19 - Classmate Blog Critique

How Creativity Flourishes: A Classmate Blog Critique 

This semester, we have seen creativity shine. Through different aesthetics, templates, and ideas, each of us has brought something new and exciting to the class. And while each of our blogs has been absolutely amazing, two in particular have stuck out to me because of how they present their ideas and information to their viewers: Madisyn and Gracie. 

Madisyn

Madisyn's blog page was an eye-catcher from the start. The first thing you are greeted by are stunning black and white visuals that mimic a physical newspaper, with a professional template all throughout. Her site is incredibly easy on the eyes, and is aesthetically and structurally appealing. 

[Picture above: Madisyn's banner, picture below: her blog pictures; pictures above lead to source]

When clicking on one of her blog posts, you can see the effort and thought she puts in to each work. Her writing style is clean, and following along through her narrative is easy as she supplies headers to each main topic she is discussing. 

[An image taken from her Listening Posts blog of her headers; picture above leads to source]

Madisyn always starts her blogs off with a punchy, attention-grabbing line that helps set the scene for what she plans to discuss. When she does include visuals, they are always pictures or videos that help clarify or highlight the main topic of her blogs. 

[On the left, a picture of her Hometown Feature News blog; on the right, a picture of her Artificial Intelligence blog; pictures above lead to sources]

One of Madisyn's best projects was her Numeracy post. She did a wonderful job including descriptions (with hyperlinks), and different visuals, such as a video and picture. But my favorite thing about this blog was the care to which she explained numeracy––going from what it means, to how we can apply it, to why it matters. 

Madisyn's storytelling is incredibly aesthetic and visually appealing, and I know she will continue to improve! She has an eye for striking images, and knows how to draw her readers in with her blog template. I look forward to her future work!

Gracie

Gracie's blog page opens with a beautiful color palate: a sky blue theme that comprises her header, interactivity, and blog pictures. This aesthetic is incredibly pleasing on the eye, and I appreciate the detail that went into making each aspect of her blog follow the same color scheme.

 

[Picture above Gracie's banner, picture below: Gracie's blog pictures; pictures above lead to source]

With each blog post, you can see her personality clearly. The ones that spoke out to me particularly were the Civics post––where she brings readers into her narrative by talking about her experience in class and then why civics is important––and her Listening Posts project––where she acknowledges that she didn't know what a listening post was and then uses that as a transition into talking about what it means. These blogs are an insight into her mind, a great use of personal experience setting up the narrative.

In each blog, Gracie provides interactivity that leads to additional sources or videos that dive further into what she is presenting in her project. Take, for example, her Numeracy post, where she includes a hyperlink to the Digital Commons at University of South Florida and provides a video for us to watch.

[A picture of her Numeracy blog; picture above leads to source]

Gracie's blogs are always something I look forward to. Her excitement when she presents in class reflects the content within her posts, and I'm so glad she let her personality shine through in both her writing and presenting. I enjoyed viewing her projects and look forward to what she posts next!

Overall, the work this semester has been full of creative differences and personality. These two blogs differ in their aesthetics, approaches to portraying information to their readers, and what interactivity they provide, but are so unique to their authors. As we continue further in our careers, I know we will continue to grow confident in our abilities.