Module+3+-+Blogs+and+RSS

Lead Instructor: Craig Magtutu (magtutu@yahoo.com ) **
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__**INTRODUCTION:**__ Blogs: Since the beginning of the Internet, people have looked for new ways to communicate. Some forms of communication work best between two individuals, while other forms work better for groups. Blogs are a form of communication well suited to one person communicating with a group. Blogs gained in popularity partly due to an underlying technology called RSS that made it simple to keep up with new blog content. Let's explore these conjoined technologies, blogs and RSS.

Blog: What is a 'Blog'? The term blog is short for web log sort of like a captain's log only in the form of a web site. While there is no strict definition of blog that is written in stone (this is the Internet after all), a blog is an online journal, one that usually contains links to other sites. Most blogs are updated frequently, and may or may not invite their readership to participate by leaving comments. Blogs may be restricted to only a single topic, while others ramble on about anything and everything. Some are just plain silly, while others serve as a useful forum for the discussion of ideas and the creation of learning communities. Blogs are most often, but not always, the work of individuals.

If you are still confused about what a blog is, try watching this Common Craft Video: Blogging in Plain English.

As part of an ongoing blogging activity, it is time to try your hand at creating a blog. We'll be adding more to this assignment as the class goes on. As an example of a blog, here is my own:@http://villagegreen.edublogs.org/.

RSS: RSS, aka Really Simple Syndication, aka Rich Site Summary, is a web protocol that allows individuals to collect updates from web sites. Seems simple. Okay, so what's the big deal? I can just open the web page to see what is new, right? Well, imagine trying to keep track of 40 or 50 different sources of information. Some of these sources are professional, some are personal. Some are updated many times each day, some may not be updated every week. You could waste some serious time compulsively visiting each and every site many times a day just on the off chance someone might have posted something (not that I've ever done that!). Sort of like checking to see if the mail man has delivered the mail, and then even after the mail has been delivered, checking just to make sure you didn't miss anything (not that I've done that either!). What if there were a way to automate the checking part, so you didn't have to? After all, that is what computers do very well: boring, repetitive tasks.

Watch the following video for a simple explanation of RSS: Common Craft Video: RSS in Plain English @http://www.commoncraft.com/rss_plain_english

EXAMPLES of Edubloggers (educators who blog or those who blog about education)****:** Will Richardson, the original educational blogger @http://weblogg-ed.com/ Kathy Schrock, the original educational cybernaut @http://kathyschrock.net/blog/ Bud Hunt, Colorado's own podcaster, Bud the Teacher @http://budtheteacher.com/blog/ Karl Fisch, author of Did You Know / Shift Happens @http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com/ Mr. C's Classroom Blog, teacher using a blog to facilitate classroom discussions @http://mrcsclassblog.blogspot.com/ International Edubloggers Directory, search by name or by country @http://edubloggerdir.blogspot.com/
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1) Articles (read two): > @http://www.lesley.edu/faculty/mgilman/webpageslesley/website/pdfresources/reading%20and%20writing%20with%20Blogs.pdf Courtesy ISTE vol.31 no. 2, 2003 > @http://www.lesley.edu/faculty/mgilman/webpageslesley/website/pdfresources/mining%20the%20Internet%20Weblogs.pdf Courtesy ISTE vol 31 no, 1, 2003 > @http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/blogging_part_1.htm > @http://www.weblogg-ed.com/why-weblogs and the companion video []
 * ASSIGNMENT ****(Study and Demonstration Piece)**:
 * Scaffolding for Struggling Students: Reading and Writing with Blogs
 * Writing with Weblogs: Reinventing Student Journals
 * The Art of Blogging, Part 1
 * weblogg-ed, the read/write web in the classroom educational weblog

2) Sign up for a free blog account at [|Edublogs.org]. Follow the on screen directions to set up your account and write down your blog information, including the blog address. **If you are more familiar with another blog service, please go ahead and use it, just make sure that you have your discussion options set so others can post without everyone having to create an account on every different blog service.**

3) Write a post introducing yourself. Remember that this information is visible on the Internet and should **not** contain personal information like your phone number, address, social security number, credit card, etc.

4) Post your blog address on this wiki page so that others can check it out.

5) Set up an iGoogle, Pageflakes, or other RSS reader and subscribe to the other blogs from this class to help keep up with each others' posts. iGoogle accounts are customizable home pages for Google that come with signing up for any other Google service.
 * For more help on setting up an iGoogle page, check this wiki @http://www.wikihow.com/Use-iGoogle . For pointers on adding RSS feeds to an iGoogle page, there's a wiki for that here: @http://www.wikihow.com/Add-RSS-Feeds-to-Your-Google-Personalized-Homepage.
 * Pageflakes FAQ to answer any question you may have about setting up and using Pageflakes: @http://forums.pageflakes.com/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=76&sid=e8b5ae2d64739b2479df9054358f681d.

6) Add a second post to your blog describing your experience with blogs and RSS. How could you use these in your classroom? Don't forget to comment on other people's posts. REMINDERS: ** 1. Respond to the Course __**Blog Post**__ (Collaboration & Reflection)
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2. Record / save your username and password in a location you will remember.

3. Email the Lead Instructor once you have completed a module/topic, so we can review your work.

4. Use the Discussion Tab above if you get stuck or have questions that an instructor or fellow student in this class can help you answer - we are all part of your Personal Learning Community (PLC).

5. Collect the assignment parts to your wiki as it will be part of your final project for this course.

TUTORIALS:** Want some help with using Edublogs to its fullest? Try these videos []. If you need it, here is an additional [|video tutorial] on using WordPress, the blog software used by Edublogs. This video is hosted by YouTube, which is blocked at school unless you have a school override.
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CLASSROOM CONNECTIONS: ** Collection of 21 different ways blogs are used in the classroom. Each use is described and linked to an example. @http://villagegreen.edublogs.org/category/edublogs/
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OTHER INFORMATION AND RESOURCES: Support Blogging! Wiki collection of school bloggers @http://supportblogging.com/Links+to+School+Bloggers Additional Blog Services **
 * [[image:dps-learning2ohfall09-10:info.jpg width="58" height="58"]]
 * Blogger from Google []
 * WordPress []
 * 21Classes - blogs for classrooms and students []
 * Class Blogmeister - Student blogs from David Warlick []