7 Days to a Better Edublog - Day 1 Blog Layout & Design for Readability

Note: I'm participating in a mini-course on writing a better Edublog.  7 Days To A Better Edublog offered by Stephanie Standifer who blogs at The Change Agency. It should prove to be an interesting week. 

I am also at the University of Texas attending the MD Anderson Summer Science Institute through Thursday and trying to find the time to adequately work on both will be a challenge. So, this is the first installment for the mini-course.

Summary - Changes to my blog

I am always, or so it seems, looking for new and interesting layouts for my blog.  Recently I changed the entire "Template" to a new one offered in Blogger.  The new template did in fact offer a much cleaner look and feel to my blog. 

Sidebar Items and Widgets

I constantly see interesting new sidebar items or widgets on other Edublogs and I think to myself that it would be fun to include a specific one to my blog.  So, in Blogger it is relatively easy to add a new one.  Many times however, I find that after I install one, it's not what I had hoped for and try to move it or remove it completely. 

I have seen some blogs that use way too many widgets in my opinion.  What would be a good balance? I think that's the question that you would constantly be trying to answer in order for your blog to evolve.

In addition to recently changing the template of my blog, I have also removed many sidebar items and widget.  Some were out of date and some just failed to work anymore.

Assignment for the day:

1. Who is the audience for your blog?

Really, my blog is for myself.  I do sometimes share new blog posts by Twitter to my PLN, so I guess that my "audience" would be other like-minded Edu-Geeks!

2. What special needs might they have with respect to the layout and design of your blog to ensure an optimal learner/reader experience?

I feel that the one thing that drives me crazy when I read another blog is when I find out that the links that were supplied under "Resources or Related Articles" won't work.I like the example on Jeff Utecth's blog The Thinking Stick where he uses lots of "white space". 

Resources:
7 Days to a Better Edublog - Day 1 Blog Layout & Design for Readability
Tammy Worcesters Blogging Basics and Beyond - ISTE Vision 2010 Video

The Best Kept Secrets of Highly Successful Edu-Bloggers Part 1 - By Karenne Sylvester