Creating Your Own Web Site



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Creating Your Own Web Site

Subjects: Language Arts
Required Software: Microsoft® Word, Microsoft® Excel
Optional Software: Microsoft® Internet Explorer, Microsoft® Works

Teaching Guide
Student Activity

Teaching Guide

Summary
In this lesson, students will learn to design Web pages complete with text, graphics, and hypertext links. After adding backgrounds, navigation buttons, and audio-visual effects, and revising their work based on comments from peers and teachers, students will "publish" their projects on the Internet for all the world to see!


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Objectives
To have students create and publish their own Web site, expand on student's critical thinking skills as they organize information for distribution over the Internet, and define Internet terms like ImageMap, HTML and Hyperlink.

Prerequisite Skills
Knows how to open a document in Microsoft Word and to use Word's many features, knows how to use Microsoft Publisher 97, and can access the World Wide Web using Microsoft Internet Explorer.

Time Alloted
Approximately two weeks

How to Begin
Provide a brief introduction to the Internet and explain to students that they will be creating a Web site of their very own. Introduce terms that they are likely to encounter as they develop pages for the World Wide Web such as ImageMap and Hyperlink.

Now, have students talk about and/or download Web pages they visit regularly. What do they like about the content and design of these sites? Why do some Home pages work and not others? What could be done to improve Web page design? How important are the following Web page design elements: text that is easy to read, links to other pages, pictures, animations, multimedia sounds and music, video clips, 3D elements, e-mail reply forms, and interactivity. Do these elements make the Web site more appealing or do they function as a distraction?

Student Activity

Description
In this activity, you will create your own World Wide Web site and "publish" your site to a folder.

STEP 1 Deciding on Ideas For the Web Site

SOFTWARE: Microsoft Internet Explorer

WHAT TO DO: Think about the different kinds of information you might like to publish on your Web site such as:

a) information about a science project or a social studies unit just completed;
b) a class directory highlighting the diverse cultural backgrounds of the students in your school;
c) a school-sponsored community Web site introducing visitors to local community attractions, popular restaurants, cool clothing stores; or,
d) pictures from a recent class trip, along with student reports.

Use Internet Explorer to visit other school Web sites for design ideas, such as those listed below. Send e-mail messages to comment on how you enjoyed the site or to inquire about Web design techniques.

Recommended Web Sites

The Global Schoolhouse
Schools on the Web
The Illustrated Spanish Alphabet Page (Ralph Bunche School, Harlem, New York)
For an international mega-list of school sites, visit:
"Web66 International Registry of School Web Sites"

STEP 2 Creating the Web Page

SOFTWARE: Microsoft Publisher 97

WHAT TO DO: Use Publisher 97 to create single-page or multi-page Web sites, using the new Web Site PageWizard, or convert existing Publisher documents, such as flyers or newsletters, to a web site.

Opening screen of Microsoft Publisher
Example 1: Publisher 97 opening screen showing Web Site PageWizard

Start Publisher 97. In the opening screen, click the PageWizard tab and select Web Site PageWizard. Follow the on-screen steps to create a multipage Web site layout. Save your work.

STEP 3 Adding Text and Graphics

SOFTWARE: Microsoft Publisher 97

WHAT TO DO: You can type your web page text directly into the web layout, or you can choose Insert Text from the File menu and insert files created in Microsoft Word, Microsoft Works or another word processing program. Continue replacing the placeholder text in your web site with your own text. Proofread and spell check your file.

To replace a picture with your own choice, right click on a picture, then choose Insert Clip Art. The Microsoft Clip Gallery offers lots of fun choices for your web pages. To insert clip art from a file, right click on a picture, choose Insert Picture File. Then locate the file you wish to insert.

If you decide to develop a new Web page, Publisher's Blank Page publication list includes a Web page template with automatic formatting to fit a variety of video display monitors.

STEP 4 Adding Hyperlinks

SOFTWARE: Microsoft Publisher 97

WHAT TO DO: In Publisher 97 you can add hyperlinks to a document already on the Internet, to another page in your Web site, to an Internet e-mail address, or to a file on your hard disk. To add a hyperlink follow these steps:

Highlight a word on page 1 of your Web site;

Choose Hyperlink from the Insert menu;

In the Hyperlink dialog box, click Another Page in Your Web Site;

Click Next Page, and then click the OK button.

You should now add a story or text that is related to the hyperlink.

Example 2: Hyperlink dialog box in Publisher 97

STEP 5 Web Design Tips

SOFTWARE: Microsoft Publisher 97

WHAT TO DO: Keep in mind these design considerations when using Publisher 97:

Add new pages to a Web site document by choosing Page from the Insert menu.

Publisher 97's Design Gallery contains an assortment of ready-made Web navigation buttons for email and other Web page actions (e.g., Home, Next, Back) and Web Page Dividers. After inserting a button on your Web page, highlight this button's text, then right-click on the text and select Hyperlink from the pop-up menu. Link the button to another page in your Web site or to a specific URL.

If there is a TWAIN-compliant scanner attached to your computer, you can easily scan in photographs, drawings, or other graphic elements, for use on your Web page.

To insert an image, click the Picture Frame tool on the Publisher 97 toolbar, then create a frame sized to fit your needs. Position this frame where you'd like the picture to appear, then click Scanner Image/Acquire Scanned Image (Insert menu) to bring in the scanned graphic. Publisher automatically inserts the "captured" picture in the predrawn frame.

Consider outfitting the Home page with a directory listing the names of all students having pages at this site. If you scan in student photos, you can format this directory to have both an ImageMap and a student name. To do so, lay out the information in a two-column Table of Contents (produced with the Table Frame button). Then add click-on links to each picture and name. Now, clicking on either the student's picture or the student's name will take you to that student's Web page.

Add graphics to any Web page by choosing Publisher Clip Gallery images. Publisher 97 also features background patterns and text color combinations to brighten the appearance of any Web site.

Make your site so appealing that visitors will want to return. Provide links to Web pages like Mega-Math and The Mad Scientist Network.

STEP 6 Publishing the Web Page (to a folder)

SOFTWARE: Microsoft Publisher 97

WHAT TO DO: Before publishing your Web site to a folder, check for errors using Publisher 97's Design Checker from the Tools menu.

Then to publish your Web site to a folder, follow these tips:

Choose Publish Web Site to Folder from the File menu.

Click New Folder button and type a name for your site.

Choose OK.

STEP 7 Importing into FrontPage 97

SOFTWARE: Microsoft FrontPage 97

WHAT TO DO: If you are using Microsoft FrontPage 97 to manage your class or school web site, you can import the Publisher folder you just created (or any folder of HTML files) into a new or existing FrontPage web site. The steps below tell you how to import into an existing FrontPage web site.

FrontPage 97 Import Wizard
Example 3: FrontPage 97 Import Wizard

Open your existing FrontPage web site (or use the Corporate Presence or Personal Home Page Wizard to create a new site).

In the FrontPage Explorer view, choose New from the File menu, then choose FrontPage Web.

Choose Import Web Wizard; then click the Add to Current Web check box.

In the Import Web Wizard dialog box, click Browse, then locate your Publisher created Web site (unless you specified otherwise, it should be located in c:/Program Files/MicrosoftPublisher/ Publish/<your file name>

To learn more about Microsoft FrontPage, visit /frontpage/

Terms & Permissions Of Use
NOTE: Microsoft Corporation retains sole ownership of all published Productivity in the Classroom materials. Microsoft grants permission for education institutions, OEMS and Solution Partners to reproduce unlimited quantities of these materials solely for staff development purposes. Altering materials or reselling materials is strictly prohibited.

Last Updated: March 1, 1999