The rules at this swimming pool make sense, although if you are a kid you probably want to make sure you go with an adult!
We need rules for our blogs as well. Some of them are meant to keep everyone safe, some are about being a good digital citizen and some are meant to help you become a better writer.
- Only use your first name.
- Only use the first names of the students who are in Mr. Toft’s class and have permission to put their name on our blog. If you want to mention your best friend Ezekial who is in Mr. Mahler’s class, you could say, “My best friend is E. He is in Mr. M’s class.
- Don’t give your home email, phone number, or street address.
- Don’t share specifics of your daily routines that involve time and location (i.e. where & when your tuba lesson is)
- Parents and relatives: Feel free to leave comments. We’d love to hear from you!
- Always start a sentence with a capital letter.
- Always end a sentence with punctuation like . ? !
- IF YOU WRITE EVERY WORD IN CAPITAL LETTERS, IT MEANS YOU ARE SHOUTING!!! Please don’t shout. It hurts my ears.
- Use an exclamation mark (maximum of three!!!) if you are excited, passionate or annoyed about something!!!
- Have at least one space after punctuation like , . ? !
- Remember that many people will read what you write. Think carefully before clicking the “submit” or “send” button!
- Our blogs are not places to chat with your friends or share links to games and videos. You are encouraged to leave comments for classmates but it has to be about their writing.
- I am the gatekeeper. Everything you want to post on your blog has to get by me first!
Posts and Comments
Consider using the TAG format to:
Tell something positive
Ask a question
Give a suggestion
Stay positive and polite: you do not have to agree with everyone’s opinion but you must be respectful of it.
Use phrases like:
- I respectfully disagree…
- Have you considered…?
- greet the author by their name if it’s your first time writing to that person
- briefly say where your are from
- include information, like a link, on how to find your blog
How to Write a Comment
a) Click the comment icon beside the title of the post.
b) Click the “Leave a reply” link that follows the post.
Remember: All comments are moderated before being posted. That means Mr. Toft will read the comment before deciding whether to add it to the blog.
How to Write a Post
- Write what you want to tell the class about on Microsoft Word or Google Docs.
- Save it on your computer.
- Go to Hand-In to send your post. Ask Mr. Toft for the password if you forget.