Juniors.net. Below you will find general information on the product, Evaluate’s interim product evaluation and a full classroom evaluation (where this has been completed). Click on the title bars to show or hide the interim and full evaluations.

Product: Juniors.net   Publisher: Netcradle Ltd www.juniors.net     Type: Website     Subject(s) supported: English   Science  Mathematics       Keystage(s) supported: keystage 2      Scheme(s) of work: No QCA Schemes of work available   Science – Scientific enquiry, Life processes and living things, Materials and their properties, Physical processes.     Technical specification(s) required: Mac  PC  Operating system:  Microsoft Windows 95  Processor speed: Intel P3 & P4 RAM: 128 Mb Additional Hardware: Soundcard         Cost(s) Home use: £90 a year (occasional promotional offers). School, depending on number of KS2 pupils: £118-£875 a year     Other information: Each activity is voiced over to aid pupils with reading difficulties.

The interim evaluation is an overview of the product based on the evaluator’s investigation of its capabilities outside the classroom environment. It provides information on the subject and scope of the product, its content and appearance, and the potential benefits it could offer teachers in the classroom.         Context: This evaluation covers use of the science section of Juniors.net. The website is suitable for KS2 and can be used by individuals, pairs or groups on networked or standalone machines. An interactive whiteboard and digital projector would allow whole class teaching. Earphones are required for those pupils who need reading support when working independently.     Technical information: There were no problems accessing the website. Flash Player 6 is necessary and is available as free download. Technical help is available by email. The on screen help section has a teachers’ FAQ section covering setting up and using activities. A user guide for teachers and pupils is also provided.     Design & navigation: Animation is used for cartoon characters, zooming in, changing background and opening doors to show contents. Graphics are colourful and text size is altered to emphasise facts. Users navigate by pull-down menus and clicking on arrows or coloured buttons. Activities can be pre-set by selecting from a list and allocating to named pupils. Clicking on Stuff Covered shows pupils’ completed work. The teachers’ area is separate from the parents’ site. On screen help covers setting up and using activities.     Content: Science missions consist of experiments and discoveries. Each mission is explained to the pupil with examples, self -testing questions and a summary. The reading level is appropriate for KS2. Interactive quizzes test several objectives covered in a term. Worksheets and tests can be printed out. Related feature articles are available on the parents’ and teachers’ areas of the site. A free monthly newsletter is available. There are three links to educational sites for further information.       Curriculum coverage:   The science section of Juniors.net covers about 75% of QCA schemes of work at end November 2003. Science topics include Life, Enquiry, Materials and Forces. Activities could be used to introduce work on an interactive whiteboard or to enable pupils to consolidate or revise on individual machines. The reward world covers some cross-curricular themes.       Learning outcomes:   I expect this resource will develop pupils’ knowledge of concepts/skills covered, and in science, their skills of investigation such as prediction and drawing conclusions from evidence. The Teachers’ Assessment area gives access to class or individual records for each activity; these can be printed.     Classroom management & preparation: Teachers need to be familiar with accessing websites and using drop-down menus. They should take time to get to know the website’s screen layout and activities. Pupils need basic internet skills, clicking, dragging, dropping, typing in boxes. Juniors.net is a tool to teach topics and skills, and enables pupils to apply those skills and test their understanding. Summaries aid recall of important material. Teachers can select activities according to the level of difficulty and the soundtrack assists pupils with reading difficulties. Personal pupil assessment records show activity score, percentage score, questions listed as correct, wrong or not attempted. Personalised certificates showing percentage scores can be created.     Summary: Juniors.net is a website with more than 800 interactive activities in the three core subjects for pupils in KS2. This evaluation focusses on science; at the end of November some 75% of the QCA schemes of work is covered. Teachers can preview and select activities for individuals or classes and print out worksheets. Each science tutorial or mission explains concepts and skills, gives examples, self-test questions and a summary. Navigation is straightforward; pupils can check which activities they have completed. Animated cartoon characters and colourful images combine with a soundtrack to assist pupils with reading difficulties, to make the site appropriate for all KS2 pupils. Fun activities in a virtual world reward pupils according to the number of points gained in the learning activities. Teachers can track individual and class progress and create certificates showing percentages achieved. Teachers' and Parents’ areas contain feature articles and advice on educational matters.