Webpage Creation: Why and How, By Michael P. Garofalo

Enhancing Education Through Technology Grant Project

Maywood Middle School
Corning Union Elementary School District
Corning, California

Webpage Creation:
Why and How

By Michael P. Garofalo, M.S.
Webmaster of the Corning Union Elementary School District

Mike Garofalo has created websites that have served up over 10 million webpages
to people all around the world, e.g., Spirit of Gardening, Cloud Hands, etc..
He has been publishing on the Internet since 1993.
His blogs are read by over 900 people every day.

A webpage is an electronic file which may include text, graphics, photographs, video, or audio elements. It can
be read (viewed, opened, accessed) using an Internet web browser (e.g., Internet Explorer, Firefox, Opera, Safari, Netscape, etc.). The webpage can be read (viewed, opened) on any Internet World Wide Web (WWW) connected computer running on different operating system platforms (e.g., Windows, Macintosh, Sun, GNU/Linux, Unix, etc.). Most webpages are created using WYSIWYG web authoring software (e.g., FrontPage, Dreamweaver, web software input forms, Word, etc.) which codes the webpage in HTML or other web languages. Webpages on the Internet are "public" documents, and can be accessed from any Intnet connected computer in the world. Webpages are connected with other webpages, or collections of webpages (i.e., websites), by means of hypertext links (links, weblinks, hyperlinks).

1. To guide people to information they want or need.
To answer questions people ask.

2. To share your research and information with others.
To share photographs, artwork, or audio recordings.

4. To promote some point of view, opinion, belief,
political or religious agenda.

5. To collaborate with others or work on a team so as to
     accomplish objectives 1-4 above.
     To share information and discussion with a group on a
     specific topic or subject of interest to members of the group.
     Wikipedia
     PB Wiki or Wet Paint Wiki
   ThinkQuest Projects by Student Teams: Astronomy
     Yahoo Groups Directory
    Free Tools: Blogger, Yahoo Geocities

6. To provide instructions on how to do something.
To provide a tutorial for learning some skill.
To help others learn something.

7. To learn, practice and improve your website
     or webpage creation skills so as to get a good
     grade in a class and/or to gain employment as
     a webpage developer.

8. To share your personal point of view and life experiences
     with others.
     [Use caution, common sense, discretion and follow legal and ethical principles when doing this!
         CUESD students are not allowed to use MySpace or Facebook on the CUESD Internet.]

1. What is the purpose of your webpage?
     Who will read your publication? Who is your audience?
     Why do you want to create and publish a webpage?
     How much time do you have to research and publish
     your webpage?

2. What is your plan?
     How will you publish your information: webpage, blog, wiki?
     Who will host your webpage on the Internet?
     What is your action plan and timetable?

     Gather all the facts, ideas, information, images, links,
     references, and resources that will need to place on
     your webpage. Save all your work in Microsoft Word
     format. Research, write, research, link, rewrite, edit,
     and improve your work.

     Learn how to create correct, accurate and current hyperlinks.
     Practice hyper-linking until you are an expert at this task. Learn
     how to annotate or comment on or describe a hyperlink.   E.g.,

     Cloud Hands   A blog about mind/body movement arts such as tai chi chuan, qigong, yoga,
        walking and gardening. Updated regularly by Mike Garofalo to highlight additions and
        supplementary information for the Cloud Hands website.   Both the website and the
        supporting blog are a superior resource for information on Chinese internal martial arts,
        Chinese qigong (yoga), and both Yang and Sun styles of Taijiquan.

Decide upon and implement publication on the Internet via a website, webpage, blog, or wiki. You have more control and options
when you pay for web hosting services. Learn how to use the web publishing options you decide upon using. Practice and experiment
with the software you have chosen.

Content is King! Improve the quality and quantity of content. Research and study more. Discover new facts, new links, new resources. Read books, encyclopedias, reference manuals both in print and online. Become an expert in the topic of your choice.
Strive to offer the best webpage on the subject of your choice.

7. Promote your online publication.
Get into the major search engines. Use a blog to advertise. Get people to link to you when you link to them. Get people to review
your work.

8. Work to improve the appearance of your publication.
     There are many ways to improve the style, appearance, layout, format, and attractiveness of your webpages or blog. Learn how to do this or get people to help you to do this. Learn how to use all the features of your webpage editor. Learn how to use all the features of your webpage browser. Learn how to use graphics and photos on
your webpages or in your blog.     Show Photo in Gallery

9.   Get help from web publishing teachers, experts, mentors.
Take classes on webpage development. Read books on webpage development. Join groups or clubs devoted to improving your
skills in web publishing.   Think of jobs you could be working at
in high school using your web publishing skills.    Learn some Internet web publishing software languages (HTML, XML, XHTML, CSS, Java, Perl, Ajax, Soap, PHP, etc.).   Study online tutorials on webpage development. Start with some beginner's online tutorials.

If you are interested in joining the Maywood School Junior Webmasters Club, coordinated by Mike Garofalo, then send Mr. Garofalo an email and tell him about your interest and expertise.

Room 9, EAST computer lab at Maywood School has 4 copies of Microsoft FrontPage and 3 copies of Dreamweaver web publishing software. Everyone can, of course, use Microsoft Word to create effective webpages. Learn to save your work in progress on your own USB Flash drive.

Example of webpage created with Microsoft Word.
All CUESD school webpages are created with Microsoft Frontpage.

Example of Blogging to CUESD InfoZone.
    1. Create text and links
     2. Open your blog account and log in.
     3. Place information in the blog input area.
     4. Post the blog entry to the Internet.
     5. Check the entry on the Internet for accuracy.
     6. Log off your blog.

Room 13, Maywood Computer lab, has 37 copies of Microsoft FrontPage Express and Microsoft Word to use to create webpages.
Learn to save your work in progress on your own USB Flash drive.

Learn how to use all the features of your webpage editor. Learn how to use all the features of your webpage browser (Internet Explore, Firefox, Opera, etc.).

10. Internet publishing on the school's web servers.
Before your work can be published on the Maywood School Web Server and/or the EAST Project-EETT web server, you will need to follow all guidelines for webpage publication and have your webpage approved for publication by your science teachers (Mrs. Farmer or Mr. Dillon). Those students or teachers not part of the EAST-EETT3 Project will need to have approval and assistance from the CUESD webmasters (Mr. Garofalo or Mrs. Stout). Webmasters or Assistant Webmasters are authorized editors.

2. All webpages must have at least 10 links and all the links must be correctly cited
and working. One of the main purposes of webpages are to link to other related
webpages. Creating good links is like creating a good bibliography.

3. The content of all webpages should be appropriate, suitable, fair, accurate, respectable,
     and suitable for middle school students. Remember, your webpage, if accepted and
     posted to the web server (www.cuesdeett3.org) will be on the Internet for everyone
     to see. Your webpage represents you, your fellow students, your teachers, your
     school, the EETT3-EAST grant project, your family and your community.

4. Your webpage must respect copyright and scholarship rules. You can't copy other
     people's work without quoting them properly. Your webpage must represent your
     own original work. Using many images and graphics without permission from the
     creators is not appropriate. Are you avoiding plagiarism?

5. All webpages must be approved by the supervising teacher. Their decision is final.
     No webpages will be posted to the web server without your teacher's permission.
     Only some of the best webpages will be selected.

6. Students may only use their first name, initial of last name, and grade. For example,
Michael A., 7th grade. All students that worked on the project must be listed.

9. All webpages must include the following publication information, on the very
bottom of the webpage, for example:

   This webpage created by students from:
     Maywood Middle School
     Corning Union Elementary School District
     Corning, California
     Enhancing Education Through Technology Grant Project, Round 3
     Supervising Teacher: Mrs. Farmer, Science Teacher, EAST Facilitator
     Created by the following students: Michael A., 7th grade; Maria D., 7th grade;
                                                          Raphael R, 7th grade, and Tamara T., 7th grade.
     Team Email: mgarofal@cuesd.tehama.k12.ca.us
     Created February 9, 2006

Webmaster: Michael P. Garofalo, Technology and Media Services Supervisor, CUESD
EETT3-EAST Grant Project Manager