I have had the pleasure of working with the Kauai Pacific School and Martin J. Gottlieb Day School faculty this past month in getting started with classroom blogs. The familiarity of reading and writing in a blog platform varies tremendously. I found it very helpful to start out with a brief overview of the architecture and vocabulary of a blog.
Establishing common vocabulary
As I am continuing to support individual teachers and administrators in getting started with creating and maintaining their classroom or their own professional blog, it was time to create a comprehensive How-To-Guide.
You can directly download the entire How-To-Guide- Getting to Know Your Blog here as a .pdf file.
A Step by Step Guide on how to:
on your WordPress platform based blog.
Difference between POSTS & PAGES
(from WordPress Support)
Posts
Pages
Added this great list What kinds of pages are common on eduction blogs? on 9/4 from Stephanie Sandifer‘s blog Change Agency
The following lists are just general ideas and certainly do not include all possible page ideas.
For classroom blogs:
- Contact
- About
- Blog Rules
- Resources
- Classes (or individual pages for each class)
For professional learning education blogs:
- Contact
- About
- Archives
- Presentations and/or Workshops
- Resources
- How to Use This Blog
- My Portfolio
- CV or Resume
- Disclaimer/Disclosures
Login to your Dashboard
After you click “login†on your blog (usually the link is located on the bottom of your SideBar,
you will be directed to the following screen. Enter your Username and Password given to you by your administrator/ webmaster. In my current school, it is customary to have “firstname.lastname” as the username. This may be different in other schools.
The Dashboard
Once logged in, you will be taken automatically to your Dashboard.
This is where you will make any changes to your blog.
All About Posts
Take a look at the left sidebar of your Dashboard for “Postsâ€. Click on the upside down triangle next to “Posts†in order to see more options.
All About Pages
Take a look at the left sidebar of your Dashboard for “Pagesâ€. Click on the upside down triangle next to “Pages†in order to see more options.
4 Steps to Writing a POST
4 Steps to Writing a PAGE
Editing a Post or Page
If you are in need of editing an already published post/page or a draft post/page, in the sidebar of you dashboard, click “Posts†or “Pagesâ€.
Add and Organize Links
Take a look at the left sidebar of your Dashboard for “Linksâ€. Click on the upside down triangle next to “Links†in order to see more options.
4 Steps to Adding a Link
Add and Arrange Widgets in your SideBar.
Each widget represents a different TITLE in Your SideBar.
Inserting an Image
In order to insert an image into a blog post or page, add or edit a post (or page). Make sure you insert your cursor at the point in your post (or page) you want the image to appear.
The image will be uploaded to the Media Library of your blog. Make sure that the image is not too large. It is a good idea to resize larger images (that came directly from your digital camera) BEFORE you upload them to your blog.
Contact
Silvia Rosenthal Tolisano for customized workshops, coaching and presentations.
Video Conference sessions available.
For a list of sample sessions visit Globally Connected Learning .
I am honored to be able to cross-post Stephen Wilmarth’s blog post below on Langwitches. If you are interested to read more about Steve’s International Experimental program at the Number One Middle School in Wuhan, China take a look at: Take a Peek into China’s First 1:1 iPad Class Learning…Young …
(No Comments)
Heather Durning who blogs on Mrs. D’s Flight Plan has graciously allowed me to cross post her latest post here on Langwitches. I believe her blog post is invaluable as it fulfills the need to document, summarize and assess learning outcomes when leading your students with new forms of teaching …
(No Comments)
I am thrilled to be publishing a guest post by Andrea Hernandez, cross posted from EdTechWorkshop Blog on Langwitches. In an earlier post, The Science of Play, I shared my ideas about the importance of playful learning, the type of learning observed in very young children. In my personal experience …
(No Comments)
I have been blogging for 6 years now… I have written extensively about blogging (131 posts categorized “blogging” on Langwitches) I have shared two guides for teachers to start blogging with their students “Stepping it Up: Learning About Blogs FOR your Students” Part I: Reading Part II A: Writing Part …
(3 Comments)
This is Part VII in the series “Stepping it Up: Learning About Blogs FOR your Students” Part I: Reading Part II A: Writing Part II B: Student Writing Part III: Commenting Part IV: Connecting Part V: Reciprocating Part VI: Consistency Reading, responding, assessing and monitoring our students’ progress on their …
(22 Comments)
This is Part VI in the series “Stepping it Up: Learning About Blogs FOR your Students” Part I: Reading Part II A: Writing Part II B: Student Writing Part III: Commenting Part IV: Connecting Part V: Reciprocating I have seen many teachers start blogs (professional and classroom ones), only to …
(7 Comments)
I previously published a chart of Bloom’s Taxonomy and iPad Apps, which I use regularly when planning projects or look to reinforce certain skills and literacies. Since I also rely heavily on The Digital Learning Farm concept (based on Alan November’s work), I felt it was time to create a …
(23 Comments)
In an attempt to document the trials and errors of using a classroom set of 20 iPads in our K-8 school, I am adding a new post to the collection of iPads in the Classroom: Transliteracy- QR Codes and Art Working on iPad Fluency with Lower Elementary Students Step-by-Step: How …
(29 Comments)
This is Part VII in the series “Stepping it Up: Learning About Blogs FOR your Students” Part I: Reading Part II A: Writing Part II B: Student Writing Part III: Commenting Part IV: Connecting Part V: Reciprocating Part VI: Consistency Reading, responding, assessing and monitoring our students’ progress on their …
(22 Comments)
I previously published a chart of Bloom’s Taxonomy and iPad Apps, which I use regularly when planning projects or look to reinforce certain skills and literacies. Since I also rely heavily on The Digital Learning Farm concept (based on Alan November’s work), I felt it was time to create a …
(23 Comments)
Teaching ourselves, our students and other educators how to use screenshooting (images) and screencasting (video) tools is a relevant skill to have that integrates in so many areas. Think Tutorial Designers (A role from the Digital Learning Farm) or the Flipped Classroom model. Being able to create, share and take …
(7 Comments)
Should Teachers Be More Like Conductors? This bog post from 2009 took me to the following TED talk by Itay Talgam. Although I am not a musician, nor listen to much classical music, I was mesmerized. This TED talk was geared towards organization leaders, but I so agree with Tania …
(4 Comments)
I have been blogging for 6 years now… I have written extensively about blogging (131 posts categorized “blogging” on Langwitches) I have shared two guides for teachers to start blogging with their students “Stepping it Up: Learning About Blogs FOR your Students” Part I: Reading Part II A: Writing Part …
(3 Comments)
I had the opportunity to speak to Vicki Davis and Julie Lindsay. Two educators who are making a difference in their students’ lives as well as thousands of other students and teachers from around the world. Vicki is a teacher from Camila Georgia. She blogs on the Coolcatteacher blog and …
(1 Comment)
This is a short TED talk by Raghava KK, the illustrator of the iPad book POP-IT – Raghava KK Inc. This video is not a commercial about the artist’s iPad book though, but shares a message about the importance of raising our children with PERSPECTIVE. In his book, children …
(No Comments)
I have been blogging for 6 years now… I have written extensively about blogging (131 posts categorized “blogging” on Langwitches) I have shared two guides for teachers to start blogging with their students “Stepping it Up: Learning About Blogs FOR your Students” Part I: Reading Part II A: Writing Part …
(3 Comments)
This is Part VII in the series “Stepping it Up: Learning About Blogs FOR your Students” Part I: Reading Part II A: Writing Part II B: Student Writing Part III: Commenting Part IV: Connecting Part V: Reciprocating Part VI: Consistency Reading, responding, assessing and monitoring our students’ progress on their …
(22 Comments)
This is Part VI in the series “Stepping it Up: Learning About Blogs FOR your Students” Part I: Reading Part II A: Writing Part II B: Student Writing Part III: Commenting Part IV: Connecting Part V: Reciprocating I have seen many teachers start blogs (professional and classroom ones), only to …
(7 Comments)
I previously published a chart of Bloom’s Taxonomy and iPad Apps, which I use regularly when planning projects or look to reinforce certain skills and literacies. Since I also rely heavily on The Digital Learning Farm concept (based on Alan November’s work), I felt it was time to create a …
(23 Comments)
In an attempt to document the trials and errors of using a classroom set of 20 iPads in our K-8 school, I am adding a new post to the collection of iPads in the Classroom: Transliteracy- QR Codes and Art Working on iPad Fluency with Lower Elementary Students Step-by-Step: How …
(29 Comments)
Transliteracy is defined on Wikipedia as The ability to read, write and interact across a range of platforms, tools and media from signing and orality through handwriting, print, TV, radio and film, to digital social networks. The modern meaning of the term combines literacy with the prefix trans-, which means …
(11 Comments)
Transliteracy is defined on Wikipedia as The ability to read, write and interact across a range of platforms, tools and media from signing and orality through handwriting, print, TV, radio and film, to digital social networks. The modern meaning of the term combines literacy with the prefix trans-, which means …
(11 Comments)
I posted a few weeks ago about the ongoing Teddy Bears Around the World (now in its fourth year) project. The project blog and hub can be be found at http://www.langwitches.org/blog/travel/teddybearsaroundtheworld/ I have created a How-to-Guide in order to articulate how and why to join such a project, to make …
(3 Comments)
I am honored to be able to cross-post Stephen Wilmarth’s blog post below on Langwitches. If you are interested to read more about Steve’s International Experimental program at the Number One Middle School in Wuhan, China take a look at: Take a Peek into China’s First 1:1 iPad Class Learning…Young …
(No Comments)
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