Group items tagged

Content Summary: The content for this site was decent and the user would be able to determine the basic content of the site right away. The sponsor and the latest revision date are posted on the bottom of the page. All of the links to other sites were currently working properly and were useful extra information that was helpful for the topic. The purpose of the site was clear right when you first looked at it that it has to do with the solar system. There is no grammar or spelling errors throughout all the information on the site. The content appears to be complete and organized. Design Summary: The site is full of information that was organized and easy to navigate around within the site. The home page had a lot of moving objects in the pictures and was a lot to take in when you first get to the site. The moving displays are very useful for the site because it helped show how the planets and other things in space move. The site and the links on the page downloaded efficiently. They had great graphics that fit the idea of the page and topic. There are available working sites for further information on each page if someone wanted to further their knowledge. Overview: This site that provides information about astronomy. The site contained great visual aids for the kids and was entertaining. It also is designed for the audience to be young students. The site was very well designed, easy to use, and contained useful information. The site had the basic important information about astronomy. It also presents its information in a way students can understand.

e-learningcentre.co.uk is a site focused around the advancement of technology in learning. Content: This site is extremely advanced and is not a good recommendation for teachers of young learners, however, it is great for upper level teachers and scholars. It allows viewers to search through numerous organizations and articles from many different countries that are working to enhance both technology and learning. Layout: The site is less easily navigated than others. At first glance their mission is unclear, however, once explored, it becomes a descent resource for any and all who are curious. There are no advertisements, and other than the graphics at the top of the page, there is little color or decor to be spoken of. Attribution: This site is good for college level academia. I would rarely recommend this site, for I feel as though it would be only beneficial to a select few. However, I feel it would be pertinent for anyone who is interested in the advancement of higher education with technology to look this site over.

Sara Scribner 1/22/10 Overview: This website is intended for students and teachers in Elementary Education. It includes interactive games ranging in difficulty from grades kindergarten through 5th. Although some games are less educational than others, this site offers some helpful, fun tools in teaching most subjects. Overall, this website is very credible and well suited for Elementary Education. Content: At first glance, the audience and basic content for this site are easily determined. Located at the bottom of the homepage are links to find information about the author, the site sponsor, contact information, and a note to parents and teachers with more information about the site. A copyright date was available, but a revision date was not provided. However, the site seems to be current. As I navigated through this website, all links were working. ABCya! is well organized, easy to understand when learning a new game, and provides accurate (content-wise and spelling/grammar-wise) information. Although this site offers games for all subjects, it seems primarily focused on student math skills, for majority of its games are math related. Also, it is clear this site is commercial because of the many ads that litter the pages. Despite the multitude of ads, I believe the content is accurate and useful in the classroom. Design: This quickly downloaded website is visually appealing to me and to young children. Although the rainbow of colors makes the page seem busy, it is very organized and the content is easy to locate and use. Links to other websites are not given, but there is so much information provided one could most likely find what he is looking for. Fun sounds accompany most games one plays adding excitement. For Kindergarteners, all games have sounds and the instructions are read aloud. I would however caution students using this site unsupervised because of the many advertisements.

Overview: This site was created by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), and is intended for teacher, professionals or parents to find out more about early childhood education. The website discusses the Association's beliefs in early childhood education, but also why it is important, how it can be well executed, and what parents can do at home to help their children. There are also numerous outside resources listed on the website to other sites, books and journals relevant to early childhood education. Content: The purpose of the site is immediately identifiable, and the information about the association and the creation of the website can be easily and clearly found. The sources of information are highly reliable, and all the outside links are highly relevant. The information is kept up to date and the site is very professionally kept. The site is easy to navigate, and all information can be easily found. Design: The design of the site clearly represents the association's ideals and purpose. It is very professional, yet also creatively displayed. The information is readily available and catches your eye. Each graphic and link is relevant to the overall site. The site is essentially free of advertisements, making it appear even more professional and clean. For this website, the design plays a large part in the successful presentation of their information.

Alexis Lunberg: February 1, 2011 The purpose of this website is to provide games and activities for young children in math, science, and literacy. The site also provides a link for homework help. Each section of the website is supposed to provide interactive teaching games and activities for the subject provided. The intended audience looks like it would be around kindergarten through third grade. The design is really simple and not very eye catching and there isn't very much content on the homepage. Since there isn't very much content it is hard to know what is actually on the site. Content There are a lot of things to critique on the content of this website. First of all it is very hard to identify what age group the site is intended for, and there is very little information about the person/people who made the website. Also the viewer has no idea when the site was made and whether the site has been updated. Some of the links to the other sections of the website are not working and the site doesn't really meet the purposes that the teacher would think it would. The games are of low quality and outdated. Overall the site doesn't have very good content. Design The design of the website can overall be confusing if you are trying to get back to where you started. The homepage isn't very attractive and the graphics can be kind of confusing. For instance the math section has a graphic of numbers above the text, so you would assume that the games in that section would be very basic. There are some basic games in this section but there are some that are so challenging that they seem like they don't belong. Several of the links are outdated or broken and there isn't a consistent format used throughout the website. Also the links on the website aren't very useful. Overall the design needs a lot of help.

Caroline Wittman (Virginia) January 31, 2011 Overview Ology is a fun website that allows children to collect virtual trading cards and use them to make online projects as they learn about different science topics. The list of topics is varied, including anthropology, archeology, astronomy, biodiversity, the brain, climate change, earth science, genetics, marine biology, paleontology, water, and zoology. Each area presents a plethora of interactive applications for children to explore: games, animations, quizzes, and suggestions and guidance for completing simple offline science investigations and experiments. There are also book lists and other helpful internet sources that can be consulted for further information. Content Ology is sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History. Accordingly, information was accurate and up-to-date. It was also well organized and communicated on a level that elementary school age children can understand and relate to. Information is also in line with what is covered in the typical elementary school science curriculum. Although specific authors of articles are not usually listed, it is easy to find contact information for the sponsoring organization. Links to other internet resources were relevant and informative. Overall, the content of the site serves to ignite children's curiosity about the natural world. Design The Ology homepage, as well as its interactive applications, downloaded quickly. The overall design is appealing to elementary school children, incorporating lots bright colors and bold shapes. Navigation is simple, even for young children. The major areas of the site are located in an obvious place on the homepage. Information is easy to locate within each of these areas. Directions for games and other interactive content are very straightforward and explained clearly. Close inspection reveals that each detail of the site's design works toward enhancing children's learning.

Becky Stewart 1/24/11 Good Site Overview: The site http://www.school.com/ is designed for older students and parents with young students in school. This site is used to buy school supplies for students who are attending school. This is a good site for supplies because it has so many different options so people can get exactly what they need from it, and they don't have to worry about leaving to get the supplies. The main part of the site seems pretty complicated with a lot of information, but the side bar on the site has a lot with easy to follow links. Content: First looking at the site it looks very complicated and hard to follow. Fortunately, on the side of the site there is an easy to follow list of links that can make things more organized. There is no specific author recognized, but they do talk about how everything is provided by office depot. Also, there is a copyright date of 2010 which means that the information in recent, and people won't have to worry about the site saying they have something when they really don't. There is no address listed on the main page so the website would have to be searched to find one. A customer service number is listed so easy contact is still possible. The content is advertised very well, and users will easily be able to find what they need. Unfortunately, there is a lot of different content on the page so people may have to go through some unwanted stuff to get to the information they really need. There are no grammer mistakes on the page, and it seems like there is a good amount of further information for people. Design: The website actually loaded at a good time considering how many animations and pictures were on the page. There was no sitting around and waiting. The home page is very attractive and shows off the material that the website is advertising. It is a very good way to show the information, and appeal to peoples senses. The site is very easy to navigate. The information is clearly stated and

Amanda Larsen 1/23/11 Overview: This is a website that provides free streaming for current television shows as well as a selection of older series and movies. There are few children shows but content is more directed to young adult and adult audiences.  Content:  This site has appropriate information about sponsors and authors which are provided on every show page. The content is current and constantly being updated. A good variety of shows are available for entertainment. Design: The homepage is well organized with little clutter and a clear description of how to navigate throughout the site. Videos are fairly quick to stream. New and popular shows are creatively displayed on the home page for and attractive and user friendly purpose.

Becky Stewart 1/24/11 Average Site Overview: The site http://www.greatschools.org/ is a site designed for parents would be my hypothesis. This site is comparing different schools, and seeing which ones are the best. That is why this site would be good for parents. The parents would be able to compare schools and see which ones they would be okay with their children attending. Young children wouldn't be able to navigate this for themselves, because the site is pretty complicated so they wouldn't be able to follow it like its supposed to be used. Content: At first glance the site is very complicated. There are a lot of links that have to be followed if the right information is to be found. It is easy to identify that this site is for adults who are able to follow the links and different information. There is no easy to get information about the author, however, there is a copyright date. The date says that the site was last updated in 2011 so this is a good recent website that will carry the most recent information. An address and contact are listed however which means that contact is possible, just with some effort. The content is pretty well organized for someone that is interested in following all of it. The only flaw in the content is that if the user is looking for specific information about something than it could be very hard to find because other results may pop up that are unwanted. Overall the website has good content that would just have to be sorted out a little by the user. Design: The homepage took a little time to download, but nothing really above normal. The homepage is attractive with a lot of colors and pictures. However, it seems like there is just too much going on at once. It makes it look very confusing and can turn people off of the site just because its so much to follow. The site is easy to navigate and follow the links. On the other hand, just because the links are easy to use doesn't mean the the exact results the user

Becky Stewart 1/24/11 Average site Overview: The site http://gseis.ucla.edu/ is a site for people interested in the areas listed in this site based on the college. There are no advertisements for anything that isn't related to the site. The purpose of this site is to inform adults about the graduate school, and the subjects that are involved in it. This site is for very old students or adults because this is a program that young kids wouldn't understand or be interested in them. The site provides a lot of links, and a lot of it is basic information which isn't really helpful if someone is looking in depth. Content: The site really isn't complicated to look at, but that is because there really isn't much on the site. The authors aren't clearly stated, however at the bottom of the page there is a copyright date and very good information such as an address. This site was last updated in 2010 so it is a very recent site, which is a good indication that the information is good and up to date. Since this site is more of an information and direction site, there is no indication of bias. There are no grammer mistakes or any indication that anything is wrong with the site. The website doesn't have a lot of extra information. Its is very basic, and that can be a good or bad thing. The sites URL helps to indicate that it is a good credible site where the information can be trusted. Design: The homepage for this site took some time to download because they have a big moving picture on the page and a lot of color and links. This is most likely the reason that the site took a little longer to load. The homepage is very simple and only has a basic information paragraph on it. Overall the site seems to be pretty organized and easy to follow. There is no overload of pictures or animations on the page to confuse people. Its is very easy to move around the site, the links do what

Erin Kirby January 23, 2011 Overview: The sight http://epa.gov/climatechange/kids/gw.html is a good sight for young children and older children. The purpose of the sight is to teach kids about global warming, allow them to play games, and tell them what they can do to help. On the website it allows you to pick a topic and learn a lot of things about it. The sight is simple to work because there are simple links and there is not a lot of distracting stuff going on. The sight could also be good for teachers, it could allow teachers to learn about this topic and find ways to teach it to their students. The sight seems simple to use and there are not a lot of things in the way. Content: This website is pretty simple and seems easy for most age groups. It is easy to see what the sight is about, it allows children to learn interesting facts. The site may be hard for very young children who cannot read because the sight does have a lot of words. There are not a lot of pictures so kids may become bored. The games are fun for children to play and they test the knowledge of what they have been reading. The author of the site, and words from the author were not available but it does say who the sponsor of the sight is. The content of the sight should all be educational and correct because the sight is a government website. The last time this sight was updated however was in 2006, so some stuff on the site may be old. The links on the site are helpful because they are picture and all of them work and don't take very long. The grammar and spelling is fine and there does not seem to be anything that is bias. Overall the sight seems simple and fun for children to learn. Design: The website comes up very quickly and the site run very quickly. The homepage is simple and the links are easy to follow and use. The graphics of the sight are clear and keep it more interesting for kids. Every game on the site seems like it has accurate information and all the information overall

Amanda Larsen 1/23/11 Overview: This is a website for cooks whether amateur or professional to find virtually any recipe. It could be used by children as young as middle school age up to the elderly. By creating a profile the user can collect recipes in their "recipe box" and also give reviews on other recipes that they have tried to help future users. Content: The content is immediately visible on the home page with images of tasty dishes. A search bar and tabs of different food subjects make for easy navigation and a quick search to just what the user is looking for. At times the site can be cluttered however, with different advertisements and links to many different sites. But, the links are relevant and useful for a cook. Design: The search bar and tabs prove to be most helpful in a quick and concise search. Because the users can create a profile, advise and reviews are helpful in picking recipes for the most successful cooking experience. The site is dynamic in that it provides information for healthy cooking, How-To cooking, holiday cooking, etc.

Erin Kirby January 23, 2011 Overview: The sight http://www.fema.gov/kids/ is a good sight for young children to participate in fun games and learn emergency information that is important to know. The age groups include any age. The purpose of the sight to teach what to do in emergency situations, and play fun games that connect to these emergencies. The site allows you to click different links that tell about a different things involving disasters and emergencies. The seems simple and entertaining to use for kids of all ages. It is helpful for them to know the information on the site as well. This is a good site for teachers to tell elementary students about so they have the information they need and can apply it to their lives. Content: This website not confusing and very simple to use no matter what you click on. There are no advertisements that become a problem and get in the way when you click on the links. The games are fun and very educational for the children. It would be helpful if a parent was with the child to help them out, but the children can also do it on there own. There are links at the bottom that explain things that a parent or teacher might want to know about the information on the site. One link at the bottom tells you all about FEMA and gives you facts and stats about them. The website is credible and has reliable information, most government sites are very educational and correct. The content of the sight is educational and fun. The links on the site are very helpful because they are simple to use and there is not a lot going on. Overall the sight seems like it could be a helpful way to learn about emergencies and how to handle them. It can also help kids get involved. I feel like it would be smart for an elementary teacher to show their students this website. Design: The websites speed is extremely fast and there are not a lot of things that become distracting or get in your way. The homepage is simple and even when you are off the ho

Brian Peterson9/6/11Overview K5learning.com is a website targeted at parents who want their children to do really well in math or reading at a young age. Many resources are available to learn about the website before becoming a member. In my opinion this is a very good website for parents who want to actively be involved with their children's learning.Content As a nonmember of the site only a few things are accessible. These things help tell you what the site has to offer and even allow you sample the lessons available on the website. This makes it very nice to see if it is in fact something you would like your child to learn from. Design The design of the website is very simple but has enough flashiness to bring you into it. With a simple way to navigate the pages most anyone can figure out how to get around it quite easily. This makes it very nice for parents and their kids to be able to utilize this website more effectively.

Overview: the Between the Lions website is a very good website for both students and teachers. It gives teachers ideas to make reading and learning more fun for young students. It also has games right on the site that students can enjoy and learn to read without really knowing they are learning. The games do take a little long to load though and I'm sure children would get very impatient with that Content: The content of this website seems to very reliable. There are stories kids can read themselves, there are video clips and games. They all seem to be helpful and very fun. If I found them helpful I'm sure the young learners would too. The website also offers tips to teachers and parents about how to help their children and students have fun while reading. It does not give a specific age group. Design: The layout of this website is very user friendly. It is very easy to navigate. Children using this site would have no problem at all figuring it out. It is very colorful and designed cleverly. On the home page when you scroll over the picture they talk to you. For example, if you scrolled over the words stories, the character would say "stories". I think the design is great I would use it in my classroom.

Murphy Muirhead9-8-2011 OVERVIEW: The Learning Planet website is a site that provides learning games for children of young ages. Learning Planet games are educational and the games are all safe and free. This website is designed specifically for children ages pre-k all the way through seventh grade. Although, it does have very helpful links for teachers to use as well which include games and activities to use in their classroom. The resources that are provided with this site include daily worksheets, sudoku's and many more to help further children's knowledge that they gain through this website.  CONTENT: The overall content of this site is very good and provides many educational games that are great for kids to play. The games are valuable to their learning and I would recommend this site to parents and other educators.  DESIGN: This website has a very well thought out design. Each graphic is used effectively and do make a good contribution to the site. Also, the index is very easy to follow and brings the viewer directly where they wish to go on the site. The overall layout is very eye-catching and appealing to viewers. 

Elise Verley September 9, 2011 http://artofsciencelearning.org/ Overview: The site is a resource for using art to help students understand science. Its intended audience is teachers and is developed by The Learning Worlds Institute. It is a great idea but they don't have any ideas available for how to combine science and art. There are several conferences listed to attend, this is their primary focus currently. This may be a young site and there will be more information available on the site soon. Content: They have articles of research available that proves that using hands-on artistic approaches to teach science attract and retain students in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. They have related websites and articles listed so there are more sources to find out more information on the topic. Design: It is a basic website, that is easy to navigate the information available on the site. There is not a search function but the information on the site is easy enough to find that it may not yet be necessary. There is an RSS feed that has their most recent postings as well as profiles on social networking sites. There is a forum for teachers to interact and share ideas.

Overview: Science for Kids is a website that covers a wide variety of subjects that relate to Earth Science; everything from weather and climate to things that deal with soil and water. This website gears towards agriculture research for kids as well and investigates topics about air, animals, minerals, and what is in the air that we breathe. Content: This website contains a lot of information regarding science that is applicable to anyone that is interested in Agriculture. On the homepage you are able to navigate to other links that allow you to travel to links that offer information regarding topics that are in the spotlight and also offers links to science projects and information for teachers to access. I also find it very cool that one of the websites main links offers you to cool Science careers. Design: I find this website to be very interesting and filled with information that children would love. The interactive home screen allows users to be part of its experience; there are sounds as well as animated images that capture your attention. I can see myself using this website in my classroom because it offers daily information that seems interesting to a young audience I definitely see myself as this being a great website for my future students to use in my classroom. The information is relevant and very well organized and the user interface was very easy to use; perfect for kids. Plus it was filled with information that anyone can learn.

This website discusses the role of play in early childhood education

Kristin Gaines September 11, 2011 Overview- Overall, this is a very up to date and useful website. The purpose of this site is to learn about early childhood and what the research is telling us. The intended audience for this site is parents, teachers, and theorists who are interested in young children and how they develop. Content- The content of this site is very up to date and the information providers are credible as well. At a fist glance, you can tell what the basic content is and that it will be useful. Design- The design of this website is pleasing to the eye, although it is not a busy web page. The site has a clear table of contents and is extremely easy to navigate. There are many links associated with this site and they are all working and useful to the content of the site.

Michael Gonzales September 14, 2011 Overview: The kid friendly website covers a wide range of topics from earthquakes, geology, rocks and minerals, and even fossil fuels. The information provided is supplied by government agencies that supply information that benefit many young scholars about information regarding science. Content: This website's homepage consists of a variety of links that offer a child to go and explore information regarding Earth Science. This site allows children to explore ideas of how things work like how earthquakes form as well information about NASA. This is a Government owned site that has material suitable for children as well as adults. The child base website is broken into two main groupings which has material that is suitable for each age group. The site is straight forward with its information and does not offer many things to sidetrack your learning. Design: The design of the website takes on a professional appeal, the layout and colors are eye catching and are simple and welcoming. The links that are provided allow the users to navigate through and find information with ease. The website provides information that is relevant to its topic and does not confuse or throw off the user. I can see this being beneficial in my classroom when I ask my students to seek a professional website that offers great information regarding science.