Teacher Made Websites

By: Katie Haley

Mrs. MacDonald’s Core Class

Description:

This is an 8^th grade core class website on Green Track that includes Language, Social Studies, and Literature. This is an on-line listing for students and parents on the classroom curriculum, assignments, and grades. I really think the listing of the curriculum is very useful for students as well as parents. The students can always see where they are going and what they should expect and parents can feel more a part of what is going on. Assignments are also listed on this site. I think that is very important because parents can keep track of what their kids should be doing and kids can have this available if they forget to write down an assignment. Parent letters are a great idea to post on the website. This makes them available to parents all the time. Many kids are disorganized and may lose or forget to give important letters to their parents. This portion of the website opens up the lines of communications between parents and teachers.

Recommendations:

I think this website would be much better if there was a place for chat rooms for parents. Sometimes kids need help with their assignments and their parents either can’t understand the assignment or don’t know how to do it. This way parents and the teacher can converse about these topics. Another way in which I think this site could be better is if the teacher puts some sample work on the site. The work could be from old students so that kids may understand the assignments better if they see an example. I also think that there should be a section for current students work. This could be an incentive for kids to work harder on their assignments. Each week the teacher will pick the best project and make it the work of the week. I think this would really motivate the students.

Commendation:

I really think the assignment page is done well. I like the way there is a hyperlink to the actual directions to the assignment. This way parents and students may read the directions directly. For students who may have copied down the instructions incorrectly this could be very helpful. Also, parents may feel more comfortable assisting their kids with their assignments if they fully understand what is expected. I think the curriculum guide was very well done. The parents can see what their kids do daily and when they ask the question, “What did you learn in school today?” the answer “nothing” will no longer be acceptable. I also think the grading section is very important for students and parents. Mrs. MacDonald clearly breaks down the grading process and explains the type of work she is expecting for a certain grade. This makes her expectations very clear to everyone.

Miss Versailles Class

Description:

This website is a third grade class. The subjects that Miss Versailles teaches are Reading, Writing, Language Arts, Social Studies, Spelling, and Math. This is super website for students, parents, teachers, and administrators. This site is very well developed and has many useful aspects. I really think the link to view students work is great. Parents can view and compare their children’s work. Also this will give kids the opportunity to take pride in their work. I think the homework help link is a great idea, this way parents can use this resource to help their kids with their homework. There is also a list of homework assignments so that parents can keep up with their kids school work and kids can look at assignments that are due. Another neat aspect is the newsletters. This link discusses the curriculum for the classroom and a schedule of what the kids will be doing each week.

Recommendation:

The Star Student is a great idea so that kids will be motivated to do great work but when I clicked on this link there was no student. I suppose this link is not yet finished but I would suggest that Miss Versailles keep up with this weekly so that kids are motivated to do good work. I would also suggest that Miss Versailles develop her homework assignments link more. Maybe put the specific assignment on line so that parents can view the exact work that needs to be completed. I noticed particularly in the Math help section there are no math activities included. I think that the awards section should be comprised of all of the past star students and their work. This way students can see their progress and show it to family and friends outside of school.

Commendations:

I think that the links to cool sites for teachers, parents and students is very helpful. Parents can really use this as a resource to help their kids and teachers can use the sites for great information about learning. Kids can use this for interesting sites that will promote learning. I also think that the Congratulations link is great because students who have gotten good grades can be recognized for their achievements and I think this is another motivational technique for kids who are getting good grades as well as those who are not. The classroom photos are a fantastic idea, especially the bulletin board pictures. This is a great resource for teachers who are in need of some creative ideas for bulletin boards.