Making the most of your classroom website doesn’t have to be hard work. In this series, we are breaking down the stumbling blocks you have to making your classroom website work for you.
In the last post, we talked about the number one rule to building a successful classroom website. Did you make the commitment? Why put all the work into making a classroom site that you are not committed to using. Making the most of your classroom website starts by following the first rule: committing to using your classroom website.
However, if you have said yes to your site, it’s time to tackle the second stumbling block. Can you guess what they are?
In a poll, many of you said that maintaining your classroom website was too much work. You are pressed for time and lack the energy required to maintain your site.
Seriously, I hear you 100%. We thought we were tired in a normal school year. There ain’t not tired like teaching during a pandemic tired!
Teacher responsibilities have grown exponentially over time. Adding a classroom website to the mix might just might be the straw that breaks the camels back.
But I am here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be.
If your classroom website feels like too much work, then you are doing something wrong. I can say this because I have been there and done that. When my commitment to my classroom website wasn’t a solid yes, I quickly folded on the project
That’s why I had to sit down and re-evaluate what the goals of my classroom website were. I looked for ways to make my classroom site work for me, not against me.
And that’s what rule number two of having and maintaining a classroom website is: work smarter, not harder.
How exactly can we make our classroom website work smarter, not harder? Follow these steps to make the most of your classroom we
- Visualize your ideal website
- Link tasks in your classroom site to things already on your to do list
- Keep it simple, silly
Step 1: Visualize your ideal website
When you imagine your website, what do you see? It is easy to fall into wanting it to look cute and fabulous, and that process is a lot of fun, but it is a time sink. If you get stuck on how it looks, you are going to get overwhelmed and miss the real reason you started a classroom website to begin with. Down the line, you should definitely invest time into building or purchasing a theme for your site, but until then focus on content and functionality.
Visualize your classroom website being used. Who is using it? How are they using it? What is their experience with your website?
You don’t have to make things overly complicated to make your site work for you. Knowing who your target audience is and how they use your site is important to building a site that works for you. You can make the most out of a simple site that has links to important places students and families need to go. So, take some time to reflect on who your site is serving and what they ideally will be doing with your site.
Once you have done this, you can trim any excess off of your site that you are finding is wasting your time, effort, and energy.
Step 2: Link tasks in your classroom site that are already on your to do list
Chances are you are making some sort of lesson plans. You are also probably already posting materials in your Google Classroom, assuming you are using this as your main way of delivering materials to students.
There are a couple of reasons I prefer using Google Sites and Google Classroom as my classroom website interface. The main reason, other than than they are free, is that they work interchangeably together.
Posting a video for your students? You can post the video in your classroom site and then create a link to that video on your Google Classroom assignment. Or let’s say you are posting assignments in Google Classroom. You can easily add a calendar that is linked to your Google Classroom that shows up on your Google Site. No need to create an extra page of daily materials. The nice thing is both parents and students can easily see what is due all by updating your Google Classroom if you are using Google Sites for your classroom website.
Whatever you do, try to find the simplest way to do it. Simple is key to making the most of your classroom website, so don’t over complicate it.
That brings us to Step #3: Keep it simple, silly
The best website you could possibly have for your classroom is one that you find manageable, easy to use and update, and worth your time and effort. An over complicated class site is going to require you to invest effort daily, and you already said that this is something you do not have.
So, if it comes down to it, what is the simplest thing you can do to still have a classroom site that gets students and families what they need? Perhaps it is just a homepage with important announcements that you update weekly. Or maybe you have a page with links to your Google Classroom and other important information that parents and students want to know.
There is nothing wrong with a site that does just that. If you are finding your Google Classroom sufficient in helping your students stay organized and finding the information that they need, then use that. All you need to do is create a few simple things like a linked calendar to your Google Classroom, as well as a link to your Google Classroom that students can access.
In Summary:
Your classroom website is there to make your life easier, not harder. Let’s not make more for us to do. Our jobs are already asking so much of us already. Let’s visualize what our websites need to be able to do, bundle tasks that we are already doing so as not to create extra work for ourselves, and keep it simple, silly.
Is there a problem or concern that you have about your classroom site that wasn’t covered? Do you want to know more? Share your thoughts here or drop a comment below so I can help you streamline this process of creating a classroom website that works for you.
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