To read posts and comments:  The most recent post will be the first one you see. Scroll down to see earlier posts, and click on “previous posts” at the bottom of the page to read more. If you only see one post, the Rat is on vacation; but you can still post comments. At the bottom of each post is the word “comments” in a gray box. Click on this to read the comments that others have left.

To post a comment:  Scroll to the bottom of the comments section and type your comment in the white box labeled “reply”. Then type in the wavy, distorted letters in the ReCaptcha box. (This is to defeat spammers: the spam robots can’t read these letters, but humans can. If you goof, it will give you another set of letters so you can try again.)

The first time you comment, you will be prompted to “log in”—to type in an email address. At school, children can use their teacher’s email.  If they access the blog at home, they will need to use their parents’ email address (with permission!) These email addresses are not used by the blog; they are only for tracking purposes, also to defeat spammers. It’s basically like presenting an ID.

Make sure to tell the children not to use their last names. Children should post under their first name only, and can include the name of their school or town if they like.

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