What Widgets and Plugins did you choose?

On my sidebar, I use the image, custom HTML, video, recent posts, and tag cloud widgets; also, I use the custom CSS, “embed any document”, image widget, jetpack, and google fonts plugins. AS you can see, I’m a bit obsessed. Most if not all the additions I have added onto my blog were for enhancing its design. I really enjoyed customizing it to my liking, and I was quite surprised that I could get it to where it is now with seemingly simple tools.

What are there strengths?

I religiously advertise my social media in order to share my artwork, so using the multiple media widgets could allow me to do so with ease. When I downloaded the google fonts plugin, I figured out I could actually change the default fonts that came with the theme. I also learned a new skill! I learned how to program the fonts into the site. I even downloaded a plugin that adds even more customization tools as well as make adding images easier. Combining all these tools together, they can drastically change the look of a theme, and if someone was really passionate about editing it to their desire, these widgets and plugins will complete the task.

What are there weaknesses?

As much as I love customizing my blog, I am worried if the aesthetic might affect the functionality. Although I haven’t experienced anything glitchy yet, I am worried that this amount of changes to the theme might cause it to have malfunctions.

Can these programs be used in a classroom setting to enhance student learning? Would you use it and/or recommend it?

For the sake of just customizing a blog, I think they work very efficiently and techniques using these tools could teach you new skills (for example simple coding, layout, design, etc.) As well, the tag cloud and recent posts widget could ameliorate the navigation of the blog for teachers and students alike, and since Riverside uses the Edublogs quite frequently, enhancing skills for Edublog would be incredibly beneficial.