Web Design on Squarespace
Course Description
In this course, you will employ visual design practices and principles to create an attractive, user-friendly and functional website. Through a thorough investigation of design thinking and website models, you are introduced to concepts such as interface design, page structure and content management. These concepts are then given the context of visual design principles to help you make layout and design choices that are user-centric and functional.
You will practice the layout design process to create sketches and wireframes of your designs. With plans in place, you will then implement the design to effectively style and layout web page elements accurately. Finally, you will go a step further to ensure this design is flexible and responsive on the many devices that could be used to visit your site. To advertise the site, you will create a marketing strategy that outlines your new site, your services and products and more about your organization.
Through creating a mental model of how web development works, clients are exposed to the big picture of how users interact with websites. Finally, you will dive into the inner workings of the web to remove the mystery and build a clear picture of how websites work. Ultimately, the goal of this course is to prepare students to design and build beautiful, functional websites that meet the needs of their target audience
Course details
Web Design on Squarespace: Tuesdays and Thursdays for 4-5 weeks. This online course is 5 weeks long, including a 30-minute period during each session to complete the final project (create a Squarespace website). The actual time commitment involved in completing any given lesson can vary significantly based on a number of factors including reading speed, familiarity with the topic, related experience, the amount of time spent completing optional assignments, and involvement with the discussion board. For planning purposes, we suggest setting aside 2 hours per lesson as a starting point.
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Course Outline:
Week 1:
Intro to Skills for Change
Intro to Web Design course
30 minute introduction to Skills for Change
30 minute overview of the Course
Lesson 1: Form vs Function
Form versus function of website
Go through example websites
Design thinking model and framework
Marketing personas and audience
Lesson 2: Website planning process
Creating a Content Strategy
Content Planning, Research, and Writing
Analysis of the ‘competitor’ website
Lesson 3: Interface design
Usability
Visualization
Functionality
Accessibility
Week 2:
Lesson 4: Site Structure
Steps in organizing content
Create a flowchart or
sitemap
Activating strategy with content
Lesson 5: Site Design
Explore usability, content, and design with site design themes
Organize elements for information delivery
Lead Generation and Funnel Optimization
Lesson 6: Text and Fonts
Design Elements: Text and Fonts
Content strategy
Lesson 7: Pictures and Basic Graphic Design
Introduction to Web Graphics
Effective uses of graphics
Prepare and use your own pictures
Week 3:
Lesson 8: Creating a Page Layout
Page layouts with grids and box model
How to use headers and footers
How to create sections
Lesson 9: Getting Content Ready
Getting people to notice SEO, backlinks, targeted marketing techniques
Make your site stand out in the crowd
Lesson 10: Building your Site
How to design a layout
Templates
Liquid or responsive designs versus fixed layouts
Lesson 11: Getting Noticed - Marketing Campaigns
Plan, research, write, and execute a marketing campaign
Promote your content and reach your target audience
Splitting and reformatting content for SEO
Week 4:
Lesson 12: Publish your Website
Validating Websites
Testing Usability, Visualization, Functionality, Accessibility
Lesson 13: Authoring Systems - Squarespace Project
Authoring Systems and WYSIWYG
Develop a complete website
Work through design model and framework
Document and receive feedback Instructor Question and Answer
Week 5:
Squarespace Project (peer review)
Authoring Systems and WYSIWYG
Develop a complete website
Work through design model and framework
Document and receive feedback
Instructor Question and Answer, mentoring and ‘lead designer
Share, Like and Subscribe everywhere!
Learning Outcomes
1. Recognize the impact of design thinking and website models on developing and interacting with websites
2. Recognize the complexity and needs of your target audience
3. Identify the importance of designing to communicate effectively
4. Construct a mental model of how the web works
5. Identify the common tools used in web development
6. Create a WYSIWYG website using Squarespace
Course Evaluation:
This online course is 5 weeks long, including a 30-minute period during each session to complete the final project (create a Squarespace website).
The actual time commitment involved in completing any given lesson can vary significantly based on a number of factors including reading speed, familiarity with the topic, related experience, the amount of time spent completing optional assignments, and involvement with the discussion board.
For planning purposes, we suggest setting aside 2 hours per lesson as a starting point
Final Project:
In the capstone project, learners will create a beautiful and user-friendly website on Squarespace. Clients will work on the website in each class and finalize it before the last day of class.
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Intermediate level of speaking, writing and understanding English (CLB6)
Ability to use a computer with a stable internet connection.
Have an email address to sign up to Squarespace.
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CAD $500
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Quinten Sheriff, a veteran of the L&D and design industry, shares the philosophy that true innovation happens when you truly understand your client's needs. This passion has driven his work from being an educator and technology specialist in five different countries, across Africa, Asia, and South America to now being a consultant in human performance, design, and marketing and business strategy in Canada. Quinten has collaborated with global partners on transformation projects and led design and educational technology teams. He is passionate about digital learning and collaboration, learning technology, and being a change agent and problem solver.
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Training model: online
Course length: 4-5 weeks, 20-25hrs