Blogging 101: A Guide for Kids

Blog. Pronounced BLAAAAHG, but there is nothing blaaaaah about it. If you’ve ever been online, then you already know what blogs are, because blogs are where platforms like Youtube and TikTok and others got the whole idea of creating space for ordinary people to tell stories, share art, ask questions, and do weird and random things online, to be their most original and truest selves. In short, if it’s on the internet and it’s interesting, then blogs were doing it first.

8 Reasons Why You Should Start a Blog Right Now

1. Because blogs are free! Sign up for one at www.blogger.com or https://wordpress.org/, or have your grownup sign you up through their email account if you don’t have your own.
2. Because blogs are educational! Here is a chance for you to be creative, to work on your storytelling, your typing, your spelling, etc. Making a blog is also quiet, which is useful if you’re stuck at home with your entire family (unlike, say, taking up the accordion).
3. Because blogs are safe. You can set your blog to be password protected and invite the people who care about you (friends and family) to read what you’re writing.
4. Because the people who care about you are probably bored, and will be happy to read your posts during these stressful times. Honestly, it’s kind of a public service.
5. Because blogs are about connection, which is so important at a moment when we’re keeping our distance from each other. Your blog is a great way for you to be connected to your friends. You and your friends could even make a blog together, each of you adding posts of your own and sharing your different points of view.
6. Because a blog is a perfect place to tell your story and share your feelings. Together, we’re all living through an extraordinary moment in history, and making a record of your experience will be valuable for you and others.
7. Because a blog is for exploring, even when you’re going nowhere. I use my blog as a place to ask questions, figure out answers, to think about the things and ideas that obsess me, and express what I am passionate about.
8. Because a blog is generosity. To make a blog is to point to something wonderful, and tell the world, “Hey! Take a look at this.” Blogging is sharing, which is always good. (Unless we’re talking about infectious germs. And we’re not)

What Should You Blog About?

• Pick a topic that you’re obsessed with (octopuses, movies, the environment, Shawn Mendes) and blog about that. Share news and things you discover about your topic.
• Blog about the things you make or build. Do you like art? Do you like Lego? When you finish your creation, post a photo of it and write about what you made.
• Make a pen-pal blog where you and your friend write letters back and forth to each other.
• Write a blog that is a diary, a letter to the world about what you and your family are going through right now.
• An imaginary travel blog! While we’re stuck at home, it might be fun to write about your favourite places to visit in your town or city, or even research places you’ve never been before and write posts that describe those places. What did you see? What did you eat?
• A food blog! Get busy in the kitchen and blog about your creations. (Please remember to wash the dishes when you are done.)
• A book blog. Are you reading a lot these days? Share your book recommendations and perspectives on the books that you’re reading.
• A gratitude blog, or a survival blog. How are you getting through this hard time? What is helping you feel better? What are you grateful for? Share your tips and ideas for feeling better when things are difficult.
• ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANT YOUR BLOG TO BE. Be creative, and write the kind of blog that only you can write. Make it as weird and wacky as you are.

There is only one rule in blogging: HAVE FUN.