Building a Support Website
Dateline: 01/26/99, Updated 1/21/02
By Ann Zeise
Occasionally I get asked how I would recommend an improvement
to a website for a homeschooling support group or other homeschool
resource site. As I don't have all the answers, I have started
an email list for
homeschool webmasters. All of you who have a site (or wish
you did) about and for the homeschool community, and wish to
"talk techy" about making and improving your websites,
are welcome to join.
Here are some samples of sites that get across various essential
elements for a truly useful homeschooling support site. It is
by no means an exhaustive list of links and one could certainly
go beyond these elements and have a great site.
I am not going to get into design here. I realize that many
putting up these sites are not professional website designers.
What I look for is just how each sample site conveys essential
homeschooling information.
All the basic contact information should be on the top page.
I can't emphasize that enough.
Do remember the basics of good journalism and make sure that
the questions: "who, what, when, where and how" are
answered briefly on your welcome page.
It's a treat when I find a link page with loads of local resources,
such as good field trips, museums, and discounted learning materials
where homeschoolers can find what they need
and at good values.
I like when I see a contact list, but it concerns me when
actual home phone numbers are used. If you do put up phone numbers,
make sure you have each person's permission to do this online.
They may prefer to be contacted via email. A good way to list
a contact is to put up that person's first name and link it using
"mailto:account@isp.com" This way all a visitor need
do is click on it to bring up an email form, and in the meanwhile,
spammers can't collect the email addresses very easily.
Recently it was reported to me that people listed in a homeschool
newsletter were being harrassed by phone by a nut with a dubious
"educational" resource. It was suggested that those
wishing a free 800 number for use in connection with their support
work might visit the uConnect
website and sign up as a precaution. There is a fee associated
with how much time is used with this service.
Include some original content to draw people in on a regular
basis. I sometimes just look at email I've answered and use that
as a starter for a new feature. You could ask other people
from your support group who like to write to provide some
material. Make sure you label each essay with the author's name
and email address. You might be pleasantly surprised to be asked
for reprint permission from a major publication. Some sites put
up kids' work. Under this circumstance, use only the child's
first name and no email contact. Remember to link back to your
index from your content pages.
One essential piece of original content is an
essay on how homeschoolers can comply with state homeschooling
or attendance laws, and how,
locally, they are applied. If specific forms are required
in your locality, do include a sample form on a site! Show how
questions can be answered minimally so as not to reveal more
than necessary.
I like seeing a calendar of events that is kept up to date.
A simple list with the event coming up next on top, going down
chronologically, is fine. Just remember to remove the past events
at least within a week of the event. Have a handy way for people
in your support group to add events to the calendar. Some sites
use Bravenet
as a "engine" for update submission and other resources.
If you are having a conference this spring or summer, get
a page for it up early. It takes quite awhile after submission
to search engines for the page to start showing up. Do submit
the page to all the aggregating homeschooling sites, such as
mine and others who keep
calendars. Search on homeschooling events or homeschooling calendar.
You don't have to have much information on the starter conference
page even, just enough so that vendors can email you about booth
information and so that homeschoolers might be able to make vacation
plans to be in your city around conference time. Consider a shared online calendar.
To get your site "out there" you'll want to submit
to as many search engines as possible. Later, when you add a
new page or significantly edit an older page, you'll want the
"spiders" to come back. When I have created a new page,
I like to use a free online service called "Submit
Express" which submits my new page to the top search
engines all in one blow. Of course, what the search engine then
does is re-spider my site (relook at all the pathways). Some
of the search engines "rank" sites by how new the files
are on the site; another good reason to put up new material on
a regular basis: you'll begin to show up higher in the search
engines.
Web Links
Contact on Home Pages
Home-Educators
of Alabama Round Table
HEART is a well thought out website loaded with organized information
and links for Alabama homeschoolers and others, too.
Local Resources
The
Letter Home
Bay Shore Ed has a monthly newsletter of places to go and things
to do in Southern California.
Contact Lists
HSC
County Contacts
Contacts alphabetical by conuty. Email addresses are are spelled
out and hyperlinked. Home phone numbers are provided.
Original Content
Complying With Laws
Eight
Reasons Not to Register
Because there is no requirement to register in Illinois. Period.
By Harvey Bluedorn.
Calendar
LA South
Bay Homeschool Calendar
Nice wall-calendar format. Click on an event to go further down
the page for information.
Web Calendars
Share your homeschooling plans online, coordinate with others,
even store files.
Conference
Homeschool
Conferences Calendar
A national resource calendar of events of a conference nature
from Home Education Magazine.
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