1. Pick a site on which to blog. Some options:
Blogger -- Pretty user-friendly, especially for newbies.
WordPress -- I've not used it, but my friends tell me it's easier to customize one's background than at Blogger, but harder to post pics.
TravelPod -- I'm new to this site, but my initial impressions are pretty positive. Definitely worth checking out.
2. Choose an online bookmarking site. For me, this isn't as much about the social aspects of most of these sites. I never know when I'm going to be using a different computer, and this way I can access my bookmarks from anywhere I can get online. I use del.icio.us, and I've been happy enough with it that I haven't researched any others. But if you're picking your first, it might be worth the time to compare a bit.3. Make sure you've downloaded a Google search option into whatever browser you are using, so that when you hit snags you can google your way to help as fast as possible. (And I recommend the spell check option that comes when you download the Google Toolbar as the fastest way to spell check blog posts, email, anything you type online.)
That should be enough to get you started. I'm not going to presume to tell you how to tailor your blogging to best-suit your classroom -- that'll depend on your students and your personality. I like to mix in serious, reflective posts amongst the more light-hearted fare that kids tend to gravitate toward. The result? I've put up posts that reference such weighty matters as the hedonic-treadmill and the longstanding face-off between North and South Korea. But if you can wade through my somber musings, you'll find more amusing topics like Japanese toilets, eating raw horse meat, and sometimes I even loosen up enough to post silly pics.
