Robin Lang
SLM 521
March 30, 2005
TEACHER MADE WEB SITES


Mrs. Serafini's Second Grade Homepage http://jsasd.schoolwires.com/54081251022132743/site/default.asp

This is a teacher created web site for a second grade class in Pennsylvania.  It covers all subject areas and is meant to be a useful tool for the students in the class and their parents.

Commendations
1.   The web site is visually pleasing because it has a variety of colors, fonts, and graphics.  The graphics are very child friendly.
2.   The web site is very thorough, by providing information about the class, the curriculum, and general school information for parents and students.  It includes helpful parental tips and information and links for activities for students.
3.   The teacher included examples of student work, which helps the children feel proud of their accomplishments to see their writing on the web.  The teacher also included a weekly newsletter, which keeps parents and students informed.  The newsletter is written at a level and design that the children should also be able to read.

Recommendations
1.   The information in the sub-topics in the link for "Reading" is written in a very small font, with a lot of information included.  It can be overwhelming to read and I'm not sure that many parents would take the time to read all of it.  Perhaps the teacher could use a larger font, and put some of the information in a different format to vary it a little.
2.   Towards the bottom of the main page, there appears to be a thick black line with the trademark of the web site company.  This black line kept superseding the chart of links the teacher had created.  Perhaps this could be adjusted, so the links are easier to read.  The black line was also present on the page for each link, sometimes making the information difficult to read.
3.   There was a children's link for internet safety tips, but I didn't notice it until I had viewed the site for awhile and clicked on most of the links.  Perhaps this link should be more prominently displayed on the mainpage, since it is important for children to learn about internet safety and there were links to many other web sites for them.



Mrs. Gray's Second Grade Class  http://www.genevaschools.org/austinbg/class/gray/

This is a teacher created web site for a second grade class in Ohio.  It covers some second grade subject areas and is meant to be a useful tool for the students and their parents.

Commendations
1.   The web site is visually pleasing.  It was colorful, with plenty of graphics that moved around.  The background on each page was eye-catching, usually with Peanuts images or other colorful, moving images.
2.   There were a lot of links for information about what the children are learning, such as sight words and spelling lists.  There was also a lot of links to general school information, such as the bus schedules, school calendar, and state standards.
3.   There were links showing student work and internet projects they had completed.  Children like to see their work displayed.  There were also links to games for students, that were tied to what they were learning.

Recommendations
1.   Make the links at the bottom, higher up on the mainpage and make the text size larger.  The teacher had created two charts of links, but one smaller and further down on the mainpage.  It should be more prominently displayed, since it contained more of the links for general school information, that parents may need.
2.   There were links for spelling words, sight words, and homework for the students, but there were no links for what they are learning in math.  Even if this teacher does not teach the students math, she could include the math curriculum, weekly math concepts, or links to math games.  This way, the parents and children would only have to go to one web site in their school to view things about their math curriculum.
3.   There could be more information about academic expectations for the students.  For example, the teacher could have included a copy of the report card, explanation of the grading system, and a type of "what your child should be doing" list for the different subjects.  There could also be tips for parents with areas like homework and reading aloud to their children.