Web Design

A career skills flyer highlighting web design, with images of a computer and smartphone displaying websites, and the text 'Prepare yourself for success, be future ready.'

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.

  • 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.

    • 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.

  • CAD $500

  • 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.

  • Training model: online

    Course length: 4-5 weeks, 20-25hrs

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  • “I loved the patience of the instructor. He was willing to answer all of our questions and repeat things, if needed. He made the material non-intimidating and approachable. It was clear he has a true passion for the area. He also made it relevant by adding in entrepreneurship and marketing tips.”

    -Dilzayn

  • “I liked the instructor and the knowledge I gained from the course”

    -Liliane