The Commons (and WordPress) allows you to create web pages that can accommodate all kinds of content and design elements. Primarily, you will be using it to embed a video or other assignment for your classmates to see and comment on. However, I highly encourage you to experiment with the platform and see what you can learn to do.
On this course site, you will be making a “post.” A Commons/Wordpress site has both “posts” and “pages.” Posts are assigned to a specific author and have a time and date. A page is a generic static web page. Both of them are created and edited almost identically, so if you can learn to make and edit a post, you can also now make an edit a website.
Anyone associated with CUNY can create a website on the Academic Commons. This could be a portfolio, a project site, or a site to play around with and learn more. Go to the main Commons page to do so.
Illustration by Ernest Howard Shepherd for Winnie-the-Pooh, 1926. Public Domain
Creating a Post
(Note: some of the screenshots and videos are from another of my courses, but the method is the same.)
If you are logged into the Commons and on our site, you can add a post in two ways. The first is via the black toolbar, where you would have logged in at the top of the screen. You will see a “+New” option. A drop-down menu will allow you a quick way to add a post (as well as some other options; note: you will have fewer options than this screenshot.)
This is the quickest way to create a new post straight from the front end of the website.
However, you may sometimes want to start a post and return to it. You can do that by going to the Dashboard.
Dashboard
The Dashboard is the “back-end” of a Commons/WordPress site. As a user of the site, you don’t have a lot of options, but with your own site, you’d have many more things available to help you change and craft a full website.
The Dashboard allows you to easily access and edit your posts. You can also create a new post from here. If you click on the “Posts” part of the black Dashboard left-hand menu, you will see all of the posts you’ve made and their status. A post can be published (available for everyone to view) or a draft you are returning to.
Use the Block Editor to make a Post
You will be taken to the WordPress Block Editor when you click to make a new post. Note: There is a video walkthrough at the bottom of the page if you find it easier to follow.
Content for posts is built using individual ‘blocks’ of content. The WordPress Block Editor allows you to add blocks that can contain text, media, and design elements to customize the way material on the post is presented.
Blocks are self-contained elements that you can use to give your content design and function. They offer you the flexibility to easily add and move material around.
When you open a page or post in the Block Editor, the first Block will automatically be the post or page title. For a speech assignment, I recommend making your title the name of the book you’ve chosen, or some thing to entice us to learn more about what you’ve put together.
Below that, you will see: “Type/to choose a block” and a plus sign to the right.
Typing will automatically cause the block to become a text (or paragraph) block. This text can be manipulated via a mouseover menu that appears above the block.
Each block has an additional menu with more options that can be accessed via the settings panel found by clicking the gear on the upper right.
You can open and close the settings menu in the upper right by clicking on this double rectangle icon.
This settings menu has options for the Post or the Block.
Each block and will include different options depending on the type of content it contains.
Options in the paragraph block settings, for example, include typography, spacing, and color.
Note that you will get a warning if you try to set your colors so they don’t have enough contrast.
Add other kinds of blocks
Create a new block by hitting the Return/Enter key on your keyboard. Clicking on the plus sign to the right of a new empty block will open a menu with a search option and a few basic and recently used block options, allowing you to select one of the many kinds of blocks available, including adding an image, a heading, a list, etc. (You can also access this from the top of the screen toolbar from the blue plus sign.)
You can also add blocks from the very top of the page, left-hand corner blue plus sign, which will open a complete list of blocks.
This will show you all available blocks grouped into sections: Text, Media, Design, Widgets, and more. Using blocks from these various menus will allow you to add different kinds of content and many options for customizing the look of your materials.
When you have more than one block, you can change the order of the blocks on your page or post by using the up/down arrows in the mouseover pop-up for each block.
Useful Beginning Blocks
Text blocks
- Paragraph: For basic text (Each time you hit return you will get a new paragraph block. If you want to have another text line in the same block you can hit Shift+Enter.)
- Headings: These not only visually create sections within a page or post, but also provide greater site accessibility.
- Lists – allow for lists and outlines
- Like this one!
- You can even indent further
- Like this one!
Quote types: Allow you to visually separate out a quote and give it a citation.
“To Be or Not to Be…”Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 1
Media Blocks
Image: Allows you to add an image by either uploading it or selecting from your media library. Images will ask you to include “Alt text” which is a brief description of what the image is for someone who is accessing the site through a screen reader.
Video: allows you to embed some kinds of video files but is very limited in size. YouTube files (and some other sources) can be automatically embedded in your page or post by pasting the address directly. It’s advisable to run video content through another service, such as YouTube because the Commons isn’t really designed to process video and has a file size limit.
Media & Text: allows you to place material side by side. You can also do this with Columns, available in the Design Blocks.
File: allows you to upload a downloadable file. Some file types can be embedded as well.
Embedding a video
While you can technically directly upload a video file into a post, it’s not ideal. The better option for most video content is to use YouTube as an intermediary step.
- Upload your video as an UNLISTED video to YouTube (Note: a private video will not be able to be embedded on the site or be watchable by your classmates and professor.)
- YouTube can automatically create captions for your video to make it more accessible.
- You will need the YouTube link for later to include in your post.
Never used YouTube to upload video content? You can find more on how to do that in the resources.
Once you have the link on YouTube, you should be able to paste it directly into a new block and it will automatically embed. Alternatively, you can find the YouTube block (under the media blocks) and copy the address there.
If your video doesn’t automatically embed either by pasting the link into a paragraph block or by using the YouTube block, go back and check that you’ve set the privacy settings on the YouTube video to “unlisted” and not “private”
Illustration for Two Bad Mice, by Beatrix Potter. 1902. Public Domain.
Choose a Category for your Post
When you started you might have noticed the big pinkish-red bar at the top of your screen that says “Please select a category before publishing this post.”
Open the menu for the post (rather than the block) and scroll down to “Categories.” Please select “Introductory Speech” for this first post. Once you add the category, that warning bar will go away and you will be ready to publish. (Note: for some speeches you will be selecting two categories: the assignment, and the group you will be assigned to later on.)
Publish your Post
For your first post make sure that you’ve:
- given it a title
- embedded your introductory speech assignment
- experimented with two (or more) block types to tell us some more about you
You’ll find the Publish button at the upper right-hand corner of your screen in blue. If you are editing a pre-existing post it will say “Update” instead. Next to it you will see that you can ‘preview’ what the page will look like on a mobile or tablet as well.
When you hit publish, you will be asked to double-check the post settings. Please leave this as public. Your speeches are already behind a password-protected portion of the site. You can view your post immediately or access it from the Submissions page once it is ready. Go ahead and check out the Submissions and see if anyone else has one up that you can watch and comment on!
Video Walkthrough
Two important notes:
Accessibility: Whenever possible throughout the site I have tried to give multiple options for accessing materials. I encourage you to also be aware of some of the things that you can do with your contributions such as: adding captions to your videos, putting in alternative text for any images, and more.
Copyright: Rules on copyright for different kinds of materials are complex. There are some things that are permissible in the classroom that are not for the general public. I don’t expect you to know all the rules, but I encourage you to be aware that it is always important to give credit where credit is due. This is part of why citation is a Big Deal. Please be sure to include citations with materials that you post (you’ll see examples throughout the site.) If you are posting a video performance, make sure to give us the citation for the book if needed.
The best way to learn how to use the Commons and develop WordPress skills is to try things out. So go for it!
Assignment
Create an introductory post now.
Be sure to choose “introductory post” as the category. Use at least three different block types. If you want to try out recording and posting a video – go for it! Your first video assignment will be due at the end of the next module.
Try including different kinds of media! Tell us anything you’d like to share! If you aren’t sure what to include, you might tell us a bit about a favorite activity from childhood, a positive or a negative reading memory, a favorite school assignment, etc
Once you’ve created your introductory post, you’re ready to proceed to the main content of this first module.
If you aren’t set up with your Commons account, you can come back to making your introductory post and go on. You do not need to be logged in or able to make posts to comment on the following materials.
