School+Library+Websites

=**This page contains links and information to assist school librarians in creating excellent school library websites.**= =** Think about your school library web page: **= =** Here are examples of great school library web pages as well as links to other timely information for school librarians. **= = The following list is fro **m [|Library Girl. Net]**=
 * =**Is it welcoming to the K-12 students/parent community and does it avoid stating the ‘rules’ at first glance? **=
 * =**Does it have links to items that students enjoy or want to use? **=
 * =**Does it have links to student work? **=
 * =**Does it have links to lesson plans and/or assessments that you have co-developed with your staff? **=

__**5 Things Every School Library Website Should Have:** __


 * 1) **A focus on teaching:** If teaching is what you do, your website should reflect it. Whether you do it through a a library blog, a teaching/learning wiki, a collection of slideshows, or any number of other elements, your site should showcase the LEARNING that takes place in the library. Everybody already expects a library to have books. Your website should show them something they don't (but should!) expect about school libraries/librarians and how they impact kids.
 * 2) **Examples of student work:** One sure fire way to get parents to visit your site is to make it a gallery of student work. Posting student work on your site not only provides the student with an opportunity for real world publication but it also emphasizes your role as an instructional partner within the school.
 * 3) **Opportunities for participation:** If teaching students about digital citizenship and the ethical use of information is part of your mission, then your website should be an online laboratory where students get to put those skills to work. I know. I know. It's scary to give kids control of your library's public face, but you don't need to hand them the keys to the kingdom to do it. There are lots of interactive web 2.0 tools, from [|Wallwisher] to [|ThingLink,] that provide students/parents/teachers with the chance to contribute to the library's web presence. By making your website a collaborative space, you're also inviting your visitors to take ownership of your programs and the work that is created there.
 * 4) **Evolving resources for your evolving audience:** If we want our libraries to be thought of as THE place to find the __most__ up to date, the __most__ relevant and the __most__ cutting edge resources, our websites need to contain resources of equally high quality. Tired lists of out of date links will not cut it. The resources we share on our websites need to a) be updated frequently to reflect student needs b) be directly linked to student learning and/or our school(district/state)'s mission and c) be a part of our own practice in the library.
 * 5) **Flavor:** Finally, your website should give visitors a taste of the library experience that __you__ have created. If your library is a fun, noisy place filled with opportunities for kids to grow and learn, your website should reflect that. Every library is different as a result of all the people who spend time there learning and creating, your website should offer visitors a taste of the flavor that is unique to your school library experience.

=Best practices in school library website design = From University of North Carolina website: Learn NC

=Exemplary School Library Websites = From School Media Toolbox

=<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">School Library Websites =