Internet blogging

Weblogs offer children a new way to read, write and express their views. They act as an online journal, and encourage children to think about and comment on the things that matter to them

What is a blog?

A weblog, or blog for short, is a website on which items are posted on a regular basis. Some blogs will focus on particular themes, such as food or politics, or some will be like an online diary. A typical blog will combine text, images and links to other blogs or web pages. Blog trackers Technorati estimate there are 14.2 million blogs with a new weblog set up every second.

A blog can be great for children and some schools have already set up facilities for their pupils. Teachers find that blogging can help pupils develop confidence, improve their self expression and get a real sense of fulfilment from publishing their work.

Benefits of blogging

• Helps children develop confidence
• It improves their self expression
• Children get a real sense of fulfilment from publishing their work
• It helps children to forge multicultural links
• Teaches them to communicate in meaningful contexts
• It improves reading and writing skills
• Helps children become more independent and creative
• It raises awareness and sensitivity to their European peers
• Can help children feel empowered by the knowledge that others know their views on a topic

Safe blogging

While blogs are great it's important to remember to teach your children to be safe on the internet. These are our top safety tips:

• Buy internet safety software for your computer and use good filtering software.
• Sit down and discuss online safety with your children and come to an agreement about what activities are okay and what aren't
• Ensure they don't publish any personal information, including their private thoughts, full name (make sure they always use a blog name/nickname), age, address or school name
• Take care that they don't publish any photos of themselves, friends or family
• Make sure they password protect their blog so only people they invite can view it
• Check that you know what your children are doing online and who they are talking to
• Ask them to teach you how to use any applications you have never used before
• Put your family computer and any internet games consoles in a public room so you can monitor your children's online activities.