1. Open blogger.com and login
2. Click on "New Post"
3. Enter the Title (for this example I am using Working Children in U.S. History- an Introduction)
4. Do your Google Search in another browser window. (see previous lesson on how to Google Search Effectively for review). Tricks you can use: type site:edu to get university sources only. Entering 2005...2010 will get you information where information pertains to that time frame.
5. Start Writing: When you find a good source put the information in YOUR OWN WORDS. Usually one sentence per paragraph that answers your question. Copy and paste the source text in the blog text box for convenience in reading and writng, but be sure to delete it when finished leaving only your writing and the source information.
- Think about what you want to provide what the
title of your post is about.
- Nothing extra, no padding.
- You must always cite where you got your information even though it's in your
own words. It is plagiarism (stealing) if you don't.
- Don't use quoted text for more than 1/4 of your writing. The 200 words
requirement does NOT include quoted text.
6. Copy and paste the link address (http://...) at the bottom and put source: in front of it. Do the same for any images, but put directly under the image. The a brief annotation about the source (explained below).
7. Always provide an explanation of any image you use.
- Note, blogger saves automatically, but to be sure, hit the save button once in a while. It won't be viewable on the blog until you hit "Publish"
8. When you think you have written at least 200 words, copy and paste into Word and look at the bottom left, it will give you the word count.
9. Use the ABC check button in blogger editor to check for spelling.
10. If you have time, let it sit for a day, then go back and edit (re-read, revise for clarity, check for grammatical errors). You can also ask a friend to edit it for you.
11. Final Check - Ask yourself- Did I answer the question and/or accomplish what I wanted for this post? If so, then click "pulbish" if not, figure out what else you need and get it. You may use more than one source per-post.
Also, don't use the same site for more than ONE post.
- Not Wikipedia - just because I prefer you to go closer to the primary source. Most articles on Wiki I have found to be of good quality, but I just us it to get an overview of a topic. However, you may look at and use the sources in the Wikipedia articles.
- Credible web site: a university site ranks high (.edu), as they usually have "peer reviewed" material. That means experts in the field have probably written and commented on the article.
- As a minimum the site must include the author's name or organization's name and, if important, the date of the writing with contact information. There needs to be a way for you to see where the author or organization works. Check to see if they have a particular perspective on the subject and find out what it is. Put a one sentence annotation (demonstrated in class) after the source link.