Google+Blogger

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 * [[image:Blogger.jpg width="119" height="117"]] || = You can create blogs with a variety of software applications or service providers. One of the most popular blog-hosting communities is Google Blogger. (Tutorials available in Atomic Learning) Contestants will create blogs, manage settings, post and publish a response to their new blog. = ||

1. Go to [|www.blogger.com] and sign in using the account you created in our Personal Learning Network training session. Once you have successfully logged in you will see the Dashboard which is the interface you will use in the future to manage blogs, create new blog posts, or change your blogger profile.

2. Set up a blog by clicking the **Create a blog** link from the Dashboard.

3. Name your blog a. Initials from your first and last name b. lcmatjourney c. Team number 4. Choose a starter template by clicking on the **Picture Window** template and click continue.

5. Once you receive the notification your blog has been created click **start blogging**.

6. We will use the standard template for now.

7. Anyone can post comments to your blog. There are some blogs you may want to limit the people who can comment on the blog. For this journey, we will limit the comments to the blog to our team members, and the Journey coordinators Kim Allen – kallen214@gmail.com, and Peggy Hale pnhale@gmail.com. In order to do this, start at the Blogger Dashboard. Click the Settings link uncer your blog's name. When the Settings page appears, click the **Comments** link. Locate the Who Can Comment section of the page. Select **Only members of this blog**. Click the **Save Settings** button.

8. In order to add invited guests to your blog, click the **Settings** link close to your blog name. When the settings page appears, click the **Permissions** link. Go to the **Blog readers** section and select who can view your blog: select **Only People I choose.** The page will expand to include a text box which will allow you to enter the email addresses of those you want to be able to comment on your blog. Enter the email addresses of your team members, (separate the email addresses with commas). When you are finished, click the **Invite** button.

9. When you are ready to post, the easiest place to start is the dashboard. Click on the **new Post** icon. Once the page appears, enter a Title for this post. Enter the text of your post in the large text box. One team member should post the following question for their team members to answer, “How do you think Personal Learning Communities can enhance communications in our District?”

10. When you are finished with all activities above, click **publish post**.

11. If there is time, add an image to the blog. Position the cursor over the location you want the picture to appear, and click the **Add Image** button. You will see the Upload Images window. To upload the image from your computer, click the **browse** **button** in the Add an Image from your computer section. Find an image and select the file. You can select your preference for the way the image is shown in the blog post. In the Choose a Layout section, select center and small. Clicking the **upload image button** adds the image to your blog post.

12. All team members should go back to the original post created by the team leader of this journey and answer the question “How do you think Personal Learning Communities can enhance communications in our District.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">13. Once all team members have posted a response to the question, give the Journey 3 card to a journey coordinator.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">Congratulations – you are ready to move on to your next journey!

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">**TIP**: Blogger will also let you submit your posts via email. You can create a post in an email message and send that message to Blogger to post your blog. You must create a **mail-to-Blogger address**. You can do this by clicking the **Settings** link located on your Blogger dashboard under **View Blog**. On that page, locate and click the **Email & Mobile** tab. When that page appears, enter or confirm the email address (for example: kallen214.blogemail@blogger.com) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">in the **Mail Posting Address** (Mail2Blogger) section, check the **Publish** option, and then click the **Save Settings** button. You can open a new message in your email program and compose your post within that message. Email the message to your **mail-to-Blogger address** and Blogger will automatically use the text of your email to create a new blog post. Try this to submit a post to your blog.

Resources
[|Getting Started Guide] School Blogging [|Blogging in Atomic Learning] [|100 Top Education Blogs] ISTE Blog 4Administrators [|Blogs in Education] [|Top 50 Blogs for e-learning] Blog Pulse