Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Weebly Offers Educator Accounts (FREE!!)



Weebly is a place where you can create a website for free. I saw it a long time ago, but didn't consider it much different from many other sites I've suggested.

However, I have now learned from another CRS (http://edtechtipster.blogspot.com/) and probably also from http://www.freetech4teachers.com/ because he has EVERYTHING on his blog, that it now offers an educators' section.

At weebly for education (http://education.weebly.com), you can create your own site and even have students submit assignments there. I know we have Sharepoint, but this is just another option. Since the site is private, it's secure. You can also create a blog--what a great way to communicate with students and parents!

But even better, you can get free accounts for your students (and they don't need email addresses!!), and those accounts are also private. Students can create their own website--something we REALLY need to be teaching them--and they can use it for an electronic portfolio. The good thing about the portfolio is that once they are finished with your class, weebly will convert their account from a student account to a regular weebly account, so they will have access to their work forever. After all, that's what the portfolios are for--so they can take them with them when they leave.

I created a sample one in very little time, in spite of the fact that Internet Explorer kept freezing and crashing, and I had to restart my computer. (Oh what a surprise.) It's very simple, but you are welcome to look at it as a sample of what you and your students can do. http://beachgirl78.weebly.com

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