Google Reader

When I first began to read blogs regularly, I had a long list of bookmarks in my browser that linked to each blog that I read. When I had a chance to sit down and catch up on reading my blogs, I would go down the list of bookmarks, clicking on each one to see if there was a new post. Sometimes none of the blogs had a new post for me to read, so my time was wasted. Then I discovered Google Reader. Reader allowed me to access all of my blogs from one site, and showed me whether a blog had a new post or not so I didn't waste time going to each blog. Now I follow 98 blogs!

If you're a BISD employee, you already have access to your own Google Reader page within BISD's district Google account. To set it up, just log into your account at go.bryanisd.org and click on "More" in the black menu bar at the top of the screen. Then choose "Even More" from the menu that appears.

Scroll down the page and click on "Reader" under the "Social" heading. When you are on the Google Reader page, all you have to do is click the red "Subscribe" button to add a blog to your list (add this blog by copying and pasting in this address: bryantechnology.blogspot.com).

If the blog you are following has unread posts, the blog's name will appear in bold, and a number in parentheses will indicate how many posts are unread by you. To read a blog post, click on the title of a blog from the list on the left, and the post will appear in the window on the right.

Classroom Integration Ideas:

• There are thousands of blogs that relate to education; many are written for teachers by teachers. Follow a few and you can probably find some great ideas to use in your classroom. If you need help getting started, email your Instructional Technology Specialist and ask for suggestions of good blogs to add to your Reader list.