My Teacher Site: Enhancing Classroom Communication

Wendy Says

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A Reliable Site Keeps Parents Informed

April 12, 2009 Tagged as Web Site, Writing

Keeping a class Web site is a good way to keep your parents and students informed. But you need to remember that your site is the world’s window to your classroom. Your audience, which includes your administrators, will form opinions about you and your abilities based on your Web site. To ensure the most professional site possible, keep these tips in mind:

  • Maintain the site yourself. Many teachers have students maintain the class Web site. While giving students this invaluable experience is tempting, keep in mind that the site reflects upon you. Updating it yourself is the only sure-fire way to prevent any unintentional mistakes.
  • Keep it current. Check in with your site at least once a week to remove old content and add new items. Seeing old information will turn your audience away and make them believe your site is not accurate and up-to-date. If your principal requires weekly lesson plans, update your site when you turn them in.
  • Review your site each time you update it. It’s not enough to simply make the changes. After changes are made, look at the site again to ensure that it looks how you intended.
  • Check your grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Twice.
  • Keep it simple. Flashy graphics take away from your message. Keep the graphics to a minimum to avoid distractions.
  • Check your links. If you include links to other Web sites, check them frequently to ensure that they are still working, relevant, and appropriate.

If you would like parents and students to use your Web site regularly, it’s important to stay on top of it. Keeping it current, reliable, and easy to read will keep your audience coming back for more.

What do you do to keep your class Web site updated? Please share! Remember, learning is not a spectator sport.