Blogging in the Classroom

I am trying to come up with ways to integrate blogging into my classes. I teach Visual Arts and Appalachian Arts & Culture at the secondary level in a very rural area. My students have very limited access to museums, galleries, etc. For the most part, they do not enjoy writing, esp. with pencil and paper. Most of them do use My Space and/or Face Book on a regural basis and send/receive tons of email. I have been trying to think of having them set up a blog account and then give assignments from my own blog for them to respond to. Assignments my include critiqueing artworks, journaling about creativity & the role of the arts in culture, as well as posting digital photos of their work and writing about that too. I would love to have ideas/suggestions. My principal and media specialist have already given me the OK on this, I just need to figure out exactly how I want to go about doing it. I also need to think about the security of the kids in my classroom. I know the comments will need to be moderated and student names and personal photos will be taboo. Any Ideas?Suggestions?