Scholastic Class Homepage Builder

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Scholastic Class Homepage Builder

• August 8, 2005

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Agenda

• Why would I want a Class Homepage?
• What is Scholastic Class Homepage Builder?
• Example site created with Homepage Builder
• What features can I have on my Homepage?
• How do parents and students access my class
  homepage?
• Create your own class homepage.

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Why would I want a Classroom Homepage?

• The benefits of effective home-school
  communication are many
• Harvard Family Research Project
  http//www.gse.harvard.edu/hfrp/projects/fine/reso
  urces/materials/home-school_workshop.htmlresearch

Parents view effective communication by a new
school as a quality that makes the transition
from preschool to kindergarten positive
(Rimm-Kauffman, 1999).
Communication serves as the first step to other
types of parent involvement to follow (Elman,
1999).
Parents seek good communication skills in their
children's teachers, citing it as one of the most
desirable characteristics a new teacher could
have (Lupi, 2001 McDermott, 2001).
Parents who receive more consistent information
about their children's school performance report
a higher degree of commitment to helping children
improve (Helling, 1996).
Parents and teachers consider communication the
number one factor to increase trust (Adams
Christenson, 2000).
Strong communication can also encourage higher
and realistic parental expectations. When
teachers and parents are on the same page they
can engage in more individual and concrete
discussion around student progress and develop
realistic goals and plans of action that are
linked to student achievement (Drake 2000 James,
Jurich Estes, 2001).
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What is Scholastic Homepage Builder?

• A free resource for constructing classroom
  websites.
• Template based (so its easy to get started)
• Colorful and fun
• An easy way to boost parent involvement,
  motivate students, and keep your classroom
  running smoothly! Scholastic

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Example Site Created with Homepage Builder

• Shannons site
• (Jessicas site?)
• Colleen Lutes Homepage site tour (1st grade
  teacher) http//teacher.scholastic.com/homepagebu
  ilder/monthly_tips.htm

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What features can I have on my Homepage?

• Field Trip Info
• Lunch Menu
• Classroom calendar
• Websites to visit at home
• Teacher email
• Homework assignments
• Spelling and Vocabulary lists
• Suggested Reading lists

Anything!
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How do parents and students access my homepage?

• Select a Class Username and Password (you will
  receive an email confirmation)
• The Class User Name and Password enables students
  and parents to access your page and secures the
  privacy of your Class Homepage. Since you will be
  sharing this information with students, please
  select a User Name and Password that are
  different from your personal Scholastic.com User
  Name and Password.
• Print Parent Information Letter (English
  Spanish)
• Visitor Report
• Scholastic Homepage will track how many parents
  and students visit your pages it will even
  report which pages were visited most frequently.

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Create your own Homepage

• You will have to register with Scholastic.com
  (free registration)
• Set up your account (you will receive an email
  confirmation)
• Create your username and password
• Choose your State and City
• Choose Herrera Elementary
• Start!