Caroline Wittman (Virginia) January 31, 2011 Overview Worksheets4teachers.com aims to provide educational resources for children in kindergarten through high school and their teachers. I focused on the sections of the site dedicated to elementary school science. It quickly became apparent that worksheets4teachers.com has a large number of links to other websites and ads. Unfortunately, the other websites rarely contained any useful information, and they were more often than not entirely unrelated to science. The website did appear to contain significantly better resources for other subject areas, such as math and reading. In addition, the science activities for the upper grades were of higher quality than the ones for elementary school. Content The activities available on the website itself seemed like they would be unchallenging and uninspiring for elementary school children. The word searches, coloring pages, and craft ideas are ill-suited to reinforcing important scientific knowledge or skills. In fact, they were so trite that it's hard to imagine them having a place in any decent science curriculum. Contact information was not readily available, but it was clear the website is updated frequently with new worksheets and lesson plans. Design The layout of this website is confusing, and the design is monotonous, bland, and unprofessional. Many of the links that ostensibly contain information about different science topics or lesson planning resources are really links to for-profit companies offering online degrees, tutoring, or shopping. A significant proportion of these links did not work, and the pop ups are very distracting. Information is difficult to locate, and the format of the site is somewhat inconsistent. The one positive characteristic of the site is that it loaded quickly!

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.