Past+Class+Resources

Wordpress blog. (2012) Retrieved from: []

The first web resource I am posting for this assignment is wordpress blog site. This site is the host site for the web blogging tool that I use for my personal site: coldsnap.com. I can attest to the ease of use of the wordpress software. It makes blogging and web-hosting a breeze. If you can navigate a word processing software like Microsoft Word then you can use wordpress.

Brumley, M. (Feb. 2012) Top five websites for teachers to use in their classrooms. Retrieved from: []

Here is an article about the top five 2.0 webtools available to teachers. This list was put together by Mark Brumley of NBC’s Education Nation. I explored [|Vuvox] and it looks like a great resource for students who want to create media rich presentations. Other 2.0 webtools include[| Flipsnack] a sharing site for sharing student work, [|Linolt] which is an online bulletin board, [|Myna] an audio mixing tool, and [|Popplet] an online presentation tool.

John Gregor

Internet Saftey. (2011) Retrieved from [|http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/family/net_safety.html#a_Internet_Safety_Laws] This site is written for parents to give them safety tips on the following: [|Internet Safety Laws], [|Online Protection Tools], [|Getting Involved in Kids' Online Activities], [|Basic Rules], [|Chat Room Caution], and [|Warning Signs]. I appreciate that it includes an audio or Spanish translation of the information as well. I think this link could be included in a class webpage for parents to review regarding their child’s safety.

COPPA - Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. (2011). Retrieved from []. This site gives information on COPPA and is available to parents, students, educators, and other members of the learning community. I think this law is important for all to consider before publishing student names, work, or photos online.

Melissa Kliegle

ALTEC (2011). 4teachers.org - Teach with Technology. Retrieved from [|www.4teachers.org]

4teachers.org is a site that helps teachers integrate technology in the classroom. It offers several online tools and resources (QuizStar, RubiStar, Arcademic Skill Builders, and more). Their are tools for student use as well, including assistance for at-risk and special needs students. This seems like a great site for professional development opportunities and connections. I came across this site when researching ideas for creating a web resource page.

Zach Schara

Avatars. (Dec. 20110).Voki.com is a website where the user can create an avatar, add a voice, and post to any blog, one website or profile. The site also has learning resources available for beginners. The use of the site is free of charge, but the user must set up an account.. The site also offers users a "learning how to section." and lesson plan examples. One drawback to the site is when recording the avatar voice, the message can only be 60 seconds long. I found this site to be up-to-date and well-maintained. Retrieved from http//www.voki.com/learn.php

Valerie Bright (2) _ Baird, A. (2011) // Teaching with Thinking and Technology. // Retrieved from http://teaching-with-technology.wikispaces.com/Wikis+in+Education

This is a wiki with a plethora of links to resources and wikis. It serves as an example too of how much information can be added to a wiki and still keep it organized in a way that makes sense to visitors. There were a few links that led to sites that weren't there any more. A reminder that all of these wikis and web sites need to be kept up.

Submitted by Sofia (2)

// Best practices for designing websites for kids //. (2011, July). Retrieved from []

In the article Best Practices for Designing Websites for Kids, they discuss how kids’ web pages have changed drastically in the last few years. What used to be brash and busy, filled with tacky animations, too many graphics and extreme colors, has been replaced with sophisticated, novelty webpages that are friendly for both kids and their parents. It gives great suggestions on what to add and what to avoid while creating a website for kids.

Submitted by Amanda Olson VanderStelt

Blake-Plock, S. (2011, July 18). //Teachpaperless seeking social solutions to the mysteries of 21st century teaching and learning: 5 issues: education and the network//. Retrieved from [|__http://teachpaperless.blogspot.com__]/ TeachingPaperless is a collaborative blog where educators can contribute helpful information on the topic area of teaching paperless and the benefits and controversy that surround using and incorporating new technologies and literacies in the classroom in favor of tired, traditional teaching methods. This particular article //5 Issues: Education and the Network,// attempts to clarify five misconceptions of the integration of technology and network classrooms. Including: 1. network education will not improve test scores; 2. technology will not fix education; 2. smart kids don’t need networked learning, because they’ll pick it all up along the way; 4. wealthy schools will always be the best schools; and 5. inner-city schools have bigger issues than wither or not their students are using twitter. This article, or others posted on Teachingpaperless are informative and easy to read. I will use this resource for myself to look for easy and motivational ways to start creating a “networked classroom.” In addition this website seems to have accurate and up-to-date information that will be useful and appealing to many educators as we adjust are 21st century classrooms.

Carole. (2011, July 11). //Tips and Tricks: Reusing a Wiki.// Retrieved from [] I chose to share this article with all of you because it gives a really good Idea of how we can reuse Wiki pages after the class or lesson that you are using it for has ended. I have decided to use a wiki page in the course that I am teaching as a way to incorporate collaborative learning and then discussing the Wiki in class, instead of just class discussion alone. When my lesson ends, after reading this article, it is nice to know easy steps to reuse the wiki i already spent so much time creating. Tom Nooyen (1)

//The Chronicle of Higher Education.// Retrieved from [] /. (2012). According to the website, // The Chronicle // is the No. 1 source of news, information, and jobs for college and university faculty members and administrators. Based in Washington, D.C., // The Chronicle // has more than 70 writers, editors, and international correspondents. Online, // The Chronicle // is published every weekday and is the top destination for news, advice, and jobs for people in academe. // The Chronicle's // Web site features the complete contents of the latest issue; daily news and advice columns; thousands of current job listings; an archive of previously published content; vibrant discussion forums; and career-building tools such as online CV management, salary databases, and more. The Technology News section of // The Chronicle // is particularly informative for online teaching resources.

Dina Morrison

Coiro, J. (2011). Using Websites Wisely. // Educational Leadership //, 68(5), 34. Retrieved from EBSCO // host //. It is simple for a teacher to put information that they think is useful on their website. Knowing exactly what knowledge and skills are needed should guide a teacher’s information on their website. This article provided a huge number of questions and examples that teachers should consider when creating an informational website. It also discusses utilizing not only online resources, but ways to integrate offline resources. Cale Cripe (1)

D. Patrick, Krolak, Michael (2003). A User's Guide to Netscape Composer. Retreived from http://www.cs.uml.edu/~pkrolak/lab4/ComposerIntroduction/Net7UserGuide.html#OpeningNetscapeComposer This link will take you to a nicely laid out users guide to Netscape's 7.0's Composer for either learning the fundamentals of using Composer or designing a webpage. This entire site is laid out as a classroom laboratory that consists of "how do I" sections. Although this web site has not been updated since 2003, I think the directions and instructions are still relevant in using the Netscape Composer.

Val Bright (1)

Dell, D. Tips and resources for designing educational websites. Retrieved from: []

This website functions as homepage for a variety of frequently asked questions regarding website design. It stresses the importance of planning before you begin to create a website, indicating that planning is a step that many teachers neglect in an effort to save time and create a product. Each of the questions sends you to another page with detailed information about that topic. For example, one of the questions is, "What are the principles of good web design?" When you click on it, it gives you information about that topic, like 3 clicks is all it should take to find information and avoid long web pages because most people would rather click that scroll. The general information (like good web design) is sound; however, the specific information (like the tutorials page) strikes me as slightly outdated, although I cannot find a date to verify that.

Annalise Elenz (2)

Del D. Web design tools and tricks. Retrieved from: [] I found this website by doing a generic search for web page creation for teachers. I like this website, it gives easy "how to's" in creating your web page. It even gives an example of what not to do on your webpage. The links all work and are filled with different tools, graphics, editing options, and ideas for colors. I feel that for a beginner or an intermediate web page person this site will be very helpful in the creation and upkeep of a web resource page. I would reccommend using this site if a person needs a few ideas or guidance during their creating or editing. Diana King (1)

Dodge, B. (2007). Webquest.org: // Creating Webquests //. Retrieved from [] This website has excellent resources on how to create websites designed for inquiry-based study. The site provides information on how to design for this type of learning, research done on these sites, and offerings of which sites are best. There are templates and step by step directions on how to follow the model of creating websites [] I like this website, because this type of learning would be of benefit in the healthcare arena, where a problem could be posed, with links and resources for the learner to investigate. ~Cheryl Lovlien

Dunn, L. S. (2011). Making the Most of Your Class Website. // Educational Leadership // , // 68 // (5), 60. Retrieved from: []

In order to avoid your website becoming merely an online newsletter, Dunn (2011) outlines a way to think about the purpose of the website to create the most effective design. Dunn identifies five levels, depending on intention, level of updates, and flow of interactions. This article is helpful before you design your website, offering a way to clarify the purpose of your website and how you intend to use it.

(Submitted by LeAnn Littlewolf).

Dysart, J. (2008, December). [|How to optimize your website]. // The education digest, 74 // (4). Retrieved July 22, 2011 from Wilson web.

This article describes steps to take in order to assure that your website reaches the maximum capibility to be found by Google's search engine. The 14 steps Google provides are described and resources are listed to get you to the proper sites to do all of the steps. Rationale at the beginning of the article for wanting to make your website easily found is also provided. The rationale includes: helping parents and students find the school (or your personal) website more easily. Though it's three years old, I believe the information is still important and relevant. (Casey Boroski)

Education World: About Education (2011). // You can create a class website. // Retrieved from: [] This site has a straight forward, list type of recommendations for creating a class website. The simple steps seem to be consistent with educational planning such as 1) do your homework; 2) formulate a plan (including a story board template); 3)Create the site and 4) Post it to the web. Each area has an example or sends the reader to another site like this one of the "Worlds Worst Websites". [|ttp://www.angelfire.com/super/badwebs/] and " [|Webpages that Suck] " ~Cheryl Lovlien

Edudemic (2011). Edudemic, Connecting Education and Technology. Retrieved from [] This site has “sifted” through sites offering tools for educators and technology. It has highlighted the top 210 sites with a brief description allowing educators to use the site as a tool for finding tools. The site is also features apps, teacher tools, guides, infographics, etc. Edudemic is ery user friendly and full of information. Karen Kleinwort (2) _ Ferlazzo, L. (2011) // Websites of the Day... For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL // Retrieved from []

This is a wonderful example of an Edublog. Ferlazzo does a great job describing sites that can be used by educators. Within his // Best Art & Music Sites for 2011, // posted on // Dec. 9, 2011, // I found great sites that help you find lyrics and videos for certain songs ( [] ). Another site I liked was __ American Sabor __, a site that featured Latin music and musicians. It has videos of interviews with immigrants from Latin America and the background of the different types of music. Don't forget to check out the Jukebox too ( [] ).

Submitted by Sofia (3) _

Fehling, E. (1998). Classroom web pages: A “how to” guide for educators. Retrieved from [].

This may be the oldest article that we have on our wiki, but I think it still hits on some very important points when creating a web page. First of all, Fehling (1998) shares the importance of communication with parents and how webpages can increase this. There are also many practical ideas and templates that could be used in the appendixes. While some of the material would need to be “updated,” and there are much quicker ways to create and use a webpage, I do feel that this site can help educators understand the process of making a webpage. Finally, this source is a good reminder of where we were, and were we are today, and makes me (and hopefully others) think about where we will go in the future. Submitted by Eric Borndal

_ Flander, V. (1995 - 2011). // Web Pages That Suck. // Retrieved from []

I must apologize for the title. However, if you can get passed that, you will find tons of examples of what NOT to do when creating a web site. It helps to remind us that there lots of a good thing isn't always a great thing. It was a fun break while I research what to do. So check it out and see that others who have had more experience than any of us can sometimes have things turn out wrong and be encouraged while you do a web site or wiki building the first time.

Posted by Sofia (1) Filamentality is a website hosted by ATT. It allows for easy fill in the blank design but does not allow for graphics. However the page can be downloaded and graphics added and served from another servicer. Educators can use the site to develop a webquest or lessons that can be stored or printed. Hotlists can be used to automatically populate new pages. Filamentality aligns with National Educational Technology Standards. The site provides a guided tour to show how it works and shows a finished product. This would be a good place to start building a site and would work well for tasks not involving the need for graphics. Retrieved December 9, 2011 from []

Submitted by Carolyn Jordan (2)

Forensic Science Technician: Online Schools guide (2012). // 100 Best Websites for Science Teachers. // Retrieved from []

This is a collection of proven useful websites for teachers in my field. Creative examples of how to promote learning can certainly be found within the links from this page.

Submitted by Dustin Randall (1)

Friedman, A. (2006). K-12 Teachers' Use of Course Websites. // Journal Of Technology // // And Teacher Education //, // 14 // (4), 795-815. Retrieved from: [|http://ehis.ebscohost.com.akin.css.edu/eds/detail?vid=3&hid=121&sid=d74cd458-258b-48c8-8eda-db1300f05522%40sessionmgr115&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU%3d#db=eft&AN=507863137]

This article explores how implementing a website can be used in a K-12 setting, as well as some real and perceived barriers for a teacher effectively using this format. I think this article confronts some of the issues teachers face, such as time constraints and technical difficulties. Friedman examines how using a website for a class can help a teacher organize information, while communicating to students and parents, and gives some great reasons why this format is worthwhile for these purposes.

(Submitted by LeAnn Littlewolf)

Google Aps. (Producer). (2011). // Building a class site with google sites webinar. // Retrieved from []

This is a link to a video on Youtube that was posted by the Google Aps for Education Professional Development webinar series. The link is to a one hour webinar that tells how to make an educational website using the Google website tool. The webinar is mostly lead by Molly Schroeder who is the Technology Integration Specialist for Edina Public Schools. She discusses how Edina Schools uses Google websites throughout the district.

Erin Olson Posted April 28, 2012

Horton, M. (2009). The 5 most important things to have on your teacher website. // Yahoo //, Retrieved from []

I love this specific article because it provides the 5 most important things to have on your teacher website, something that is incredibly important to know while creating your first classroom website. Horton (2009) describes these 5 things as, 1) exciting opening page, 2) supply lists, 3) brain teasers, 4) forms, and 5) pictures. Although this list may seem like a “no-brainer” to most, it may be helpful to a teacher that has less experience with technology and web design. (Laura Thompson)

Interactive Classroom - Interactive Websites - [|Interactive Classroom - Interactive Websites] is a great site that gives practical advice regarding having a website for the classroom. It has many links for resources for using web-related materials and also on making your own website. Though we have done this in google or weebly, there are so many other sites out there that can be of help to us. I like that this website has so many links that you can put on our own website for different age groups. Michelle Whitman

Internet Marketing for Professionals. (n.d.). // Weebly training videos //. Retrieved from []

I chose to share this website after deciding to make my webpage on Weebly. This is site offers 36 video tutorials on all aspects of Weebly. They introduce the site, teach you how to sign up, add elements and even how to accept credit cards. The tips and tricks section is a great bonus as I have had trouble getting some of those add-ons to function appropriately on other sites. It was nice to find all of these tutorials in one place. The site has a number of ads, but once you get past them, the information presented is comprehensive and helpful. I am uncertain of the validity of this site,but found that the tutorials are what they say they are. The Contact Us link is broken and it was impossible to locate much information about dates and creators of the videos. It looks to be a marketing community that shares information about public speaking and making money. Either way, the tutorials are great and I have watched a few of them already! (Submitted by Sara Wendt)

Jerry. (June 2, 2009). Guide to Your First WordPress Website. Retrieved from [] wordpress-site/ This was an explanation on how to use Wordpress. I have heard a lot about Wordpress but was not sure how to use it. I went to Wordpress before reading this article and I was so confused that I decided to not use it to make my website. However, after I read this article I feel I would be able to make a site using Wordpress. Jerry did a good job at explaining Wordpress so people will obtain a better understanding of it. It listed benefits to using Wordpress and I found it to be positive that it is widely supported. I still think there are easier ways to make websites out there, but now that I feel more comfortable with Wordpress I am more likely to try it. I would recomomend this article to anyone who wants to use Wordpress because it has step by step guidelines to everything that is entailed with Wordpress. I am not sure on validity of this site because it didn’t give the authors last name it just said “Jerry.” (Mandy Huusko 2/2)

Kebritchi M, Hirumi A, Kappers W, Henry R. Analysis of the supporting websites for the use of instructional games in K-112 settings. // British Journal Of Educational Technology // [serial online]. July 2009;40(4):733-754. Available from: Education Full Text (H.W. Wilson), Ipswich, MA. Accessed December 11, 2011. This article explores what it will take to successfully integrate instructional games into a typical K-12 setting. Based off surveys, it looks at challenges to the current technologies offered and what teachers will need to do to overcome those challenges, as well as, what type of organizational structure is most efficient. All of this is explored to help a district understand their current technological status in an effort to move the them to the forefront, or keep them there.

Cale Cripe (1)

Kupetz, A. (2008). Is the paperless classroom possible? BizEd 7(1), 36-40. One of the most important potentials that a web page will give educators is the opportunity to go web pages. While the focus of Kupetz (2008) is to push for more Web 2.0 tools in the classroom, I think that there needs to be a place for students (and parents) to use as a “home” site. Kupetz (2008) focuses on blogger, Facebook, Youtube, and even Wikis. While I may be stretching the purpose of this wiki, I think that it fits well because a webpage allows teachers to organize any tools they hope to use and push for a paperless classroom. Next semester, I will be pushing for this in my geography class. After reading and discussing the potential of webpages and using Kupetz (2008), I think that I may be able to manage it with not too much difficulty.

Submitted by Eric Borndal

Kyrnin, J.(2011). Web Design Basics. Retrieved from [] This is a great article that describes the elements of a good Web site design. The article describes how to decide what fonts and typography one can use when designing your Web page. It also describes how to use color, what graphics or images to include, how to layout your Web site, how to tackle the Web navigation, and how to make your Web site accessible and useful to your audience. This article provides great information to people who are creating a Web site for the first time. The article helps to focus your attention on components that you might not think are important when creating a Web site. I will be using this article as a reference in helping me create my Web site for this class. I will also be using this article in the future to create my own classroom Web site. I used the Kathy Schrock Website Evaluation Guide. The website was very easy to navigate and the information was well-organized. The website uploaded links very quickly and the information is accurate and up-to-date with no grammatical errors. The author is provided on the website. Overall, I believe this article provides great information and ideas for people who are creating a Web site for the first time or for people that are professional Web developers. The article is well organized and provides great links to additional information about Websites. Megan Hastad

Lowe, Pam. (2006). Teacher designed web pages as a classroom tool. Creating classroom web pages. Retrieved from [] This website gives reasons why creating a classroom web page is a great idea. The author, Pam Lowe, has links on Reasons to Renovate Your Classroom, Teacher Web Page Examples, Teacher Web Page Examples: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, and Teacher Web Page Templates. Inside each of these sections, Lowe provides examples of good ideas to have in a web page and not so good ideas. Holly Petrich (1)

Lazaris, L. (2009, November 27). Designing websites for kids: Trends and best practices. //Smashing Magazine//, Retrieved from[]

In this article Louis Lazaris gives suggestions on the best trends and practices that should be used while designing websites for kids. Some of the suggestions include using bright and vibrant colors, using nature backgrounds, creating a happy tone and using animated characters that can interact with children. Often the best practices in typical web design are not appropriate for websites intended for children.

Submitted by Amanda Olson VanderStelt

Making Teachers Nerdy,. (2011, July 19). //Top 20 websites no teacher should start the 2010-2011 year without//. Retrieved from[|__http://mrssmoke.onsugar.com/Top-20-Websites-Teacher-Should-Start-2010-2011-Year-Without-9213932__] This article provides direct links to all the websites that are recommended to be used by teachers. They article recommends that each of these sites be added to every teachers “virtual treasure box,” and that every educator regardless of grade level or content will find something that will enhance their teaching and their students educational experience. Some of the websites listed have already been introduced as part of this course, Webtools for Learning, but some were new as well. Of the many listed, three stood out to me that may be helpful in my classroom. First, Doodle, is a scheduling tool that can set up collaborate work meetings or social committee events. Second, Edmodo, which will help to create a social network in the classroom only or among teachers in a building. I had heard of this before, and it is also available as a downloaded app. I was excited about this, for it might be a safer alternative to creating a Facebook page or using Twitter. The last was a Google Tools for Educators link. This allows teachers to receive training on the many tools available with Google such as Docs, Reader, Picasa and more. This is a great article that I will look back at to gain access and ideas for using these sites to update my curriculum and enrich my students experience in my classroom.

March, T. (2005, April 18). // Theory and Practice on integrating the Web for Learning //. Retrieved July 24, 2011, from Working the Web for Education: []

This website offers an interesting take on web-based learning. The author begins by comparing traditional vs web-based content, comparing things like the local library to The Library of Congress in terms of reference potential. He points out that the most important thing in using the web is that the educator is creating the learning environment and facilitating hands-on learning with the web-based activities. He then lists many suggestions on how to integrate the web into the educational process. (Cindy Neville)

McCallum, R. (2010, September 2). Ten reasons every teacher should want a web site. []

The author of this blog states that he created his first classroom website 10 years ago and it took much time and effort to create and maintain. As he says, thankfully for educators, that time is over. As we have learned in this class, many of the web 2.0 tools are pretty easy once we get the practice out of the way. “If you haven’t jumped on the bandwagon yet, you’re missing out on a lot more than just an online presence. Once you’re online, there are thousands of things you can do with your site and with the technology you’ve learned that will transform your classroom”. For added motivation, the author has listed 10 simple reasons why you should start your own classroom website NOW. If you are someone that already uses a site for class, this list might be something to pass along to a fellow teacher who is not currently using one. James Hoppe 1/2

McCallum, R. (2010, September 2). // Ten reasons every teacher should want a website //. Retrieved from []

This article lists and describes ten reasons that every teacher should WANT a website. We have talked a lot in our discussions about the need for more and more teachers to get on board with the available technologies. This article does a good job talking about all of the benefits to developing and maintaining a website. My favorite point was // #5 – Helicopter parents have an off-site landing pad. // Parents have the opportunity to inform themselves about you and your class before even meeting you. This allows them to get many questions/concerns answered before they get to you. A website is a great way to open another door into your classroom. The information on the parent site checks out and the links are working. They also have following options on four social sites that check out. I would envision that this article could be shared with other staff members who are apprehensive about this type of tool! (Submitted by Sara Wendt) - Sorry for the duplicate article!

McCallum, R. (2010, December 26). Teach like a video game: Use Collaboration as Amplification. []

I hated to use the same blog for both of my postings, but they seemed to fit with this wiki page so well. In this blog post, McCallum looks at what teachers can learn from video games in a six part series. Although gaming and virtual worlds are not my thing, I think the author makes some valid points on how they can benefit both the teacher and student. Things such as collaborative learning and learning by networking are some of the skills that students say they master through the video world.

James Hoppe 2/2

McIvor, C. (October 5,2008). How to Use Weebly-Create Splash Page or Blog. Retrieved from [] This is a youtube video on how to create a weebly website. This is a very useful video. It walks you through the process on making a website. I feel that anyone who watches this video will have no problem making a website. Weebly.com is an easy site to use and once the video explains how to use the tools on the page it just begins to flow. The video provids enough information without making a person feel overwhelmed. I would use this video to show my students if they were interested in making a website because it is easy to understand. I would recommend this video to others that are interested in making a weebly.com site. (Mandy Huusko1)

Miller, R. (2004). [|From educator to electronic publisher: Creating a website to share your work]. // Delta Kappa Gamma Bulletin,70 // (3), pp. 34-8. Retrieved July 22, from Wilson Web.

This article contains the rationale for creating a personal website and maintaining it, as well as the steps to do both. Though this article is much older, I feel as though the steps are generally the same. From what I gather, domain prices have lowered and there are even services that host domains for free, though I'd have to check on that. Rationale for creating a site includes: time saving in terms of publishing, massive availability and affordability, as well as a way to get "published" without paper. The steps are easy to understand, the process itself seems like a snap, and some of the more common terminologies used by today's web searchers are explained (i.e., URL= universal resource locator). I thought it was a very useful article if you want the basics of creating and maintaining a website. (Casey Boroski)

Moulton, J. (2008). The classroom web page: a must-have in 2008. // Edutopia, // Retrieved from []

This article highlights the importance of every teacher having a class website. Some of the benefits they describe include, 1) quick and easy access to resources, 2) students will come to see the Internet as a relevant extension of school, 3) students and families gain extended access to their teachers, and 4) students will gain experience using digital resources in direct support of learning. This article also provides links to many free web page creators. (Laura Thompson)

Pappas, Peter. (2000). Design your website from the bottom up. Retrieved from [| http://www.edteck.com/eddesign/web_docs/Bottom_up.pdf] This is a wonderful pdf document that gives teachers great ideas for designing web sites for classroom use. He explains that it is important to brainstorm what you want included in your website and gives some options to use. We should then group these ideas into categories and critique them to figure out who our audience will be and what will be most important to them. We should then revise our categories and develop a flow chart that will become a roadmap for site design. Teachers finish up with designing a navigational plan and creating a page layout. This is a very thorough site that helps teachers understand what should be included in a great web page that is beneficial to students. Information is presented in a simple, easy to understand manner, helping teachers of all abilities create the best web page possible! Holly Petrich (2)

Pick, Michael (2009). How-To: Embedding YouTube videos into your WordPress.com posts.

If you’d like to plug a YouTube video into your blog post, this video will show you how. This was a great time saver for me as I set up my class web page on WordPress.com. Retrieved July 21, 2011 from []

Rob Whinnery (1of 2)

Pick, Michael (2009). How-To: Import your WordPress.com posts blog into Facebook.

If you’d like to bring the content of your WordPress.com blog into your Facebook notes stream, this quick tutorial will show you how. This video tutorial allows you to post all your blog content on Facebook back to the start date of your blog. Although in my case I chose not to do this, it led me to know that adding the Facebook button was the right option for my purposes. Retrieved July 21, 2011 from[]

Rob Whinnery (2of 2)

Pinterest. (2012). There is a plethora of valuable information and resources located on the "google sites" Pinterest page. Contributors to Pinterest (via boards and pins) have shared an extensive amount of tips, videos, books, graphics, articles, and more related to google sites and creating websites. You can filter it further with "Google Sites and Teaching".

Dina Morrison

Polly D. Teachers' learning while constructing technology-based instructional resources. // British Journal Of Educational Technology // [serial online]. November 2011;42(6):950-961. Available from: Education Full Text (H.W. Wilson), Ipswich, MA. Accessed December 11, 2011. This was a study of 16 elementary teachers who were followed as they created curriculum that was rich in technology to use in their own classroom. It found that if teachers have the opportunity to explore Web 2.0 tools and other technology-rich resources, teachers will not only take the material that they learn through professional development, they will also take it to the next level by developing it for themselves and their classroom. It also found that students will prosper intellectually when teachers align these tools with curricular standards.

Cale Cripe (2)

Schaeffer, G. (2011). Instructifeature: Create Teaching Portfolios Easily With Google Sites. Retrieved from [] I liked this newsletter immediately because it was about creating an "electronic portfolio" and it sort of sounded like what we are doing for our assignment next week. You need a google account to create this electronic portfolio. This portfolio can be created for a classroom environment, or as a professional resource. There are many categories to choose from along the left hand side of the page which will guide the user through creation. There are many links to other resources as well. Looks fun to use! Sonya Witmer

SchoolRack (2011). Retrieved from [] This website is designed for teachers and students to work together. They can share information, including files and documents, blog, send private messages, share grades privately and hold discussions online. It has as a section called “Teacher’s Corner” where teachers share how they are using the site and how it working for them. A great collaborative tool for teachers to help each other. Karen Kleinwort (1)

Schroeder, Molly (2012). // Follow Molly. // Retrieved from []

This is a website created by Molly Schroeder who is Technology Integration Specialist for Edina Public Schools. Her website has a lot of valuable information that relates to using technology in the classroom. It is also a good example of a good website for an educator. Schroeder gives many examples of tools that teachers can use in the classroom. Also, she is a Google Certified Teacher so there are many resources related to using Google in the classroom.

Erin Olson

Starkey, L., Corbett, S., Bondy, A., & Davidson, S. (2010). Intellectual property: what do teachers and students know?. // International Journal of Technology & Design Education //, 20(3), 333-344. doi:10.1007/s10798-009-9088-6 As teachers develop their own websites, it is important to know and understand who has rights to specific types of information. Determining who owns a vehicle isn’t tough-who has the title, however, what happens when it’s intellectual property that’s in question? It is important for teachers to know this information since they also have to model it for their students. This study explored technology teachers in New Zealand since they started teaching tech classes in 1993. Technology teachers must incorporate intellectual property into their pedagogical content. This study determined that there is a need to make available resources that they can easily integrate into their teaching, this way, they will have a deeper understanding of intellectual property. Cale Cripe (2)

Teachertube MS, (2009, October 20) // How to build an educational wiki: // Retrieved from [] I thought that this 10 minute video was an excellent quick source for a quick tutorial on wiki page creation. There are basic functions of the creation component that this video demonstrates well. I hope you like it as much as I did. Tom Nooyen (2)

TeacherWeb (2011). Even though there is a $39/year fee for the service, the site offers educators the ability to develop, publish and host a website. The site provides samples of teacher sites in action which is can be viewed for free just to get some ideas on how to use a teacher service for communication, homework assignments, calendars, test schedules, etc. Retrieved December 8, 2011 from []

Submitted by Carolyn Jordan (1)

Teaching with Technology - What makes a good classroom website. This site is from the University of Western Michigan that discusses what the components of making a good website. [|Teaching with Technology] This site has plenty of good examples of other teacher websites. I think we can all agree that we usually steal most of our best ideas from other teachers. It also has a step-by-step way of making a website with many links to websites to help along the way and then help with the publishing, which seems to be the problem for many teachers who do not have the ability to put their site on the local server. Michelle Whitman

Teachnology, Inc. (2011). Designing a website for your class. Retrieved from [] The first resource I found is from teAchnology and the page is called Designing a Website for Your Class. It gives teachers information on the benefits of creating web pages and lists information teachers should have on their pages. It then provides links to provide interactivity to your web page. This is a resourceful site that gives teachers ideas on what to include on their web pages and provides a link on how to create a web page that is free and easy to create. The great thing about this site is it also includes links to worksheets, lesson plans, rubrics, teacher resources, printables, subjects, tools, and tips. This is a versatile site that all educators should use! Holly Petrich (3)

Team Zone Sports (2012). // Team Zone Sports team website design. // Retrieved from []

OK, so my mind is drifting from science teaching to soccer coaching as the summer rolls closer. But this is one of many useful sites for coaches to create a fun and informative site to share rosters, statistics, game information, and pictures. Can be a great way to build support and excitement for a team, club, or program.

Submitted by Dustin Randall (2)

Trebesch, L. & Lapham, C. (2007). // How to optimize your school band's website to recruit top players. // TI:ME (Technology for Music Education). Retreived from: [] (part 1) and [] (part 2)

This article talks about the importance of thoughtful keyword inclusion (keywords that describe your program but are not commonly used by other band programs to set yours apart), linking to other websites, and encouraging people to link to yours by providing valuable content (besides just general information about your program). It also talked about the importance of considering what parents would be searching for; for example, "musical opportunities" or what kids might be searching for; for example, "awesome band program," and including some of those keywords in your website. The article discusses how parents have more options in their children's education than they have before, and stresses that the web is generally the first place people look for that information, so it's important to have a website that reflects the merits of your program.

Annalise Elenz (1)

Tutorial, H. C. (2011). // HTML Code Tutorial //. Retrieved July 24, 2011, from HTML Code Tutorial: [| http://www.htmlcodetutorial.com/]

This website offers free advice on creating web pages using HTML Code. What especially caught my eye is that there is a link to a tutorial on CSS code, which is an area of knowledge needed to customize part of the Wiki appearance. This is definitely for the advanced web designer, but looks to be a great reference. (Cindy Neville)

Webb, Dr. A. (2003, December 2). Teaching with technology. Retrieved from [] This article describes how tocreate a quality classroom Web site and the steps you need to take in order tocreate a Web site. It talks about what aspects are important in making sureyour classroom Web site is displaying quality information. In order for yourclassroom web site to be a quality classroom Web site the article describe thatyour web site needs to be: The article also provides great links to sample classroom Web sites to get ideas ofwhat a classroom or teaching Web site looks like and how they work. This article describes how to structure a classroom Web site, steps in gettingstarted to creating your own Web site, resources for creating classroom Website, and steps on publishing your site to the Web. I will be using this article when creating my own Web site for the upcoming assignment in this class. I will besaving this article to help me in the future when I develop and create a Website for my future classroom. I used the KathySchrock Website Evaluation Guide. The website was very easy to navigate and theinformation was well-organized. The website uploaded links very quickly and theinformation is accurate and up-to-date with no grammatical errors. I believe that this Web site/article provides great information about how tocreate a quality classroom Web site. Even though it was written eight yearsago, the information it provides is still relevant and helpful with classroomWeb sites. MeganHastad
 * Academically andintellectually sound, including meaningful information, activities, and links
 * Thematically andartistically coordinated using common backgrounds and structures that link yoursite together graphically and thematically
 * Interactive,including [|WebQuests], [|electronic communities] , and other activities for students
 * Attractiveand appropriate material for your students, their parents, and your teachingcolleagues
 * Relevant andmarketable: includes a portfolio of your professional work and accomplishments

Webb, A. (2011). Teaching with Technology/Teaching English. Retrieved from [] This blog was created to help teachers create a classroom website. It goes through all the steps, like "What is a quality website, How do I Create a Classroom Website," and also gives sample classroom websites. There are many tips on how to structure a classroom web site. It gives specific criteria for a home page, a student page, and a parent page. There are tips for teacher pages, a teaching philosophy page, and a professional page. This will be very helpful in our upcoming assignment. Sonya Witmer

Webquest.org (2011).

Weigle, Betsy (2011). Classroom Teacher Resources: Elementary Teaching Resources for Student Success and a Job You Love. Retrieved from: [|www.classroom-teacher-resources.com/]

This site provides new teachers with an updated newsletter, teacher websites, and a blog site to connect teachers to an online community of professionals. There are resources for student and substitute teachers as well. As a current substitute teacher, this site caught my eye. There are resources for classroom management (teaching social skills, team building, rules and safety, and behavior management), effective teaching, and best teaching practices. In the "Effective Teaching" portion of the site, there are some great suggestions and guidelines for teaching with technology.

Zach Schara

Western Michigan University. Teaching with technology: Creating a classroom website. Retrieved from: [] This website gives a good checklist of what and how to set up not only a home page but also secondary pages. It gives ideas of putting links for parents, students, colleagues. The webpage includes different sources to help host your website and also gives links to other sites to help and organize your classroom website. I did find a few grammatical and spelling errors in the page, but overall the site works well. I would suggest to others to look at this site for more ideas and help in creating and maintaining thier website. Diana King (2)

Wix.com is a free tool to assist you with setting up yourown website. This online tool that letsyou create customized websites with ease. A user-friendly, drag & dropinterface lets you edit your web design without the need to code. You can makeyour free website from scratch and customize as you go. Or, get started byexploring our gallery of free website templates. Everything in a Wix webtemplate is fully customizable using the Wix editor. Replace items in atemplate with your own text, content and links. Choose from tons of freepictures, clip art, icons, widgets, animation and more, found inside thewebsite builder. The user-friendliness of Wix lets you put your ideas to workwithout having to worry about programming, technical know-how, or finding apro. Since Wix is a search enginefriendly platform, you can get discovered online easily, while offeringvisitors the fabulous visual experience of Flash. Whether you are promoting abusiness, showcasing your art, setting up an online shop, planning a specialevent, or playing around with new web design ideas, Wix has everything you needto build a fully-personalized, high-quality website. [] (Dot McMillon-1)

WithWeebly you can easily create a classroom website& blog, manage your students' accounts, accept homework assignments online,and keep your parents up to date. Weebly is perfect forcreating classroom websites, student e-portfolios, and websites for assignedprojects. The drag & drop websiteeditor is stunningly simple to use, and appropriate for use with students ofall ages. [] (Dot McMillon-2)