Group items tagged

Jennifer Durn January 24, 2010 Purdue Online Writing Lab - http://owl.english.purdue.edu/ OVERVIEW The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) is a site designed to provide online writing resources for writers of all ages; from middle school through college and into adulthood. This site provides a variety of writing resources ranging from assistance with APA and MLA formatting, to tips for avoiding plagiarism and resume assistance. Overall, I found the site to be particularly user friendly and have utilized it when completing assignments in past courses. CONTENT The purpose and function of the Purdue OWL site is readily identifiable when the home page is accessed. Sources and authors are listed clearly and the content of the website is current and up-to-date. Resources are also available which highlight recent updates to the site and provide navigational tips for accessing information quickly and easily. Information presented in each section is relevant and easy to select what is important for the particular writing project. DESIGN Using Mozilla Firefox, I did not have any issues with navigating the Purdue OWL site. Recent updates and upgrades to the website have improved the visual appeal. Multimedia resources are not available on the site but given the subject matter, this is not surprising. One area where this site could use additional work is the lack of links to other websites outside of Purdue University's English Department.

Stetson Fancher Reviewed Aug. 31, 2010 Purpose The purpose of the Purdue Online Writing Lab is to help give information and references towards writing documents for school related projects. It is there to educate Purdue students and others about all kinds of references and sources to help make the writing process easier. They have everything from avoiding plagiarism and APA formatting style guide to exercises that might help you with your writing. This site is a great site to use for students as young as junior high, up on through graduate school. It does a great job of making difficult information accessible. Content This site has a full arsenal of information that it has to offer writers with many different kinds of goals. It also does a great job of organizing the information so that it is easily accessible to those who need it. It also keeps the references us up to date as possible. It keeps the most current style guides and even frequently produces podcasts to those who subscribe. It does not always show all of its references on the home page, but as you dig into information, then it becomes more available. The content that this site provides is one that can be applicable for many different writers.

Adam Matson 9-14-2011 Website Evaluations: 1) http://owl.english.purdue.edu/ - Purdue Online Writing Lab Overview- This site is intended for the use by students (grades 7-12+) and teachers alike in regards to English writing styles, citations, etc. The site is developed by Purdue University and even allows students to turn written works in to be reviewed by university students and teachers to help correct and guide the writing process. It has a very complete overview of how to write well-rounded essays, letters, etc. and is easy to read and navigate. It covers areas such as MLA and APA formats along with how to cite sources both in-text and bibliographical forms. I would recommend it for anyone who has a question about a writing assignment. Content- The content of this site is extraordinarily helpful and easy to navigate. From the homepage you can easily discern that the main focus is education in English writing. All areas are labeled clearly and cover many sides of whatever subject you are on. It explains clearly every aspect, such as citing sources, and shows many examples, reviewing almost all instances the writer might run in to. Design- The design is fairly basic, as many educational sites are. It is not very interactive (meaning videos, sounds, games, etc.), but it very easy to navigate. Tabs and links are obvious and lead to such places as Contact Information. Links to other parts of the site are always colored differently and easy to discern. All links are easy to read and very specific, letting the user narrow down their intended search quickly and efficiently.

This site provides several examples of universally designed ebooks for students ages 10 and up. ebooks provide scaffolding techniques to understand passeges (editable by teachers), read content back to students, provide Spanish translations, and allow markup and note taking

Scott Chanthongthip on January 25, 2010 Overview: Although the website has seven books students can read from, it offers a helpful tool in learning to read while listening to the computerized voice. The computerized voice can be distracting to young readers though that cannot put aside the monotonous tone and lack of colorful personality a real teacher can provide. Manipulation of the tool bar for the story can help students highlight text, translates highlighted words from English to Spanish, and allows students to stop the reading to answer critical comprehension questions. The design of the website looks simple at first but I think if this a website to help students read it should be in simpler terms. Use of the computerized reading voice can read the whole page to students, so this can be helpful to navigate the pages. Content: Most of the content is laid out simply but it takes a while to get used to navigation of the different tools. Students that would use this site would probably have some background in reading already, as stated ages 10 and up by the UDL. It takes previous knowledge of reading ability to understand some of the more complex stories the site offers. Using the "Stop to Think" option asks listeners to pick multiple-choice answers that show the student comprehends the story they just heard. If readers miss the questions, clues to the right answer help the reader find the correct answer. As a teacher, I would use this site sparingly because I believe the computerized voice reading to students can bore them quickly. The website also takes away the ability for students to learn from their peers. The books used in this selection from the UDL provide just small glimpse at the plethora of reading material out there. The project team for the website consists of people with Education Doctorates , Master's of Education, and translators. As far as the content update, I could not find when its updates or when the site came into ex

Kara Mitchell 1 February 2011 This website is intended for a young audience. This is evident thru the colors, animations and links. The purpose of the site is to explore areas of science, math, spelling and history. Following each link is a list of options for what the student wants to study or look into. Further down the page is a list of games the student can choose from to apply the knowledge read prior. It is simple to navigate, however I feel there are too many options for students giving the students opportunities to get off task. Content and Design: Based on content there is a good deal of information for each section. It is essentially an online textbook with pictures on each page. The content is correct as is spelling and grammar. There is a copyright and year easily accessible at the end of each page as well, making documentation very simple. As for the design, the site has a clear title page and an index of options. The site loads efficiently, quickly and is easy to navigate, as it has the same format on each page. In my opinion there are too many ads directly on the content page. Out of four ads only one is about the subject the others have no relation, or a relation that should not be included in a child's website. Overview: Overall, this website could be more interactive and child friendly. It is a bit word intensive and contains ads that should not be made available to children. There is a good bit of information that can prove very useful and if guided, through a web quest could be led to find the right information and learn more about the subject in the process. I would like there to be more videos or maybe music from the time period to help history really come to life.

Overview: Funschool is a good website for elementary students. This website provides fun games for all students k-6. The games that funschool offers cover subjects: math, science, geography, history, sports, arts, and music. Design: Funschool has a very colorful home page that is very easy to navigate. It has lots of tabs where you can chose what grade level you are in and what subject you want to learn and get better at. Funschool has a lot of cartoons and cool art that is very appealing to the younger students. The site has lots of bright neon colors that catch the eye. Content: Funschool makes learning fun through games that the students can play and get better at different subjects. Funschool also has different quizzes that the students can take to see if they are improving in the subjects that they are working on. The website is sponsored by Disney so you can tell that the site has good information.

Gary Allen Jan 23, 2011. Overview: As the title suggests, this is a website designed to help kids learn about American history. The site is authored by a man with much experience in presenting history for kids and includes a link to his biography. Content: This site contains many easy to follow links, a glossary, interesting facts, a search box and even some educational games to help present the content. Also included are links to other sites of similar content and a weekly newsletter. There is no date for the last revision of the site, but there is a link to contact the author and ask questions.  Design: The site is fairly simple in design with the main navigation across the top, another menu of links down the left side, and ads on the right side. The lack of flashy elements helps the site load extremely fast however. Navigation is very straightforward and clearly labelled.

Overview: This website's purpose within in a classroom could be for research papers and projects. Each student could choose their own topic and then navigate the links easily to learn more information with concise bullet points, pictures, correlations to current events, and related games. This website included topics in several areas but primarily history, geography, economics, and government. Content: This website has a wide variety of upper elementary social studies information including even broader topics of history, geography, government and economics. The home page had a general toolbar that provided information about the site and the creator. On the left side was a huge bar that linked to many specific history topics such as current events, teaching resources, timelines, and maps. Once you have clicked on a topic from the side bar there are even more links to even narrower research areas. This would be a good site to use for students to create a research project about a topic that they are interested in. There was only one link found that was not up-to-date. Design: The design is not very appealing especially for young children it initially looks a bit bland. Once you have picked a side link and narrowed your topic there are visually appealing pictures and games to go along with the information being taught. The home page took a while to download and had an ad that was generated more towards adults pop-up. The site is easy to navigate following all working links. The website did not work well in Internet explorer but did work well in Google Chrome.

Brianna Gillespie 9/14/11 OVERVIEW: This website is to teach students about the many different subjects related to social studies. Students can use this website to answer almost any questions they could have about social studies. This website is mainly for older children because it has a lot of reading that may be a little difficult for younger children to comprehend. CONTENT: The content includes current events, games, economics, geography, presidents, states, and many more. Within each subject are a variety of links to choose from. Each link is focused on a main point of the subject. There is also a section on the main page titled "This Week in History" with some facts about a certain event that happened in the past. DESIGN: The design has some color, but is a little bland. However, each page has a piece of clipart on it, so it is not completely boring. Children would be able to navigate around this website fairly easily too.

An online text book for teachers

Mary Goetz 9/10/11 Overview: ESL Kids Lab is a great resource for teachers. The site provides lessons, handouts, flashcards and other teaching tools for ESL teachers. There are also links to games that ESL students can utilize to practice their English. The lessons are broken down into units and have worksheets, flashcards, and phonics that go along with each unit. The site also provides tips for teachers. Content: The content in ESL Kids Lab is relevant to teaching and learning English as a second language. The content is present in a clear manner and is well organized and easy to understand. There are many functioning external links that lead to other great resources for ESL. The internal links are also functioning and are easy to navigate the site with. There is not a revision date provided on the site but the content appears to be up to date and new information is added. The content of this site provides the information and resources necessary for ESL. Design: The design of ESL Kids Lab is attractive and colorful. The design is also functional and works well. It is easy to navigate the site and find the information needed. There are many internal and external links that are functional. The date of revision is not provided but the contact information for the site is provided. Overall the site is a fun and attractive side that efficiently provides the necessary information.

Whitney Lindt Purpose: The purpose of this website is to make it easy for teachers to find fun activities for their students to do but also make it easy to use in the school setting because it is enforcing what the teachers are teaching. Overview: I think that this site would be great for teachers to use in their classrooms for several reasons. One of them being that if they give the proper direction to their students they would actually be able to have the students use it in the classroom, this is important because they need to become computer savvy as they continue on in school. The other reason that this website is a good one to use would be because it covers more than one subject so teachers could use it for several of the subjects they are teaching instead of trying to find a new subject with each subject they teach. Content: The content of this site is really well organized and it is easy to look through and find what one is looking for. The nice thing about this site is that even though it is all learning material it is presented in games which is really nice especially for younger students. It has learning material on math, English, animals, printing, and typing. These are all essential as one moves up in school. One thing a really like about this website is that is has a how to print area and a typing area which most of the other websites don't seem to have and with the technological world that we live in today the younger the children start these activities the better. All of the links on this website work really well and open quickly which is also good to keep the children's attention. Design: I do not think that this website is appealing enough to the eye especially for young grade school students. Like there are some playful things in the background but I just don't think that there are enough colors to get the attention that the site is looking for. The other thing I like about this site is that it is split into different grade levels so that i

This website reviews the effects of play in early childhood education.

Kristin Gaines September 11, 2011 Overview- The purpose of this site is to inform its audience about play based learning in early childhood. The intended audience is both parents and teachers of young children. This site does not contain a list of available resources, but contains valuable information. In my opinion, this site is very useful if you want to learn about the teaching methods used in early childhood today. Content- Upon rating the content of this site, I found that it met the almost all the criteria for content. The site was only lacking in interactivity and links to other relevant sites. One problem I did find, was that the site was a bit biased, so that makes it not as relevant. Design- This site is not fancy in any way, nor does it catch your attention, but it contains the vital pieces that make up a working website. It is organized and clear, although there is not much content in the site. Either way, this site met most of the criteria for design and is a good and easy to use site.

Overview: This site is very fun and inviting for chiildren of all ages. It grabs your attention immediately with bright colors and pictures. It allows kids to learn new things and ideas from math to reading and writing with fun games and lessons. Content: The content for this site is very well organized. There are icons that are listed for all categories and it is easy to find what you are looking for. You can tell right away that this site is intended for the elementary school-aged child. The author is known on this site as well as the sponsor which is Pearson Learning. There is contact information and a place to ask questions as well. The website is updated yearly with 2011 being the most recent. The links for other pages on the site work correctly and takes you directly were you want to go. Design: The homepage is inviting for young children and has a very strong eye appeal. You can tell where you are immediately as the site is layed out very well with links to go to different sites. The information is organized and is understandable for kids.

Overview: This website came across as very decorative and bright. It was definitely eye appealing. There were multiple images supporting the content that the website was endorsing. First impressions for this website seemed like a good choice for young kids with a hands-on desire to learn. Content:First looks were good. The site was very appealing for its age ground of younger kids. I had trouble finding the author, but I found the sponsor. I couldn't find the last revision date but links to other sites were working . The information as far as I could see was accurate. The links were relevant to the information provided on the site. Design: Hoempage downloads efficiently. Sponsor is not clearly identified. There is a table of contents for this site. The multimedia is very present. The date of last revision is not metinoed though.

Overview: This website is helpful when learning about the social development in children of all ages. This does include newborns all the way to 6 years old. This website is able to get across the basics of what goes on. However, it is pretty vague; I would hope to have more detail. Content: The content is correct from what I have read already. It also tells you what you should expect from your child at these certain ages. Design:It is easy to follow and not an eye sore. It isn't confusing with a bunch of links.

An amusement park of math and more! Math lessons, math games, math practice, math fun! Coolmath4kids.com This website is targeted toward parents, teachers, and young kids interested in math and math games. The purpose of the website is to give lessons and games that will allow kids to easier understand math. The website seems easy to understand and gives simple explanations on math concepts. Content: The website is easily understood, and very clearly promotes math games and lessons to younger elementary age kids. The president, Karen, and writers of the website are clearly presented. The starting date is given, and the material seems to be up to date. The content is user-friendly and appropriate. Design: The website is very colorful, and appealing to the eye, especially for kids, who are most likely to use this site. The information is very useful and relevant to the younger kids, and easy to comprehend. There is enough info given to make it a useful website, and there are links to further info and to the creators.

CoolMAth.com- Review on 10/4/12 Diigo i.d= Jessle33 CoolMAth.com purpose is a site designed to make math more fun; referring to itself as an "amusement park" of games used to help make math more enjoyable. This site is designed for students of age 13 and up. The lowest level of math that it provides is pre-algebra so students younger than 8th grade may struggle a bit if using this site. There are various resources available for students who use this site: math lessons, math practice, math dictionaries, math games, all levels of math pre-algebra and up, puzzles, books, etc. There is also a tab that parents and teachers may visit that provides ways to help your kids with math homework, web education, and certain resources (books) that are available to them. My overall impression of this site is that it is easy for students to navigate no matter their age and bright colors are used. There are games that keep the students engaged and help to make the lessons educational, but beneficial. There are a lot of various activities for the students to use and that helps in many ways.

Kayla Hyde 10/20/2013 Overview: This website is made to make math cool and fun to students. It would be great for those students that don't think math can be fun or that rather play computer games then do math. It is a great way to promote learning in a new way. Content: This site is full of information and different links to different games based on different skills. There are puzzles and games that can be targeted for children ages three to five to eighth grades. Any student at any math level can find a game to help increase their learning of the subject. Design: The website can be a little overwhelming with so many links and so many colors. Because the site is set on a black background and multicolored text, it can be a little too much at times. Also there are many ads that can be a little much, but the content is still worth it.

This web site is a place to find a bunch of different tools for learning. The audience is for both teachers and students I would say, but since it is just tools I feel like teachers would find it more useful. Upon first look it is bright and appealing and it is very easy to navigate and links to the different tools are easily accessible. It is easy to tell what the web site's purpose is and it has received an award in 2011. The author's information is available and so is the information on how often it is updated and by whom. All of the links work properly, it is easily navigable, well organized, and easy to understand. It is very informational and there aren't any spelling or grammar errors that I have noticed. All parts of the homepage downloaded and it is a very bright design. The color scheme isn't ideal, but it is clear to see where you are and what the site is. The content of the site is easy to locate and navigate and all of the links are functioning. The provider of the site is noted along with their information as well as copyright date. The graphics are helpful and used appropriately and the information is organized and explained efficiently making it a good site to use for teaching tools. There is a way to contact the site listed.

This web site is a place to find a bunch of different tools for learning. The audience is for both teachers and students I would say, but since it is just tools I feel like teachers would find it more useful. Upon first look it is bright and appealing and it is very easy to navigate and links to the different tools are easily accessible. It is easy to tell what the web site's purpose is and it has received an award in 2011. The author's information is available and so is the information on how often it is updated and by whom. All of the links work properly, it is easily navigable, well organized, and easy to understand. It is very informational and there aren't any spelling or grammar errors that I have noticed. All parts of the homepage downloaded and it is a very bright design. The color scheme isn't ideal, but it is clear to see where you are and what the site is. The content of the site is easy to locate and navigate and all of the links are functioning. The provider of the site is noted along with their information as well as copyright date. The graphics are helpful and used appropriately and the information is organized and explained efficiently making it a good site to use for teaching tools. There is a way to contact the site listed.