Website Design - Squarespace
In this course, you will employ visual design practices and principles to create an attractive, 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.
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Course Outline
Week 1:
Introduction to the Web Design Course
Lesson 1: Form versus Function
Lesson 2: Website planning process
Lesson 3: Interface design
Week 2:
Lesson 4: Site structure
Lesson 5: Site design
Lesson 6: Text and fonts
Lesson 7: Pictures and basic graphic design
Week 3:
Lesson 8: Creating a page layout
Lesson 9: Getting content ready
Lesson 10: Building your site
Lesson 11: Getting noticed: marketing campaigns
Week 4:
Lesson 12: Publish your website
Lesson 13: Authoring systems - squarespace project
Lesson 14: Squarespace project
Week 5:
Lesson 15: Squarespace project: peer review
Lesson 16: Squarespace project: finalise and submit
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 exam (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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● Ability to speak, understand and write in 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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500 CA$
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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: 5 weeks, 25h
Schedule: Mon and Wed (6-8:30pm)
Dates: