Today we are in the computer lab learning how to make a current events post to the class blog. Here are step by step instructions of what to do in order to make a class blog post.
1st) What is required: I want you to find a recent article that relates directly, (or you can explain well how it relates) to what we are studying in class. You will provide a well written paragraph summarizing your article, as well as another paragraph (also well written) relating this article, specifically the concepts that it addresses, to our AP HUG course.
2nd) You need to decide what kind of current events article you are going to post about. I want you to post about whatever topic we are studying at the moment. For this first post, I want you to find an article on Baltimore. There are several ways that you can find an article on Baltimore. Consider the following:
- Go to google.com and search for Baltimore. When you see the results, click on the News tab at the top. This will show you news headlines and stories dealing specifically with Baltimore. Google News is a great resource for finding articles that are about specific topics, or that include specific text in the body of the article.
- On the Martins AP HUG main page, you will see the Links tab at the top of the page. When you click here you will find a variety of news websites. I suggest you take some time to click through these links and see not only how headlines differ from site to site, but that you find the sites that you like to use most. I will want you to refer to multiple sites throughout the year as sources for the articles that you post.
- For a general idea of which AP HUG related concepts you can search for, go to the Course Info page on Martins AP HUG main page. This will give you an outline of the course, as well as each Unit. Unit 2 is dealing with Urbanization, so anything that relates to Baltimore or its urban nature is relevant.
- Find an article that is interesting to you, and that you feel confident in your ability to provide a solid explanation on how it relates to what we are studying. If you’re unsure about a certain article or topic, try looking around some more, there are plenty of headlines to choose from.
2nd) When you find the article that you want to post, you will need to login to your Martins AP HUG account so that you can make your post. Many students have been having a hard time remembering their passwords. I suggest you make your password something very simple to remember. There is no critical info in your account, we can always reset your password, and I want you to be able to quickly login when we go to the computer lab, which will be several times throughout the year.
3rd) When you login, select Posts on the left column, then select Add New.
4th) On the next page you will see the title bar, and a box below where you can copy/paste the text of your post, and type in your summary and application. The title could be the title of the article, or perhaps a more attention getting title to highlight the issue that you are discussing in your application. You should also include some sort of reference or link to the actual website where you found the article. I prefer that your summary and application be the first thing that we read when we look at your post.
5th) Be sure to select Student Post as the category on the right hand side. You might need to de-select other categories. I want your posts to be categorized under Student Post. You are free to add Tags, which are specific keywords that explain what you are talking about. That way when students are looking for a specific concept to study, they can click on a Tag and see all posts related to that concept.
6th) While you are working on your post summary, WordPress will frequently save what you have written. However, before you close a page or log off, you should always click the Save As Draft button to make sure that you won’t lose any of your hard work.
7th) When you are finished with your post, click the Preview button on the top right, and it will show you what your post will look like.
8th) I have posted a sample current events article on Baltimore that I want everyone to comment on before Monday.
9th) Happy Posting! I really look forward to seeing what you find this year; even more so to reading your commentaries as you relate these articles to our course.
