Organzing Your Blogs with RSS

As parents, I know that your schedules remain constantly busy. That is why this post is dedicated to teaching you about technologies that can help you organize new information that you receive about this class. There is no need for you to go this website (http://mrosbornsclass.blogspot.com/) at all. Some web tools have been created to simplify your lives and send you information from blogs and other online sources directly.

RSS stands for either "Rich Site Summary" or more commonly "Really Simple Syndication." RSS offers a simple way for you to take published web content and use it in new and exciting ways. While there are tons of things that you can do with RSS, we are going to start simple. Today I want to look at how RSS can help you stay current on your favorite websites (like this one).

You know that a website has RSS enabled when you see the RSS symbol.
It it usually located either somewhere on a blog page or in the address bar in your web browser. Once you click on the RSS image, you will be greeted with choices about how you can subscribe to a web page.

An important term to understand when dealing with RSS is the "feed." The feed is the unique content that is published by a website. The feed has a special URL that is different from the site itself. The most common way to use RSS is to subscribe to feeds. This allows you to to view information from your favorite websites in one place. For instance, several of your child's classes may have their own blogs. With RSS, you can subcribe to each of these blogs and view all of the information about every class from one location. The device that you can use to subscribe to RSS feeds is called an "aggregator."



One common aggregator is Google Reader. This is free software that anyone can access with a Google account. First, follow these steps to create a Google account (if you already have a Google account, you can follow the next set of directions):

1. To get started, go to Google.com and click Gmail at the top of the page.
2. Click "Sign up for Gmail."
3. Create an account by filling in your basic information.

Once you have a Google account, the next step is to set up your aggregator.

1. Once you are logged in to Google, click on Reader at the top of the Google homepage.
2. Next, you will need to subscribe to feeds. You can either do that by clicking "add a subscription" or clicking on the RSS button of your favorite blog or website.
3. To subscribe to this feed click "add a subscription."
4. Insert the following URL into the entry box: http://mrosbornsclass.blogspot.com/

Once you do this, you should see the blog posts in Google Reader. You can now view your favorite websites in one place. Watch this video for more information about Google Reader:



If you need additional help or have any questions, feel free to shoot me an e-mail or leave a comment under this post.

Sincerely,
Mr. Osborn

Connecting Parents to the Classroom

Dear parents:

This blog has been designed to keep you updated about class assignments, your student's progress, and other important announcements. One of my goals for this year's class is to get every parent connected to this blog so that they may access detailed information about what is going on quickly and effectively. I want you to know that I will work hard to deliver this information to you on a regular basis.

The blog will allow me to post the activities and events that I have planned for this class. A blog is a great platform for these types of announcements because it allows you, the parent, to provide me with direct feedback. In the comment area, you are able to post any questions, concerns, or comments that may arise. E-mailing me directly is still always an option. Additionally, the blog will allow you to connect with other parents, and you will be able to read their comments and questions as well.

Please respond to this post by clicking comment and writing a brief message. Feel free to write anything you like. Once you have written your comment, your message will not be posted immediately. Every comment will be moderated to ensure that only students' and parents' messages are displayed. It would be great if you would leave a brief message so that I know you have been connected to our classroom.

Sincerely,
Mr. Osborn