page. This will take you to your blog’s “dashboard,” which is where you can change the design, add new posts, change the settings, etc. 
2. Change the “add blog to our listings” and “let search engines find your blog” to “no.”  If you want search engines to find your blog, you MUST make that change with your parent or guardian.
3. In the “settings” tab, go to “comments.” Change it to commenters “must have a user ID.”
4. Finally, go to “Permissions.”  You can decide who can see your blog. Everyone will be creating blog communities, where you will be reading and commenting on other people’s posts.  If you are uncomfortable for any with having your blog open to everyone, you can choose who your readers will be and enter them in this section.  Those users will have to go to your blog, request permission to see it and then be verified by you. 

Additional Guidelines

1. This blog is a part of a school project.  Therefore, all content on your blog must be related to your reading and writing life in some way.  Please do not use this blog as an online journal.
2. 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. 

 Extra Features

As you customize your blogs, feel free to utilize all the tools available to you on blogger. A few of my favorites are:

1. labels: you can label each post according to genre, author, topic, etc.  I have found this really helpful when I want to go back and read a certain type of post I’ve done in the past. It also helps new readers to your blog find what they are looking for/interested in.
2. blogroll: you can create a list of blogs you are reading on the sidebar. Everyone will be responsible for commenting on a handful of other blogs, so this is a great place to put the blogs you plan on keeping up with.  Each time an author posts something new, it automatically moves that blog to the top of your list.