Here is a glimpse behind the computer screen to see and hear the young women discuss what they’ve learned from the BlogShop capacity building course.
Enjoy!

Thank you ladies for having been such inspirational students. Your blogs are your voices- keep writing so that you can continue to be heard.
-Ms Amy

The above proverb reminds us that it is only through education where we can instill lifelong empowerment. With that in mind, the BlogShoppers have created their own “How-to” videos about blogging!
Watch, learn and enjoy!

Introduction to Blogging: Blogalization

Blogging: How to Get Started

Blogging: Keep on Goin’

1.      http://wpremix.com/tutorials/video-tutorial-how-to-make-a-blog-page/. This video shows you how to make a blog page. (Check it out!)

2.      http://www.gotoandlearn.com/play?id=90. This video is clear and easy to understand. It’s helpful for you to get to know how to make a how-to video officially. The home web is: http://theflashblog.com/.

3.      Photoshop CS4: http://www.watchandlearnphotoshop.com/introduction-photoshop-cs4.html. The focus on showing the audience of how-to get to know and how-to Photoshop cs4. His website is http://pstutorialsblog.com/.

4.      http://beebole.com/en/blog/erlang/tutorial-web-application-erlang/.  This is another useful link to learn more about tutorial video. This is the video’s link: http://www.vimeo.com/2007411.

5.      http://www.webkitchen.be/2009/03/09/video-tutorial-use-flex-for-your-actionscript-coding-for-flash-cs4/. Another useful tutorial video to look at.

6.      This website is more focus on blogging. This web has really good quality video tutorials. There are many video tutorials on this site: http://www.solostream.com/category/tutorials/.

7.      This is a website that shows how to be easy going with your blog or anything else.   http://www.freevlog.org/.

8.      This website also shows good tutorials; however, it requires a QuickTime player. http://codeigniter.com/tutorials/.

9.      This website is about how to use WordPress 2.2.1, SEO WordPress themes, and 7 pre-installed plugins. It’s free video; however, you need you register first. http://www.easywebtutorials.com/blogging-tutorial/#download.

10.  This is also a useful link for tutorial blogging. http://blog.developer.mindtouch.com/2009/05/05/tutorial-video-creating-charts-with-mindtouch/.

11.  This is a website that shows you how-to capture the conversation about anything. http://www.capturetheconversation.com/tutorials/.

12.  You can find video of how-to use wordpress blog form this link: http://www.optiniche.com/blog/343/blogrush-videos/.

13.  This link is about blog tutorial and every other stuff; it’s not a focused blog. There are many video clips on the sidebars. http://www.metacafe.com/watch/2768342/myspace_help_and_myspace_guide_blog_tutorial/.

14.  This is also a good how-to video: http://www.irishmyspace.jmcwd.com/myspace-tutorial.swf.html.

15.  This tutorial has clear audio and video: http://www.med.yale.edu/library/education/guides/screencasts/ca/jcr_1/. The original link is: http://cwml-tutorials.blogspot.com/.

16.  This website shows you how-to become a blogger: http://www.becomeablogger.com/. There are many clips on the next pages also. (Don’t freak out when you see the guy’s hair!)

17.  http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2007/01/soldering_tutor_1.html. This link also gives you a pretty good idea of how-to create a how-to video. Also, there is a bunch of how-to video below the video. (Enjoy watching the two weirdoes.)

18.  http://www.thetutorialblog.com/. This blog is about tutorials.

19.  http://e-texteditor.com/blog/2007/regular_expressions_tutorial. This blog is an example of how not to make a how-to video with this kind of audio. Since it sounds awful, no matter how clear the video is, it’s disturbing.

20.  http://www.killerphp.com/videos/basics_programming_concepts/basics_programming_concepts.html. This blog is an example of how not to make a how-to video with this kind of boring video. Even though it’s clear and easy to understand, it’s not interesting to watch at all. The home web is: http://www.killerphp.com/videos/.

As we prepare to end this school year, you should reflect on what you’ve learned and what you’ve created. Please look over your blogs and choose three of your favorite posts. Then leave a comment to this post stating your three favorite posts and its reasons.
The tasks are:
1. Leave a comment stating your three favorite posts.
2. Post the link to your favorite posts, after the post title.
3. Make the link “click-able” by using HTML code.

Example: I want to make this link click-able: http://auwstudentblogs.wordpress.com/.
I would “code” it like this: (a href=”http://auwstudentblogs.wordpress.com/”)http://auwstudentblogs.wordpress.com/(/a)
The only difference is that when you actually do the code, you must replace these brackets “()” with these brackets “<>".

4. State a reason why it is one of your favorite posts. Your explanation should be at least 2 sentences.
5. Your comment should look like this:

Hi! These are my three favorite posts:
1. Featuring the Students!
I like this post because it showcased my students and how awesome they are! They are also very photogenic.
2. Etc.
3. Etc.

(EXTRA TIP: The html code for the above link looks like this:
(a href=”http://auwstudentblogs.wordpress.com/2009/04/16/featuring-the-students/”)Featuring the Students!(/a)
But replace these brackets “()” with these brackets “<>"

In addition, as you are working, please think about the following questions:
- What do you enjoy about blogging?
- What have you done through blogging that you didn’t think you could do before?
- Are blogs and blogging important in today’s culture? Explain why or why not.
- Think of three adjectives/phrases to describe blogging. Be creative!

Think about these questions because I will conduct a brief interview with you about this for a short video about BlogShop! Yipee!

Rule #1 — Determine Your Motivation
People have different reasons for writing blog comments. What’s yours? Are you trying to get the attention of an influential blogger? Drive traffic to your own blog? Establish yourself as an expert on a topic? Do you appreciate the person’s work and want to say thank you or brighten his or her day? Do you disagree so strongly with what you’re viewing or reading that you simply can’t let it stand without a rebuttal? Sometimes, understanding your motivation will help you decide what kind of comment to write.

Rule #2 — Provide Context
I know as you’re writing your comment *you* know what you’re responding to — maybe it’s the article or video or maybe it’s someone else’s comment, but when people come to the page later and read the comments, it isn’t always immediately clear what you’re talking about. It’s most important to provide context when there are a lot of comments. If comments are coming in really fast, for example, yours can get separated from the comment to which you’re responding.
For example, instead of just starting out “Humidity is important too!” it’s helpful if you start with some context like “User Squiggly1234 has a point about chocolate storage temperature, but has missed one important variable” and then go on to talk about humidity. That way other commenters won’t be confused as to why you started talking about bad hair weather on a post about chocolate.

Rule #3 — Be Respectful
I shouldn’t have to tell you this, but comments that start out “You’re an idiot,” are laced with profanity, or are just plain disrespectful, undermine the authority of your argument. Nobody gives much credence to an obnoxious troll. So aside from the pleasure you get from annoying people, you’re wasting your time writing such comments. Always remember there is a real person reading your comment. It’s easy to be mean while hiding behind the anonymity of the Web, but you shouldn’t say anything you wouldn’t say in person.

Rule #4 — Make a Point
Sure, most bloggers will lap up short comments like “Wonderful!” “I love it!” and “Thank you,” and if all you want to do is express gratitude or brighten their day, comments like that are fine, but you’ll make a more lasting impression and a more meaningful contribution to the conversation if you say a bit more. Why is it wonderful? Why did you love it? It’s even more important to make a point when you disagree. It’s a waste of time to just write “You’re wrong,” or a longer ranting equivalent. Make sure you include the reason you disagree. It’s easier than you think to avoid making a point. Consider the comment “You’re spreading lies by saying the ideal temperature for chocolate storage is 28 degrees. At that temperature, the chocolate will go bad.” Really, all you’ve said is “You’re wrong.” You need to say *why* the temperature is wrong. Say what temperature is better and why. Maybe say where you get your information. Is it based on your experience, the recommendations of the Chocolate Storage Association, or just your own wild guess? Make a point.

Rule #5 — Know What You’re Talking About
When I read comments I’m always amazed by how many people admit (admit!) they have no idea what they’re talking about and then go on to make recommendations, suppositions, or write long rambling analyses based on nothing more than a pure guess. I swear I’ve read comments like “I’ve never worked with chocolate before, but I think 29 degrees would be better than 28 degrees.” That kind of comment is not the way to get positive attention from an influential blogger or establish yourself as an expert. If you have a question the author didn’t answer about why 28 degrees is best, it’s fine to ask; but when you’re commenting about something that’s based in facts, you’re not adding anything useful when you write comments based on your intuition. You’re not under orders to comment on everything you read. Save your time for commenting about things where you can actually say something useful.

Rule #6 — Make One Point per Comment
People have short attention spans, and in my experience attention spans are shorter on the Web and even shorter when people are skimming comments. A comment should be just that — a comment — not a manifesto. If you have something so complex and important to say that you can’t do it in a few short paragraphs, start your own blog. If you have two separate things to say about the video, photo, or blog post, it’s usually better to break it up into two separate comments. Remember, people are often skimming.

Rule #7 — Keep it Short
This is really an extension of Rule 6, make one point, but since it’s possible to go on and on about one point, I thought I’d also remind you to keep your comments short. Again, it’s a comment, not your own blog post.

Rule #8 – Link Carefully
If you’re posting a comment with the hope of driving traffic to your own site, think carefully before you include a link in your comment. Of course you should include your link if the comment box has a place for it, but leaving a link in the body of your comment is a risky thing. Many people think it’s great marketing, but a minority of people think it’s obnoxious and pushy.* If you decide to do it, make sure you’ve written a thoughtful comment that truly contributes to the conversation on the owner’s site, not a useless comment that’s just a transparent excuse to leave your link. It’s also considered more acceptable if your link points to something you wrote that’s relevant to the conversation, not just a link to your general landing page.

Rule #9 — Proofread
I know it’s hard; those boxes in which you write comments can be tiny, and they usually don’t include a spellchecker. But proofreading is important because if you have a lot of typos or misspellings, it undermines your authority. Any troll who disagrees with you can just say, “What do you know about chocolate storage, you can’t even spell ‘their.’” If you have trouble proofreading on the Web, write your comment in a word processor where you can see the whole thing and run it through spellcheck, and then paste it into the comment box.

So that’s it, the nine simple rules for writing a blog comment. Did I miss anything? Leave a comment!

Welcome back to your beloved class in term 5!
You have all become very proficient bloggers and this term you will take the opportunity to share the things that you have learned. You will create a HOW-TO video to show your fellow students the awesomeness of blogging! Yeah!

Please watch the following video to get an idea of the project you will be working on this term.

http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-make-a-how-to-film

After you have watched the video, download the script template: here. Get into groups of 4 or 5 and begin brainstorming ideas on how to make your very own “how-to” guide for students who are interested in blogging!

There will be three separate how-to’s. Your teacher will decide which topic each group will receive.
Topics:
1. What is a blog?
This how-to will explore what blogs are, why people blog, why are blogs important, etc?
2. How-to get started
This how-to will show how to set-up a blog (materials, equipment needed), brainstorm what their blog should be about/focus on, what format/type of blog will it be, etc?
3. How-to keep your blog going
This how-to will look at what to do once you’ve set up your blog, what other things can you add, how do you get more readers, how to you network, etc?

Tasks:
1. Each group will produce a how-to that is approximately 5-7 minutes and it will be filmed by Ms Amy. 2. Please be sure to download the script template and fill it in with how you want your video to be. You will hand in the script template after filming so that Ms Amy can use it to edit your video footage together appropriately.
3. You will be asked to sign a sheet that allows Ms Amy to put the how-to video on the internet. The video will be hosted by YouTube (and possibly other video hosting websites so that you can watch it because you don’t have access to YT). If you do not want to appear in the video, please let Ms Amy know and something will be worked out.
4. During today’s class period, you will select your group-mates and be assigned a topic. Use today’s time to brainstorm an outline for a script. You may begin writing the script now, but you will also have time during next week’s class period to complete your script. Completed scripts are due at the end of the class period on Thursday May 14.
(This means that you will not have homework, you will have class time to brainstorm and create it!)
5. Be CREATIVE! Make it fun and interesting!

Useful links (this list will be updated as Ms Amy runs across more links):
http://www.videojug.com/ – This website only features ‘how-to’ videos. Watch a few to get a feel of how they are put together!

And, me, their kooky teacher!

You can write a post AND update your “About” page!

Your post can explain the transition in the following manner:
- State the original purpose of the blog (and how it was created for a BlogShop class at the Access Academy).
- State how you’ve fallen in love with blogging! (And pinging!)
- State that you want to continue the blog, but with a new focus.
- State the new focus.

This is an easy way to explain to your readers how your blog will change. Be sure to reassure your readers that even though the topic has changed, the blog will still remain and that you will continue to write and your awesome ideas!

Suggestions:
1. Separate about me page with other regular posts
2. Would be more informative if included habitat and characteristics of animals
3. Should pay more attention to font color
4. Should give her own opinions
5. Can link our blogs (WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS)
6. If possible, she can include interviews from the villagers and compare them with her own thoughts

Rising of Ceylon notes and feedback:
-interesting information about Sri Lanka, and its education system.
-good connection between her feelings and her posts.
-good theme, sidebar, weights, custom header and nice picture.
-good writing style along with great ideas.
-she used citation.

Suggestions:
-don’t change font size in every post and make the letters a little bit bigger as it hurts our eyes!
- too much space in each post, so reduce that.
- add the ‘about me’ page.
- use more photos of Sri Lanka (go and collect it!).
-need more background information about the posts and need to organize them.

If you’ve received an “okay,” you can go ahead and submit your story idea to BBC’s “Your Story.”
If suggestions were given for improvement, please revise your story before submitting it.

According to the “Your Story” submission page, you must first summarize your story in three sentences or less. The three-sentence summary is a story proposal. In your summary remember to include where the story is from and explain why it is an important story.
After you have written your summary, you will post it as a comment here: Submitting “Your Story.”

Remember to include all contact information such as e-mail address and a link to your blog.

Good luck!