Library Learning 2.0 for Media Clerks: Thing #2 -- Blogging

Now that you’ve done some exploring and understand how this program will work, it’s time to setup your own personal blog. Why blog? To reflect on what you are learning and take part in conversations online.

Your blog is where you will record your thoughts, discoveries, and applications in the Library Learning 2.0 for Media Clerks. We are using Blogger, which is owned by Google. Blogger is a popular free online blog hosting service that is extremely easy to use.

Creating a blog using Blogger takes just three steps:
1. Create an account (view screenshot)
2. Name your blog (view screenshot)
3. Select your template. (view screenshot)

Discovery Exercises:

Watch the Common Craft video on blogging.

Read the Blogger’s Quick Tutorial.

Find some interesting blogs at Google Blogs. Read a few blogs to get a feel for the structure, how they work, and what kinds of topics people blog about.

Homework Activity:

Set up your own blog. There are many different blogging service providers such as Blogger, Wordpress, Edublogs, Live Journal, and TypePad. For this class we will use Blogger for a few reasons: it is easy to learn and use, you probably already have a Google account you set up to access the Media Clerk's Forum blog, and we will all be on the same provider.
Write your first two posts. One for your refection on Thing #1 -- Learning and Web 2.0, and then your reflection on Thing #2 -- Blogging. Each new entry should include the "Thing" number about which you are writing. Include your thoughts on how blogging could be useful for you personally. Would it be valuable in the library? How?
Register your blog with me by sending the URL of your new blog (your Internet address) to me by clicking here.
Read all your classmate's blogs. As they are registered, the links will appear on the sidebar under Participant Blogroll. Make some comments on their posts.
Feeling adventurous? Add your avatar to your blog. Use a photo of yourself. You can resize it here. Be sure to use a closeup of your face as the avatar icons are very small. Make an avatar at the Yahoo Avatar site. You can set up a free account and use the avatar maker. There are lots of other avatar sites out there -- explore!

Some Blogging Suggestions:

Name each of your post with the “Thing” number about which you are discussing. For instance: Your first Post might be: Thing #1 – My Thoughts on Web 2.0.
Comments are the “life blood” of bloggers. Take some time to read other blogs and always try to leave a meaningful comment. “I agree” or “Right on!” are generally not meaningful comments.
Your blog posts should be at least 100-150 words each week - we'd like to have a conversation and the more you post, the better the conversation will be.
Always “tag” your posts. We will talk more about this in a couple of weeks. Tagging is a label you add to organize and index your posts – readers can find all your posts dealing with any topic. It is also a great tool for you to easily track your post topics. Hey! We're librarians -- we love to catalog everything!
We will learn to add all kinds of items to your blog: photos, videos, widgets, feeds, and all sorts of useful tools for your readers. Stay tuned…
Don’t be afraid to explore, experiment, and be creative. Have fun!

If you want MORE:

Read some of the popular library blogs: