Don’t get “blogged” down

Little tips about blogging to make your

life easier, and your classroom more

effective.Presenter:

Bryce Ballif

About me• *This is my 20th year in Weber School

District• Teach A.P. Biology, Biology.• 4th year as Athletic Director; makes

for long days.• *A.P. Biology since 2000• *Built program from 13 students to

190 students, 163 students have passed A.P. test in the last 11 years.

• *Changing constantly to be a better teacher, and have more student success.

How can we be better teachers?

• Learn and incorporate new technologies.– Not to replace what we do, but enhance

what we do.Blogging is one such technology.

It doesn’t matter what I tell you, if you don’t want to do it, you won’t do it.

• So how can I convince you to use it?– T.V. Remote– Cell Phone– Ipod– Ipad, Kindle, Nook– Ah hah, so we use technologies we like.– We are spoiled with technology!

Technology Clip

How many of you are regular “bloggers”?

• For those who aren’t, tell me why.– Takes too long. Time issue.– Don’t know how to do it.– Don’t see the value/importance.– Doesn’t fit my class, not much to post.– Don’t have a computer.

So let’s get blogging.• You all have a blog, but maybe

haven’t done anything with it, or you started & …

• Select the theme (template) of your blog.– Let’s go to our blogs.

Two ways to get to your blog

• Type in your address.– Blog.weber.k12.ut.us/bballif(username)

• Go to Weber School District site.– Go to blogs. (2 places to do that)– Look at stats from Weber Schools bloggers.

Dashboard• This is your overall control center of your

blog.• You will navigate around your blog, change

appearance, and manipulate all changes from here.

Choosing a Theme• What is a theme?

– Take 5-10 minutes to look at the themes. Choose one that is widget ready. Are you like me?

– What is a Widget? Widgets are a handy, easy and simple way to add some flare to your blog.

– Most important rule for widgets, less is more.– When searching for a theme, you can add in

search box, “widget ready”.

Categories• What is a category?

– Categories are like a paper filing system. You put each paper in a drawer of the file cabinet.

– There are only a set number of drawers, and so each must cover a rather wide subject matter.

– Possible categories:• Class/Subjects• Videos• Student Work

– Take a minute to think of and create a couple categories.

Pages• Static page of information.

– Doesn’t change every day.• Types of pages.

– About me, personal introduction– Class information, syllabus-type schedule– Disclosures– Webertube – list of videos available– FAQ page– Hall of Fame– Announcements/Advertisement information– Let’s look at some examples and make some

pages.

Posts• Daily information• Powerpoints & pictures• Labs, worksheets, assignments• Links to valuable sites and information• This is where the student can follow the

day to day work/assignments/activities.• Let’s look at some examples, and make

some posts, links, etc.

Embedding Video• Video can greatly enhance your blog.

– Video of you teaching an activity.– Video from Webertube or other site to

reinforce or teach a concept.– Video can bring your class to life.

How do you embed videos?• Select the video you want to embed.• Find the embedded link on the right hand side of

the page.• Highlight, right click, and copy that embedded

link.• Go back to your post. Click on HTML tab at the

top of the page, and paste the link where you want the video to appear.

• Take a few minutes to embed a video off of Webertube.

Blogging Tips• You run the blog, don’t let the blog run you. Schedule

when you will update, and don’t stress over it.• Keep it simple. Start out with less and build up as

you go.• Tell your students how often you plan on updating;

Once a week, every other day, etc.• Ask for feedback about your blog. You can set up polls

and surveys on your blog.• Make it so it helps students, not overburdens them.• Make it yours. Find what works for you.