10. Focus questions: Organising pages

How would you like to set up pages in WordPress? Would you like to order them in your own way, or alphabetically? Do you want your pages to appear in the side menu? Write down your thoughts, discuss with a partner or small group in the class, or blog it!

9. Focus questions: Managing privacy

What sorts of privacy functionality do you want from WordPress? Do you want your blog to be visible to the world, or only to a select few? What sorts of things do you want users to be able to do? Just make comments, or deal with the more admistrative aspects, too? Write down your thoughts, discuss with a partner or small group in the class, or blog it!

8. Focus questions: Managing comments

What sorts of things would you like to do with managing comments on your blog? Would you like to approve all comments before they are published on your site? Would you like to exclude certain words from appearing in comments? Write down your thoughts, discuss with a partner or small group in the class, or blog it!

7. Focus questions: What is a widget?

Have you heard the term ‘widget’ before? In what context? Do you have any idea what widgets on websites do? Write down your thoughts, discuss with a partner or small group in the class, or blog it!

5. Focus questions: Using a visual editor

Have you used a ‘visual editor’ on the web before? Maybe the ‘learning management system’ you use at school (such as MyClasses) or uni (such as BlackBoard or WebCT) has a visual editor embedded in it somewhere? Write down your experiences, discuss with a partner or small group in the class, or blog what you know.

4. Focus questions: Why use static pages?

What would be the advantages of having static pages on your blog? When might they come in handy? When might they be over-used? Write down your thoughts, discuss with a partner or small group in the class, or blog it!

3. Focus questions: What are ‘posts’?

Have you read a blog before? (Maybe you have without knowing it!) What have you noticed about how posts are presented, chronologically speaking? How are they organised? What does each post include in terms of admin? If you’re not sure, check out my blog at MeganPoore.com to see an example of a typical blog site. Write down your thoughts, discuss with a partner or small group

2. Focus questions

Have you ever signed up for a Web account before? For an online teaching site, perhaps? Or a shopping site such as Amazon.com or eBay? Blog your experiences.

1. Focus questions: What do you know about blogs?

What do you know about blogs? In what context have you heard them discussed? (On the radio? Your kids or workmates have mentioned them? Maybe you know someone who blogs …) Have you ever read a blog? Why do people blog? What do you need to know more about?