Blogging Developed by Troop 1210 of the Central Texas Council

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1 Blogging Developed by Troop 1210 of the Central Texas Council Blogging is a great way for Girl Scouts to practice learning about technology in a safe and monitored way. It is also a fun way to get Girl Scouts working on their writing skills. Both of these skills are important in today s world and will continue to be very important in the future. LEVELS Daisy, Brownie, and Junior requirements: Steps 1, 3, 4*, 5*, and 6*. *These steps will require hands-on parent involvement. Cadette, Senior, and Ambassador requirements: Steps 1 through 6. Step 7 is optional. Before You Begin With the help of a troop volunteer or parent, read and sign the Girl Scout Internet Safety Pledge. Also, a troop volunteer (or several) should be in charge of monitoring the site to be sure unwanted comments do not creep into the blog. All quality blogging platforms will allow you to monitor comments and delete any unwelcome comments. Most questionable comments will not be automatically uploaded and will go into a SPAM folder until the monitory approves the comment. Step 1: Learn about Internet Safety Being online can be fun and educational, but not all websites are appropriate or safe for girls. In this step, learn about how to present yourself online. This will help you protect yourself and your friends while online. Read Internet Safety or have a parent read it to you:

2 Step 2: Set up your blog Setting up your blog is pretty simple. There are three steps: signing up for a platform, adding bloggers, and setting up bloggers profiles. Sign up with a platform For Daisies and Brownies and Juniors: A parent or troop leader will set up a blog page for the girls who are participating in the group blog. There are several platforms that are suitable for kids. Some possible platforms you may consider using are: Edmodo.com Kidblog.org Kidzworld.com For Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors: Either elect a troop member or as a group set up a blog using an appropriate blog platform. You may use one of the platforms above or another appropriate platform. Add Bloggers One person (either an adult who is overseeing the project or an Cadette, Senior, or Ambassador) will add each of the girls names that will be participating in the blog. Do not use real names! Use camp names or other made up names. Bloggers Profiles The most important thing to remember here is to protect your identity and your friends identities. Never use your name or the names of the girls you write about. Always use some kind of alias. Camp names are a good choice, but any made up name will do. Your blogging platform will probably allow you to upload a picture. Do not use a picture of yourself! Use an avatar creating software (there are free and easy online options) or if you have the tools to do so, draw a picture and upload it. If you need help, watch this tutorial on how to create an avatar using Illustration Maker. Step 3: Start Writing Your Blog Posts! Prepare an article for your blog. You can write on paper or on a word processor, but give it plenty of thought before publishing it. Daisy, Brownie, and Junior girls might write articles that are 25 to 100 words in length.

3 Cadette, Senior, and Ambassador girls should try to write a blog post that is between 300 and 800 words in length. Word lengths are just general guidelines; don t worry too much about how long or short your posts are, but be mindful that most people don t read long blog posts. A blog post should be as long as necessary to say what you need to say, but not any longer! Some topics you might write about include: What you did in Girl Scouts this week. An art project you worked on. A camping trip (with your troop, friends, or family). A new skill you learned or practiced. A STEM project or event. A performance you practiced for or participated in. Your Take Action Project, or your participation in someone else s Take Action Project. Work you ve done towards your Bronze, Silver, or Gold award. Achieving your Summit Award. Community Service. An experience in which you had to display courage. An experience in which you administered First Aid. Someone or event that taught you something about great character. Something that affected your confidence in a positive way, or how you helped to make the world a better place. These are just some ideas; you can come up with your own! Step 4: Hone Your Craft Learning to write well is important! Start practicing by using the basic grammar rules listed below. It may look like a lot, but don t worry, after a while they will come to you naturally. Remember to spell all words correctly. Give your blog post a title. All levels need to give your blog post a title. Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors may need subtitles in longer posts (an adult might be able to help you with this). Don t cover more than one major topic in a single post. It can confuse the reader. Practice using good grammar. Always start sentences with a capital letter. Always use end mark punctuation at the end of every sentence. Practice using noun-- verb agreement.

4 We have three pet birds, is correct. We have three pet bird, is not correct. We have a pet birds, is not correct. Use quotes when showing dialog (something someone said) I asked him, Would you like to buy some Girl Scout cookies? Remember these basic comma rules: Use commas in a list. I went to the store and bought milk, bread and eggs. Use a comma before a FANBOYS (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) if the FANBOYS comes between two independent thoughts I like dogs, and I like cats. Use commas to separate adjectives. My brother gave me a big, blue ball. Use commas to set off a thought within a thought. My dog, who loves Frisbees, won the Frisbee contest in my neighborhood park. Use bulleted lists if it seems right. A short bullet list makes it easier for your audience to read. It is easier to read this: While preparing for our camping trip, you should remember to pack: o food, o ropes, o tents, o blankets, o pillows, o sleeping bags, o playing cards, o water bottles, o snacks, o binoculars, and o wildlife identification guides. Than it is to read this: While preparing for our camping trip, you should remember to pack: food, ropes, tents, blankets, pillows, sleeping bags, playing cards, water bottles, snacks, binoculars, and wildlife identification guides. Step 5: Adding Final Touches After writing your blog post but before you publish it, make it perfect!

5 Use a proofreader. After you ve written your article, have an adult proofread it with you. The adult should show you any typographical errors, grammar problems, or advice you on length and the tone of your article. This is how good writers become great writers! Everyone improves with a good proofreader! Add a picture (optional). If you have access to a digital camera, or the ability to scan a drawn or painted picture, upload it somewhere into your blog post. (More about images in Step 7.) Step 6: Comment, Comment, Comment! Once a week, every two weeks, or once a month (depending on what is considered appropriate by your troop or family) sign on to the group blog and place a comment on one of your Girl Scout sisters posts. If your blog post has received a comment, respond to the comment if it seems right to do so. Commenting and responding to comments is part of the natural interaction between blog writers and their audience. If you receive comments from someone you do not know, make sure your parent or a troop volunteer reviews the comment for appropriateness. Delete any inappropriate comments. Step 7: Adding Images to Your Post (optional) Images make your blog posts attractive, inviting, and informative. If you have pictures to upload, do it! Be sure not to use pictures that show your face or the faces of troop mates. You may also want to use royalty free images from a variety of royalty free sites. Here are some royalty free sites. Not all images on these sites are royalty free, be sure you use ones that are. Istockphotos.com Gettyimages.com Flickr.com View this tutorial to learn how to use royalty free images from Flickr.com.