Do Housekeeping on this slide, move to the next slide to discuss ground rules.
Go over each of the ground rules As if there are any others that they can think of.
Although this sounds like a public diary, it can include more. Blogs not only provide a place for the author to write, they invite readers to COMMENT on what has been said. They can also include LINKS to web sites, other blogs, news articles, or even pictures. Some blogs have the capability of showing pictures as part of the blog itself. Blog writers can also “tag” their entries with keywords. For example, if I write a blog entry about the book I am reading, The Cat in the Hat, I could “tag” it with the following tags: Suess, Cat in the Hat, reading. These are a kind of category for my entries, so I can view them by category as well as by date. Blogs allow people to “share” in unique ways. Instead of simply using the internet for reading information to “look something up” on the web, blogs let people WRITE, REACT, and SHARE, using the internet as a place to do it.
For the past few years, Technorati has done an extensive survey of bloggers and then taken all of that raw data to prepare their yearly “State of the blogosphere” report. The report for 2010 is out and there are some very interesting findings about blogs.
Some key takeaways: Self-employed bloggers now account for 21% of those surveyed, compared to 9% last year. But only 11% say their primary income comes from blogging. Hobbyists still make up the bulk of bloggers at 65%, but that is down from 72% last year Corporate bloggers now make up 4% of the total, up from 1% last year. Two thirds are male They use many types of social media (LinkedIn, YouTube, Flickr, StumbleUpon, Digg), but when it comes to driving traffic back to their blogs only two social media services really count: Facebook and Twitter Tablets and smartphones are impacting impacting blogging styles for 39% of bloggers Of those, 70% are writing shorter posts, 50% are posting photos from their smartphones, and 15% are using less Flash When writing about brands or products, 71% will only write about brands they approve of. One third boycott products, but only one fifth write about their boycotts
A big development this year is that they use many types of social media (LinkedIn, YouTube, Flickr, StumbleUpon, Digg), but when it comes to driving traffic back to their blogs. Only two social media services really count: Facebook and Twitter
Probably the most important thing to do is to decide on a purpose for your blog. Are you going to share information with colleagues, is this going to be a classroom blog, are the students going to be able to write and comment, and are you going to share the blog with parents? Beginning with the end in mind will help ensure your success with a classroom blog.
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