Social Studies Meets Information Technology

Introduction- This should be catchy, interesting, and a reflection of you as a speaker!  You want to arouse your audiences curiosity.

• Hook- interesting or emotional comment used to catch reader’s attention
• General Comments- interesting background information (define key terms)
• Thesis Statement- specific topic of the essay/explains ideas of the body paragraphs

Conclusion-  The reader should see the importance of your essay, and finish thinking about what you have said.

• Ideas of thesis statement- use different words than those in the introduction
• Comments- may include a summary of the main ideas, an evaluation of other ideas, and/or the writer’s opinion
• Final statement- a final thought that ties up the topic

When you want to make your post pretty, you might want to use Firefox instead of Safari so you can see the Rich Text Editor:

Remember: this only works on Firefox or Internet Explorer.

Using the Rich Text Editor, you can highlight a word and make it bold or italics with these buttons:

You can also make a word into a linked word (or remove a link if you made a mistake) using these buttons:

When you are creating a link, always make sure to have the new link open in a new window, like this:

Don’t forget to copy and paste the entire URL of the link into the “link URL” box above

If you want to add pictures from a website, use this button:

Make sure you include the entire URL of the picture (remember, you want to see the picture alone on the page, like this — use Google Images and go to “see full size image” — when you make your link)

You might want to check the “Alignment” tab to decide if you want your picture on the left, right or in the center.

Don’t forget to cite the source (URL) of your picture underneath the picture in your post. Without proper citation, this is plagiarism.

If you have a picture already saved on your computer, you can use the “Upload” tool (this also works in Safari):

Click on the browse button to find the file on your computer:

Click the upload button to upload your image to the server:

Then the “Browse” toolbar will pop up with your pictures:

Then, click on the picture you want to upload, and you will see this:

Make sure it says: “Using Original” (If it says “Using Thumbnail,” click once on the word “Thumbnail” and it will switch to “Original.” Then click, “Send to Editor”

If you do all of these things, you will have a truly beautiful post!

Good Luck!

Here’s a list of what we discussed in class today:

THE POST INCLUDES

• The same title as the homework or classwork assignment on this site
• A link back to the homework or classwork assignment on this site
• A link to the article that the student is discussing
• The questions (copied and pasted) from the homework or classwork assignment on this site

IN THE CONTENT OF THE POST, THE STUDENT
• Follows the instructions from the homework or classwork assignment on this site
• Clearly explains what he or she is writing about
• Uses paragraph spacing, titles, and headings to organize the post
• Uses proper conventions (grammar & spelling – use spell check)
• Uses thorough examples
• Uses many details

Keep these tips in mind when you are writing your own posts!

ASSESSMENT

You will be graded using the rubric below:

Excellent (5 points)

• It is clearly evident that the student read and understood the news article.
• All responses demonstrate a deep understanding of the content.
• All questions are answered thoroughly.
• All information is accurate.

Good (3-4 points)

• It is evident that the student read and understood the news article.
• All responses demonstrate an understanding of the content.
• Most questions are answered thoroughly
• Most information is accurate.

Needs Improvement (0-2 points)

• It is not evident that the student read and understood the news article.
• All responses demonstrate a simplistic understanding of the content.
• Few questions are answered thoroughly.
• There are problems with accuracy of information.