Objective
Students will become familiar with what portals are, and how they are different from search engines and directories.
Objective
Students will explore and evaluate several portals designed for children.
Objective
Students will create a guide for parents and kids that will provide information on what kid safe portals are, how they can be found and used easily, along with a list of some recommended kid-safe portals.
Introduction
Hmm? What
exactly is a
portal? And what do you do with one? Well, that is
what you are going to find out
in this
assignment. There is SO MUCH information out there on the
Internet. Some of it
is good ... and some of it is not so good... ESPECIALLY for kids.
As parents and educators we need
to be aware of which sites are appropriate for
kids, and which ones are
not. It is so important to guide kids through the Internet to
ensure a positive and safe
learning environment... and Kid Safe Portals will help us do
that!
There are portals especially designed for kids and teens. But there are so many of them which vary in quality, reliability, and usefulness.
This activity is designed to help you
- understand what portals are
- get acquainted with some well known Kid Safe Portals
- find and recommend several to your students and their parents
To Begin, read the following sites
KID PORTALS: Safe Playgrounds in Cyberspace ~ This article will familiarize you with what kid portals are. It also gives you examples of 3 popular portals
http://www.computingwithkids.com/column/200084.asp
Kid-Friendly Search Engines, Directories and Portals ~ This article explains the differences between search engines, directories, and portals. It also provides some examples.
http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/special_initiatives/wa_resources/wa_shared/ backgrounders/kid_friendly_search_tools.cfm
Next, search for and explore many different Kid safe portals.
Discover....
- How they are organized
- What services they offer
- What ages do appeal to
- How
commercialized they are
Assignment
Create an
online brochure for
parents and children about Kid Safe Portals. Within the brochure,
you will include information about what Kid Safe Portals are, how they
can be easily found, and a list of at least
5 of your
favorites. You must provide an annotation
for each of your recommended
portals. Within that
annotation explain why you have recommended that portal. Be
creative with the brochure, and
make it easy to read and understand.
SUBMISSION
Post
your brochure as an html file to the McDaniel web server and
create a link to it on your web index page. Also send your
instructor an email containing a hot link and the
URL to that site.
Rubric:
| Components |
3 |
2 |
1 |
| Introduction | Clearly defines portals
Explains useful criteria Written in well crafted statements |
Weakly defines portals Only general criteria is given Little attention to style |
Absent, or very
short definition of portals Minimal or no criteria is given No attention to style |
| Annotations
and Citations |
Well crafted
descriptions of useful portals Exceptional information of why the portals are recommended Links work Well Appealing style |
Weak descriptions of portals Little information as to why the portals are recommended. Small errors in URLs ~one unworkable link Little attention to style |
Little or no descriptions of
the useful portals No explanation as to why the portals are recommended Two or more unworkable links No attention to style |
| Layout and Design of Brochure |
Easy to read Well organized Visually appealing to both kids and parents |
Readable Organization is unclear Some evidence of an attempt to make visually appealing |
Difficult to
read Poorly organized No evidence of an attempt to make visually appealing |
Other Resources
We all know that safety is a major issue when it comes to kids using the internet. The following sites offer more valuable information for both adults and kids.
Getnet Wise
http://www.getnetwise.org/
ProtectKids.com
http://www.protectkids.com/
ChatDanger.com
http://www.chatdanger.com/