Assignment 3: Website Evaluation

Online sources can often be helpful tools to enhance students learning experience. For the subject of 4th grade science I have found 2 helpful sites that both fun and high quality.

1. e-learning for kids
     E-Learning for kids is a website designed to provide quality online learning to students regardless of where or who they are. The site is accessible for anyone with a computer and wants to enhance students existing knowledge. The site's science section provides multiple interactive lessons for students to participate in. This site is high quality because it is certified and accredited for educational use. The sites currency is supported by its news column which contained articles publish by the site, most recently January 8th. All of the links on the site also lead to their described sections. and provide relevant and updated lessons. The site is relevant for science instruction since it is provided by the Scienceworld, another site owned by the publishing company, curriculum. From the home page you can easy select the subject of science, and then when on the science page you can choose from grades K-6+ for subject level. After making these selections the link back to the home page is still located at the top of the screen for easy access. Content is all written legibly and can be filtered to show a specific topic. The site was founded by Prof. Dr. Nick Van Dam who has work for many years in the field of education, and has personal contact information given on the sites Team page. The site's About is not a mere page but an entire section dedicated to discussing the sites goal and the experience of its team members in order to show its authority. Though the webpage is a .org it still provides relevant content. The content provided on the site is accurate since it provides correct facts about science at the 4th grade level. The site establishes that its lessons plans come from the Scienceworld database. The sites purpose to give a source of quality education to all students. This is described in depth on the sites Manifesto page. The use of the sponsors in very public on the site, and even encourages users to donate to help support the site's mission. Professional and non-extreme language is used throughout the site to describe its features. Overall the site is reliable for providing educational lessons to students.

2. Funology
     Funology is a website which provides educational activities to keep students focused and interested. The website is updated regularly and has a blog featured within its main menu. It's currency is further shown by its 2018 copyright found at the bottom of the page. The links on the page function and send you to the sites sections. From the websites home page you can easily navigate from sections such as "crafts," "recipes," and "science." The science tab is also divided to allow students to select experiments from different topic areas. The home page is always accessible from the title at the top of the page. The information on the page also provides relevance since it is spelling error free. All the science experiments provided are at a level that 4th grade students will be able to understand. The sites authority can be found on the about page that is linked on the bottom of every page. The page credits that "Funology" is a site produced by Big Fish Designs, a company located in Washington D.C. that has created many other sites. The company's website is provided, and many contact links are provided on every page. The lessons on the page appear accurate, but are not just provided by the site. Teachers and Parents are able to submit projects, and are credited if their submission is used on the site. The sites purpose is to provide fun activities which parents can use to educate their children, rather than just allowing them to watch television. The site does indicate sponsorship as there are ads on the pages of the site, all though school or kid focused. The sites purpose is primarily entertainment as well as education, but remains focused in using appropriate language. This site is a good source for science activities to give to students.