WordPress Portfolio Site: Let's Make It! With Free Hosting [FLEX]

Although this is a FLEX class, which means you move through the video tutorials at your own pace, it is scheduled on specific dates and at specific times, so that I am online and available to quickly answer questions and/or do one-on-one screen-shares if you have questions or need help.

However, if you believe you will not need extra attention, you can take this class whenever you like!

A HOSTING ACCOUNT WILL BE PROVIDED TO YOU FREE! You will also use a free subdomain to build your online portfolio, and the content (text, images, illustrations, videos, etc.) for the site will also be provided to you.

There will be .1.5 hours (1 hour and 30 minutes) of video tutorials each day for three (3) days consecutively for one (1) week.

During Session 1, you will create your WordPress site from the ground up. This includes creating your hosting account, setting up an email account, setting up a database, uploading the WordPress core files and installing your WordPress site. Once your WordPress site is ready to go, you will then learn how to set up your WordPress site security to keep spammers and hackers from compromising your new site.

During Session 2, we will first touch on the differences between WordPress.com and a self-hosted WordPress site using Starry Knight's All Them Apples site as our example, and then you will create a second self-hosted WordPress site called "Cool Captures" for a fictitious photographer named Cadence Creedmore. If you intend to continue on to Part 2 of the 4-Part WordPress Boot Camp, your homework will be to set up your third self-hosted WordPress site.

TOPICS - Week 1p1

- Creating a blog on WordPress.com
- Get to Know the WordPress Dashboard [including its general Settings]
- Create Pages & Posts using WordPress's Gutenberg on WordPress.com
- Learn about categories, tags
- Learn about Media [images, videos and audio]
- Learn about Widgets & Menus
- Learn about Forms
- Learn about Comments & Social Sharing
- Learn about simple search engine optimization (SEO) techniques

Homework (with helper videos): migrating from WordPress.com to a self-hosted WordPress site [including learning about hosting, domains, FTP and securing your self-hosted WordPress site]

TOPICS - Week 2p1

- Creating your first self-hosted WordPress site
- Incorporate most of what was learned about WordPress.com that directly transfers to a self-hosted WordPress site
- Blog Layout vs. Website Layout
- Learn more about Themes [including child themes]
- Learn more about Media [including editing images in WordPress, galleries and documents]
- Learn about Plugins
- Create content using WPBakery Page Builder
- Learn about the many different modules available in the WPBakery Page Builder
- Learn more about SEO
- WordPress Maintenance [including how to optimize and how to back up your site]

Homework* (with helper videos): set up a new self-hosted WordPress site for use in Week 1p2.

* If you are not continuing on to Part 2 of the WordPress Boot Camp, then you are not required to complete the homework. Regardless of whether you intend to enroll in Part 2 of the 4-Part WordPress Boot Camp, the helper videos for the Week 1p2 homework will be provided to every participant of Part 1.