Web Evaluation: Classics For Kids

1. Name of Website: Classics For Kids
   

2. Web Site Address: www.classicsforkids.com
   

3. Copyright date and/or last update: ©2007, Cincinnati Classical Public Radio, Inc.

4. Author/organization Credentials: Provided by Cincinnati Classical Public Radio, WGUC 90.9
   

5. Web site design and ease of navigation: On a scale of 1 – 10 (1 being the lowest ease of use and 10 being the highest) I would give this site a 10! This site is incredible. The layout is fantastic, easy to use, and very kid safe and kid friendly. It even provides a feature that makes sure you know when you are leaving the “kid friendly” website and going to other websites that may not be so friendly through their link sections. While the site is built primarily for elementary students, it also has a “Teacher’s Section” and a “Parent’s Section”
   
   The “Kids” section is full of fun activities that incorporate learning into fun. You can listen to their weekly Kid’s radio show which teaches kids about music and music history while introducing them to classical music. The radio show is again very kid friendly, not boring like your normal classical radio show. The radio show is also time sensitive according to the seasons of the year. For example, the show for the week of Halloween is introducing students to Halloween music and teaching the history around this music and it’s composers. Listening to the show only requires a Flash plug in and doesn’t require a specific player like “Real Player”
   
   There are also links to listen to other music besides the pieces played on the radio show. The quality of this music is very good considering the speed at which it is played. There are links to games which are the best I’ve found on the internet for elementary instruction. My own children love these games and play them in their free time a lot.
   
   The “Teacher’s Section” includes great resources and lesson plans that are fantastic. The only drawback to the lesson plans is that unlike some other sites based in Texas, this Cincinnati based site does not include TEKS references. It would be well worth the effort to add this in for your use.
   
   The “Parent Resource” section is probably the weakest of the site. There is no new information on this page, it only points you to tools on the kids pages that are good in promoting music in the household.
   
   The only thing I dislike about this site is that when you load the home page it plays the same song every time. After a while of surfing through the site and going back to the home page, it get’s pretty annoying.
   
   
6. My response and recommendation for use: Again, I love this site and would recommend it’s use in the elementary music classroom. The “Music Dictionary” page would be a great tool for have students do research on terms you will be teaching in class. It presents the terms in a very fun way. I would also rely on some of the lesson plans provided in the “Teachers Section”. While these would have to be adapted for your needs and desires in the classroom, the way they tie in to the radio show and expose the kids to classical music in a fun way is incredible. I would especially encourage teachers to use the seasonal appropriate teaching to tie classical music into what is going on around them. Many students hear good classical music a lot but they don’t realize what it is. This site is a great tool for exposing them to great classics.