Power Blogging - High School Students Rocked a Blog in Three Days

Green Ink : Blogging for a Better Tomorrow

You would not think six high school students (along with a mentor and three college counselors - one just graduated in May) could rock a blog and get over 400 visits in three days.

Well, these guys and girls did.

You may be wondering how they did that, because those numbers are amazing in the blogashpere.

As the Green Ink group mentor at the Redesigning the Future summer camp for high school students, I can tell you that we're not talking black hat SEO, buying links, or any other tricks.

These high school students simply put up great information and shared their work. As a power blogger, I can tell you that is the key. Put up information people want to read and get the word out. That's what the group did, and it paid off.

 

Bloggers Working Hard at the Environmental Summit

I am a Communication lecturer at the college, so I can tell you this was not easy. Good online blog traffic does not just happen. If the students were just tossing up data and not putting heart and thought in, then they would be getting very little traffic. That's just the bottom line.

The students had to look at all the camp activities and decide where to invest time and energy. They all brought different skills. Some were strong writers (which is great when blogging), but others had other skills that made the short summer blog class solid. Ayden Smith liked to do design work and made the new header and some photo collages.

Counselor Morgan King Works with Camper Alia Dahlian

No one is born knowing how to blog, although some people do seem "born to blog." They just "get it." That is a skill that can't really be taught, but it can be nurtured.

I was blessed to have three terrific counselors with my group. I'd taught and worked with all three.

Katie Barbee is a local girl, so we have a lot in common. She was a real stand in the college blogging class. She still blogs, and is quite popular. Her blog is really a fun read, and I still follow it.

Morgan King is a business major, but she was in my first year seminar class and was my Green Ink counselor last year, so I knew she was rock solid.

William Spencer is a new college student, and he is on the college newspaper (The Pioneer) staff. I knew he had experience with blogging but in WordPress. That's a harder platform, so I knew he'd pick up Blogger quick. Of course, he did.

My camp group blogs, so they are busy covering camp and what we are all learning. They use "down" or "rest" time to gather information, so they can hit it hard when we get together. They also go visit the other groups at camp. This is not a camp class for the faint of heart, but it does provide opportunities to get the bigger picture as media folks. As I tell them, "You have to think like a blogger every second."

Bloggers showcase what is going on and who it shining, but they seldom get much credit.

As the leader of Green Ink: Blogging for a Better Tomorrow at the Redesigning the Future: National Environmental Summer Summit 2014, I would like to say that Payton, Alia, Cierra, Jumana, Boothe, and Ayden really shook up our blog and got loads of traffic.  You can read about these great high school students at the top of the blog under Staff 2014.

In the background, my counselors Katie, Morgan, and William were fabulous. They helped new bloggers learn how to get messages out and get great traffic. They spent loads of time hanging out and going to various groups with the high school students, so the new bloggers could get great data. They also took a bunch of photos. They were the backbone that helped the high students shine as they should.

What Does It Take to Have a Successful Blog

It takes cooperation, passion, and hard work. That's what I got with my student bloggers and my college counselors. I want to thank them all. Blogging is hard work (to be successful). Our blog did really well, and I give credit where it is due.