Brief Description

Students study the math curriculum standards for each grade level and create a web site that allows others to practice and evaluate their math skills.  The site will include a link to each grade level.  Within each grade level there will be links to math games that support the curriculum.

Standards and Frameworks

Technology Standards

4T-E2. Use technology tools for individual and collaborative writing, communication and publishing activities to create curricular related products for audiences inside and outside the classroom.

W-E3. Write a summary that presents information clearly and accurately, contains the most significant details and preserves the position of the author.

Academic

• The students will be able to compose exciting and descriptive summaries that describe their chosen math web links.

• The students will be able to create a web page with a background, a separating bar, a title, and 3 math links.

• Students are able to evaluate web pages for accuracy.
• Students are able to use the Internet proficiently.
• Teacher has a basic understanding of how to create and publish a web page.

The math standards printed out (I only printed the summary of the standards and that worked very well).
Each grade's standard stapled together so groups can use them efficiently.
Computer for each student connected to the Internet.

Accommodations for Special Needs

Group the students together so there is a mixture of ability levels.
Provide web sites that are kid friendly.
Provide a bulleted list of directions on how to build a web page.

Procedures

DAY 1

1. Introduce the lesson to the students.  “Web pages are fun and exciting to create.  Over the next couple of weeks you will be creating a web page designed to aid students, of various ages, with their math skills.”
2. Have the students survey various sites and write down 3 things that they like about each one.  Tell the students to not only look at designs, but also what is written on the pages.  Most students will list things like:  background color, pictures, animated bullets, text color, and link descriptions.
3. Place the students into groups of two or three.  In this will be there web design group.
4. Let the students chose a grade level that they would like to study.  I get more “buy-in” when I let them choose.
5. After everyone is satisfied with a grade level (try to have at least one group per grade level) pass out the groups math standards to match the grade level.  Have a discussion as to what standards are and why they are important.
6. Have the students read and highlight the appropriate standards for their grade level.  The purpose of this is to make sure that when they are building the web page the math links correlate with their choice of grade level.
7. Talk about what math students are learning at each grade level.  Compare what students learn at grade 1 as opposed to grade 2.  Do this with each grade.   This will help each group focus on what math skills they are looking for in the web links.
8. Once the students have a handle on the standards they are ready for the creation of the web page.

9. Take the students to the computer lab.  Take them through step by step how to create a basic web page.  I used Netscape Composer.
10. Let the students play around with the program.  They will have so much fun!

11. Introduce the students to sites that have math links that support the standards.  This is much simpler then having them surf to net for them.
I used http://www.amphi.com/~psteffen/ and http://www.amphi.com/~kgutierr.  Both sites have many math game links that the student’s can chose from.
12. By the end of 50 minutes they should chose 3 math games that they would like their site to be linked to.

13. Students have time to create their web pages.  Each group will create a web page that contains a background color, a title, a bar separating the title from the math
links, 3 math links with an exciting and descriptive summaries that describe their     chosen math web links, and a picture.

14. The pages should be ready to publish.  The teacher should publish the work on a classroom web page.  Check out www.amphi.com/~sgilbert/ to see what I did.

Have the students present the information to the teachers at your school.  Have the students show the teachers what they did and how they can use it in there classrooms and in the computer lab.  Throughout the week have the sixth graders work with the students on the web page that they created
Make sure that each page has a background color, a title, a bar separating the title from the math links, 3 math links with an exciting and descriptive summaries that describe their chosen math web links, and a picture.

Teacher Name: Susie Gilbertson
Site: Harelson
Date Submitted: March 27, 2002