Blog Post #1 Directions

Blog Post #1
(directions for setting up your blog are below, in my first post)

..........

As with all our blog assignments this semester, aim for a minimum of 500 words. Do your best to answer the questions, but there is also lots of room for creativity. We are using Blogger as a place where we can "write to learn," where we can hash out our ideas and get in touch with our thinking as we work through our inquiry projects. As a teacher, I'm more concerned with content than with form here, although keep in mind that this is a public space.

..........

By the time we got to our Annotated Bibliography assignment, we had already done a lot of brainstorming about what it means to be healthy:
-We did an "inquiry" activity with objects, starting to think about health in broader terms.
-We did mind maps with our groups and shared with the class, further extending our thinking about health.
-We read Peace Butter & Jelly and learned about the author's life experiences and his healthy approach to life. We examined his recipes (food and otherwise), and hopefully drew some inspiration from his words - or, at the very least, started to think about the many ways people approach life and view this world.
-We also wrote an essay about ourselves, which might have led us to thinking about a person, event, or just one aspect of our lives that could lead us to a meaningful health-related topic for this semester.

1. With all this (above) in mind, what has "stood out" to you as interesting? Why? What are some topic ideas you have? What are some possible inquiry questions? Can you narrow your thinking down to one inquiry question to get you started on your research? What is it? Why did you choose to start here?

For example, say chiropractic has stood out to you because you are interested in how adjusting someone's spine could do them any good. Or perhaps you're interested in chiropractic because you have really bad allergies, and you've heard that adjustments can help with that. A good inquiry question to get you started might be as simple as, "What exactly is chiropractic, and why is it healthy?" This is a broad question, but it's a great starting point. As you research and complete your Annotated Bibliography, you'll learn about chiropractic, the science behind it, and why people believe--or don't believe--it's healthy.

2. Look back at the reading that's due at the same time as this blog. The authors of our textbook ask us to "seek and value complexity" and to resist binary thinking (pg. 6). What, can you predict, will complicate your research topic? What people or groups of people do you predict will be discussing your topic and offering answers (valid or otherwise) to your inquiry question? Another way to think about this is, what academic "conversation" do you think might be taking place about your topic? (For more on this "conversation" concept that we will refer to throughout the semester, see pgs. 8-10 of your textbook.) 
(Remember to resist binary thinking here: there are more than 2 "sides" to your topic, more than 2 ways to answer your inquiry question)

For example, as I think ahead to my research on chiropractic, I think society's views about healthcare will complicate my research topic. From past experience, I know that some people think chiropractors are "witch doctors," and many people feel more comfortable going to medical doctors than to any sort of "alternative" doctor. However, I know that chiropractic is an old profession that has helped--and is helping--many people. After all, I see chiropractors' offices all over the place in Charlotte. The different groups of people discussing chiropractic might be medical doctors like general practitioners, chiropractors (obviously), chiropractic patients, and skeptics. These are just my predictions; I know as I begin to research I will learn a LOT more about what chiropractic is and about what other writers are saying about it.

3. What are your questions for me and for Ms. Gunter, our librarian? You might want to use this space to brainstorm general questions about the library or about evaluating sources (pgs. 132-138 in our textbook might help you brainstorm some questions here), or you might want to use this space to brainstorm specific research questions about your topic/inquiry question.

Directions

Welcome! We will be using Blogger throughout the semester as a place to reflect on our writing, research, and inquiry, as well as to communicate with each other. Please set up your own Blogger Blog using the following guidelines:

• Keep in mind that Blogger works best w/ Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox; it doesn't much like Internet Explorer.
• Click on "Create Blog" at the top right of this page, and--IF you don't already have a Google account with Gmail, etc--create a Google Account. Typically Blogger doesn't accept my students' UNCC e-mail addresses, so you'll probably have to use a personal e-mail address to set up a Google account. You'll only need your e-mail address to sign in; I've never received e-mails from Blogger or Google, so there's no need to worry about junk mail, and I will never e-mail your personal account.
• As you're creating your account, please make sure your display name contains some version of your real name so that your classmates and I can identify you easily.
• Once you've made an account, you should be taken to your "Dashboard," the "home base" for Blogger. From here, you'll want to create ONE blog that you will use for the semester - click on "New Blog," a little gray button on the left-hand side of the page. Please note that once you have a Blogger account, you'll be able to make as many blogs as you want to, but you will create ONE blog for use in this class. This blog's title should be pertinent to this class (e.g. "Freshman Writing" would be a good title, whereas "Freshman Swag" would not be). Your URL can be whatever you'd like it to be; just keep it school appropriate.
• You may design your blog however you'd like to. Have fun with it! You'll find template options under the "More Options" drop-down arrow.
• Whenever you want to write a new post, you'll click on the orange "Create a New Post" button. It's that easy. (: I will post directions for each Blog Post assignment on this very page.
• You'll want to make sure your blog is public. Under "Settings," (another option under the "More Options" drop-down arrow), please allow your blog readers to be "Anybody."
• Lastly, please copy and paste your URL into your course section's forum on Moodle.The forums are listed in the top "block" on our Moodle page.

These directions should help you get started, but, as with any technology, you'll have to play around with Blogger to get used to it. Give yourself some time with it, then if you have questions, please ask.