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government library, primary sources

Jaymes Talkington January 23, 2010 http://www.loc.gov/index.html Content This site is full of collections of books, newspapers, videos, and other documents on thousands of historical events and people that are kept in the Library of Congress. There are resources for kids, librarians, publishers, researchers, teachers, and visitors. All of the informational documents found on the site come with citations, and since the information is in the Library of Congress it is most likely creditable. There is also a link that allows you to ask some of the librarians specific question. Design The front page of the web site is pretty easy to use considering there are many specific areas to click on depending what your use of the site will be. Everything is clearly identified on the front page. It didn't take unusually long to load either, and all the other links I tried came up pretty fast as well. The "search" bar at the top of the front page makes it easy to find exactly what you are looking for. It may take some time to download copies of texts, but the videos don't take long at all. There is no advertising on any of the videos I observed so it gets right to the chosen subject. Overview This site's purpose is to make the Library of Congress's information available to anyone without leaving their home. Their audience can include kids, librarians, publishers, researchers, teachers, and visitors. The resources on this site include digital copies of books and journals, and also educational videos. Overall the cite seems like an accurate and easily accessible source of historical information.

This webstie allows students to research primary sources.

Posted by Kate Guerrieri 9/18/2009 Title of web page: Creative Writing Teacher Resources (Grades K-12) Content: This is a general web page for teachers. It just offers link to sources about teaching creative writing. It is a good resource for research. It offers links to sources for all different grade levels. Design: This is a just a web page that has a list of links a teacher could use. It is easy to navigate. There are some advertisements but not too many. Attribution: This website is credible. It is copy righted and the information for citation can be found at the bottom of the page. The information is open to everyone.

Content This site is very informational, and helpful when searching for information on the cattle disease Brucellosis. The authors of this site are easily found, and show that these are credible authors. The information reaches its attended audience well, and the site has very reliable information. The site seems up to date, and has all the needed elements to get a brief overview of the disease. The content of the site is free of bias. Design The design of this site is more plain, but still has everything needed to make a nice internet source. The site has many hyperlinks to other diseases which makes it helpful to find lots of information in one place. All links are working properly, and add to the content of the site. This site is well worth visiting if you are interested in cattle diseases such as brucellosis. Attribution The site has its multiple authors listed at the bottom, and also contains a Privacy Policy link. This site has many different places the information was obtained from, and it sites all of those sources at the bottom.

Content- At first glance this site is very easy to navigate, and the intended audience is very obvious. This site is intended to be used for someone working on their vinyl floor covering, but has overall good information that could be used in a welding class. The author is not clearly stated, but the company name is written across the top of the page which leads me to believe it is a credible source. This site has links to different types of welding, and all links work appropriately. This would be a good source for someone who is looking for different types of welds to use. The quality of this site is very impressive, and the site is very complete and easy to understand. With prior knowledge of the welding world, this would make a great educational site. Design- The site is very well designed for the intended audience, and has a good design. There are no problematic errors that show up, or any obnoxious ads that make it hard to stay focused on the overall content. There is a support column with very well organized hyperlinks that flow well with the design of the page. Overall the page is very well put together, the only factor that might be a problem is that there is no author that is clearly sited. Attribution- This site does not clearly state the author, though it is a corporate site so I think that with a little digging you could find the right way to site the article. This article would be more helpful for a resource, rather than a research project.

Overview: The purpose of this website is to give teachers tools to help engage student learning about U.S. history. The audience of this website is history teachers all the way from elementary school to high school. The available resources of this website are teaching materials for teachers, content about numerous historical topics, and a section about the best practices for teaching history. I like this website because not only does it offer history content to teach, it gives teachers tools to help engage students in the material. The quality of this material is high and is well organized and it is eye appealing to visitors. Content: At first look, visitors to the website are able to know where they are and it is made clear who the audience of the website is. The authors and sponsors of the website are made available and contact information is provided. The only negative point about this website is its information currency. There is no last revision date, only a copyright year. The quality of information is great. There are numerous links to sources about various historical events and there are links for each grade level as well. There are also quizzes on the website to help enhance student learning. Design: The speed of this website is high; the homepage downloads immediately. The main page is very appealing and the content is accessible from three different tabs on top of the page. The information regarding authors/sponsors is also accessible at the bottom of the page. The navigation of the site is good; however, there are no directions available to visitors for navigating the site. . The site is compatible with various browsers and the content of the website is well organized and is plentiful.

The sites purpose is to provide a second source to Beowulf for the students in 11th Grade English. The site is composed of Beowulf translated into English as well as an index that has links to each individual section of Beowulf. I find the site to be exactly what it needs to be, an accurate, line labeled, online source of Beowulf. It is laid out very simply without distractions. The layout maybe dull, but it should be used in order to look up specific lines, so a lack of visual appeal is fine.

Daniella Gonzales Late, September 29,2009 Content: The website, World Wars, World War II, is very clear as to what content it wants others to take away from it. The website fully explains and shows what happened during World War II, what happened before as well as the aftermath of it all. The website provides many articles, pictures, videos and external links so that the reader can learn all or almost all aspects of World War II. This website would be a great resource for students in a history class not only because of the vast amount of content but also because it is from a reliable source, BBC History. Design: This website I think would take some time before a student or any individual could easily navigate it. Although it is very clear and to the point of what it wants to convey, it is just overwhelming with the amount of information it provides. This website is good though because it clearly labels everything and I believe that once you had been working with the website for a few minutes you could quickly find any information on what you would want to learn. The Website provides a place that different battles can be found, just about the Nazis…etc. This website although very relevant to its topic could be organized better and become more user friendly. Attribution: Overall, this website could be used by any student trying to write a paper as well as any teacher trying to create a lesson plan on World War II. It provides many resources, links to other websites as well as articles, videos and pictures. This website could be organized better, and wouldn't be of a lot of help for anyone who isn't easily able to navigate the world wide web very well. However this website could also be a good start for a student who isn't sure what direction to go for a paper, it provides so much information on so many different aspects of the world war that a student could look into a lot of them until they find a topic that interests them.

Daniella Gonzales Late, September 29,2009 Content: The website, World Wars, World War II, is very clear as to what content it wants others to take away from it. The website fully explains and shows what happened during World War II, what happened before as well as the aftermath of it all. The website provides many articles, pictures, videos and external links so that the reader can learn all or almost all aspects of World War II. This website would be a great resource for students in a history class not only because of the vast amount of content but also because it is from a reliable source, BBC History. Design: This website I think would take some time before a student or any individual could easily navigate it. Although it is very clear and to the point of what it wants to convey, it is just overwhelming with the amount of information it provides. This website is good though because it clearly labels everything and I believe that once you had been working with the website for a few minutes you could quickly find any information on what you would want to learn. The Website provides a place that different battles can be found, just about the Nazis…etc. This website although very relevant to its topic could be organized better and become more user friendly. Attribution: Overall, this website could be used by any student trying to write a paper as well as any teacher trying to create a lesson plan on World War II. It provides many resources, links to other websites as well as articles, videos and pictures. This website could be organized better, and wouldn't be of a lot of help for anyone who isn't easily able to navigate the world wide web very well. However this website could also be a good start for a student who isn't sure what direction to go for a paper, it provides so much information on so many different aspects of the world war that a student could look into a lot of them until they find a topic that interests them.

Overview: Art Education is a website for links to jobs and lessons for high school art teachers. Links are functioning properly and the website is inviting for students as well as teachers.

Nathan Wonnacott9/9/11 Overview: The Incredible Art Department is a source where art teachers can submit and share lesson plans. These lessons apply for all grade levels and are neatly organized, equipped with tools to better one's teaching methods. I find this site extremely helpful, and have not seen anything negative. Content: It's distinguishable as an art site that teachers as well as students can use to learn about art in a non-traditional way. The author Ken Rohrer updates the site frequently, and has a long list of great reviews. The lessons are in-depth, filled with pictures, games, and rubrics to grade students' progress. Links are fully functional, and provide additional sources to their information Design: Speedy, attractive, and available in the public domain; this site offers an efficient way to address teachers' lack of time. Graphics and the title bar at the top of the home page adds to its fluidity. Constantly updated and sponsored by Princeton Online, this website seems to be a worthwhile source inside and outside the classroom.

Katie Hertel 1-23-2010 Overview: PBS educational games, videos and activities is an educational website for younger early childhood children. It teaches through many of the popular kids education television shows such as Barney, Author, Sesame Street, Dragon Tales, etc. There are available resources to parents and teachers to make sure this website is teaching their children in an effective way. Overall, my impression of this website was that it is an easy effective way to entertain your children through educational ways that are fun and entertaining. Content: As I explored on the website I found that it was easy to navigate. There are links formed as circles that have a picture of the educational animated television shows that kids today are familiar with. When clicking on these links it pulls up that shows official website which has clippings of the show, fun activities, and games related to that specific show that help younger children grow familiar with what they are learning outside of just the game. The information that is taught can be a reliable way to help teach children. Along with reliable material it has supported detail of the sites publication information. Design: This site is well designed and easy to understand how to access what kind of educational experience you want. It is very appealing, especially to a child's eye. Not very many irrelevant advertisement interruptions appear to be a problem. Although a lot of sources on this website prove to be a safe and reliable way of helping children learn, it is also obvious that it is for money purposes as well.

This website is an educational game site for kids. It is mainly based on PBS kids television series but it provides games in all different subject areas and has links for parents and teachers on "how to raise spectacular children". There are not a lot of outside links on this site to access other information, but the authors or the Public Broadcasting Systems seem like reliable authors and the content is great! I don't think a lack of outside sources takes away from the site at all. The content of this site is very educational and informational for students and would be easy to incorporate into lesson plans for an interactive way for students to test their knowledge. One thing that may be a set back is that the games are mainly based off of PBS kids TV series so it may be distracting to the students to have their favorite episodes one click away. The site is sponsered by PBS though so no extra ads or additional distractions are present! The site also has the terms of use and privacy conditions easily accessible and provide log-ins for students so that they can save their work and progress for later which is great! Each game also provides easy step by step instructions as well that can be read or heard so students can get the most out of their gaming experiences. The design of the website is great as well. The home page not only includes interactive links that move when you hold your mouse over the top of them, but it also has audio as well to bring students in. The games are very interactive and there are so many that every student should be able to find something that they enjoy doing! The colors are bright and the navigation is incredibly easy which makes students want to come back for more. Any questions that they may have are answered within the games which also helps subdue any frustrations that may arise. Overall, a great site for kids that would be easy to incorporate into lessons!

Overview- This site provides relevant and educational news stories for both kids and teachers based on the selected subject. The content is put together from many sources and reviewed by members of the site. Credibility for some news sources is pretty questionable at times. Though, they still always site all information for all news stories provided. They even have a part of the site dedicated to teachers, but could not get into it because it takes a membership. Content- A lot of information on a variety of subjects solely designed to inform kids. The only problem with it is some of the news sources have questionable credibility. Also, they do not fully specify whom the person is writing the article. It would be a great way to inform kids on current events, but it is just hard to tell whether the information is accurate. Design- The design is pretty great. It has an easy to use format that allows kids to look for articles they are interested in with ease. It is very eye catching and just has a fun design that keeps you interested. Many images to go along with each article provided.

Overview: Purdue OWL (online writing lab) serves as a gold mine of information for formal writing. This website is intended for students or anyone attempting to write a formal paper. It provides the newest and latest information on MLA and APA formatting information, along with a "how-to" guide for formatting your papers and citing your sources correctly. On top of that it also provides links for English as a Second Language learners, parents, and "how-to's" for cover letters and résumés. This website is extremely useful ad helpful for anyone looking for help writing a paper or teachers looking for a good resource to teach their students. I highly recommend Purdue OWL. Content: When you enter Purdue OWL you are immediately able to tell what the site is about. All the content is easily accessible and bookmarked on the home page. Although author information is not immediately available, you are able to see that it is created by a credible source, and you are able to contact the creators. Purdue keeps their information up to date and uses the latest MLA and APA handbooks to create their site. The purpose of the site is obviously informational and educational. It is well organized and the information is complete, easy to understand, and consistent with other similar sources. Design: Purdue OWL is visually appealing along with efficient. The home page is clearly labeled with an index and site sponsor obvious and visible. It is easy to move around, and if you feel lost there is a link for a "site map" in the upper right hand corner that can be used. The links on the page are highly relevant and help the users navigate to more specific cites. It is easily accessed on different browsers. There is a plethora of information readily available for the users so they do not need to visit other sites.  

Open Source Desktop Publishing much like PageMaker or InDesign

Jay Anderson Another website I used was the National Council of Teachers of English. The URL for this website is http://www.ncte.org/. The purpose of this website is a collaborative website for English teachers across the nation. This website can be used to find resources to help students with their English studies. There is not one specific author because it is a collaborative website, but there are several obvious areas where you can get in contact with the members. The website has deals with current issues and since it is nationally recognized, undoubtedly reliable. The website fulfills the purpose it is intended for because of how many resources it use that are very reliable. The design of this website is well planned. The website is very clearly laid out so that it is navigationally easy to use. The website is also very aesthetically pleasing as well. The website is overall a great source for an English teacher.

Another website I used was the National Council of Teachers of English. The URL for this website is http://www.ncte.org/. The purpose of this website is a collaborative website for English teachers across the nation. This website can be used to find resources to help students with their English studies. There is not one specific author because it is a collaborative website, but there are several obvious areas where you can get in contact with the members. The website has deals with current issues and since it is nationally recognized, undoubtedly reliable. The website fulfills the purpose it is intended for because of how many resources it use that are very reliable. The design of this website is well planned. The website is very clearly laid out so that it is navigationally easy to use. The website is also very aesthetically pleasing as well. The website is overall a great source for an English teacher.

Brienna Gregor 10/11/12 Overview: This site would work best for students from late elementary to high school levels (5-12). This website is intended to help students and other educators understand the underlying factors of predicting volcanic eruptions. Available resources provided include: Melting Rock, Dynamic Earth, Judging Hazards, Forecasting, Coping with Risk, and more. Initially I predicted that this website wasn't going to do well in the content standards because the design standards were a little bit lacking compared to other sites however, I have come to find that this website is a very handy tool and does well in both content and design standards. Content: This website is very good in that its information is always up to date, the information quality is great, and it provides more information. Some sites lack in giving the viewer options to leave the site and look at links that are provided. This website does lead viewers to learn out of their site in a constructive way while instilling learning on their site as well. Design: This website isn't the most appealing to the eye after following the introductory page. Despite this fact, it is fast, easy to navigate, and uses videos as a media source. It gets the job done in fulfilling its purpose by instilling the idea that natural disasters, such as volcanoes, can be predicted (not stopped) and then can lead to less of a disaster through preparation. Information is what is most important in educational websites and I believe this website is great due to that aspect.

Kerensa Aris 10/12/12 North Carolina and the Civil War The purpose of this site is Civil War education. The intended audience is students, teachers, parents, etc. It is appropriate and educational for any age level. Resources available on the site include links to external sites, pictures from the museum, and interactive media such as videos and virtual tours. My overall impression is that this is a very high quality site maintained by reliable sources and very well designed.  The website was very well designed and easy to use. All pages load quickly and are compatible with multiple browsers. The homepage is attractive and you can tell where you are immediately as well as the site sponsor and the index is readily available. Navigation is very easy, links work properly, and directions are provided for virtual tours. The site contains vast amounts of information that is easy to find and revised often. However material is not added often as the entire site is about the Civil War.  Based on content, the site is very useful for information needs. The content and intended audiences are quickly and easily determined. Authors of the material are clearly defined and information about the authors and sponsors as well as contact information are provided. The purpose of the site is clear, content is complete and well organized, and information is accurate and sufficient for user purposes. Interactivity is provided through various media. Information is reliable and educational. 

Ericka Chorniak October 9, 2012 Overview: This site is a guide for writing a lab report for students in a science setting. It provides the students with definitions and expectations of each section of the lab report. It could also be a very good resource for other science teachers looking for a guide for their students to follow while writing a report for their class. The provider of the site appears to be qualified, but it would be wise to check other sources' materials and other guides before settling with this one specifically. This site doesn't have a lot of interactivity for the students to remain engaged in the content, but for the purposes of a guideline for lab report writing, it is worth bookmarking for future references. Content: At first glance, the content of the site is easily determined, as well as the intended audience. The author of the site is clearly identified; in fact his name is in the link itself. The author did not provide any additional information, or give any contact information, but he does appear qualified because it appears to be a teacher. The latest revision date is present, which was October 29, 2010. This date is appropriate for the content of the site because it does not need to be updated frequently, and the links provided are current and work properly. The purpose of this site is very clear, it is a lab report guide (informational), and the content achieves this purpose effectively. The content of this site is complete, easy to understand, is appropriate to my needs/purposes, is free of bias, appears to be accurate, was proofread so that all grammar and spelling is correct, and is consistent with other sources materials. The site does not provide interactivity to increase its value. The links provided are also worthwhile, appropriate, and relevant to my needs and purposes as a student and pre-service teacher. Design: This website has a semi-attractive homepage that downloads efficiently. It is easy to tell where the user is

Elizabeth Schnell Overveiw: This website provides information about the American Revolution. You can navigate and click on the articles that are relevant to your class that day. This is user friendly to the teacher and the student. Context: The context of this website is reliable. They are sources out and provide information a good textbook would but in a different format that is more interesting to a student. Design: I don't like the way the navigation is setup on this website is. it makes it a little more complicated to find the information you need.

This website is a great FREE resource for teachers, administrators, parents and students looking for ways to incorporate technology into their classrooms. The site not only provides lesson plans for teachers but ways to help students succeed and excel for administrators and parents as well as homework help, step by step math help and games for students! There are a lot of outside links to sites that are all easy to access and navigate which is great! The content of the site is great and has been very well organized. Discovery Education does offer upgrades to gain more access to resources, but the free resources available are enough to last any educator for weeks! All of the lessons are organized by grade and then content area as well which makes it really easy to find exactly what you are looking for. There are also tabs for contact information, privacy details and terms and use which are great resources for teachers to familiarize themselves with. I think older students, probably middle school aged or older could utilize this website a lot easier than younger students because of navigation design, but the site is still great for students. The step-by-step math helper is an awesome tool for students that are having difficulty with math homework and so is the homework helper because it allows students to meet virtually and help each other with their homework with the help of educators and tutors. The design of the site is geared more towards teachers or educators, but it is still highly interactive and is easy to navigate. There are a lot of links to outside sources and they are all current and easy to operate. It is also easy to read and understand all of the lesson plans presented as well as understand the overall goals of the Discovery Communications company. The entire purpose of the site is to acheive excellence in learning and that is obvious by the design of the site. I wouldn't let students just get on the site and try to find their own way aro

Deneé Chintala October 7, 2012 Overview The purpose of judging101.com is for the instructor of a livestock judging team/class to provide their students with online classes of beef, lamb, pig and horses to learn how to judge livestock. The audience includes an agricultural education teacher or a livestock judging coach as well as their students. The site has a free example class for the instructor to see the basis of the site but further purchase is necessary for access to all of the different species with multiple classes under each. The design of it doesn't appeal in terms of color and flare, but I have used the site when I was a student and was really impressed with the consistent content of the site. Content All of the information on the site is incredibly accurate due to the authors of the site. Despite the fact that it is hard to locate the list of authors, once they are found it is clear that they are reliable sources. All of the reasons and placings are given by judging coaches from all across the nation at universities. The content is easily definable in terms of knowing that this is a large livestock judging website. The url itself explains the topic of the site. Once further into the site with the purchase of an account, the site is easily navigated and the content is consistent with a set of reasons, cuts and placings for each class. From the other links on the page, all information is consistent across the board and tie into each other, such as from the judging101 page to the animalscience101 page to the horse judging page; all of these links intertwine with each other on how to judge horses to the end of actually judging a class. Design This site doesn't have a great deal of allurement, but it is easily navigable. If I wanted to judge a class of shorthorn heifers, I would be able to click on the cow silhouette and find a shorthorn heifer class and easily judge the class then find the reasons, cuts and placings. Finding the authors, when the site wa