Blurb

[|Blurb] Your Name:Alexis Sargent

Blurb.com is a website in which users can create their own books. Those books can be published online on their website or a hard copy for a nominal fee. The interface is a wysiwyg interface that is very user friendly and intuitive. Users simply need to drag and drop their photos onto the website in order to add pages to their respective books. For those with limited experience using the internet or who do not feel confident about their design skills Blurb will pose few if any problems.

In order to provide a unique user experience Blurb provides a series of choices for its users. Those with no professional design skills or those with superior skills will find the site equally as user friendly. For those with above average experience there is Adobe in Design Plug in. It allows them to go beyond pre-fab layouts to create their own. Users have complete control of layout and typography. With the use of images that have true photo quality.

For those with fewer skills Blurb.com makes it easy to create wonderful books with no programming or design skills. The user need only point and click in order to create a finished product. Layout design, Font type and size and a choice of where users may upload pictures from. After uploading pictures it is as simple as adding text to photos. There can be a learning curve learning how to organize the pictures and add text, but it is negligible. The site offers tutorials, and hints to help users along. There is also a searchable database of frequently asked questions for those who are stumped and are unable to figure out any issues.

Teachers can use Blurb to go along with the principles with UBD. For students that are delayed or with IEP can use Blurb.com in lieu of writing a traditional essay. For example, students general education students may need to write a memoir as part of a non fiction unit. Some students struggle with writing large amounts of information for a variety of reasons. However, the student may still be able to tell their story through pictures and a minimal amount of words. The end result would be the same, that they are able to express who they are it just wouldn't be a largely written finished product.

Teachers can of course do a lesson in the form of tutorials to teach students the basics of the program. In addition a modeled finished product would be advisable so students can see what a finished product looks like. Those who struggle will be able to express themselves creatively and feel as though the work is accessible.

Here is a link to the Blurb book I created. It's my memoir in pictures. http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/3066750