w3kids.com

The two best things about w3kids.com are the choices it gives kids and the multiple ways it helps to reinforce learning. For example, in the math area, it's awesome that kids can decide whether to use multiple choice or direct entry. The option to see the answer instead of just getting it wrong (what if they can't remember how many legs a crab has?) -- that's what learning is all about. The same can be said for puzzles; whereas four puzzle pieces are just the right amount for most younger kids, there might be some spatially talented kids who would be psyched for the challenge of 16. The way that the word-recognition activities reinforce topic areas by using the same content is simply genius.

The single worst thing about w3kids.com is the age mismatch between usability and content: Most content is geared toward the range of kindergarten to second-grade kids, but usability is often more in the second to third grade zone. It's not quite as intuitive and sophisticated as it needs to be for the youngest kids to make the best use of the site on their own. One example is that in the Practice Numbers activity, the target numbers and radio buttons are relatively small, so it's not totally clear for emerging learners to figure out exactly what they're supposed to do. Also, reading level is often too high for little ones, which can add to confusion. Additionally, the website appears to be in a beta phase, and its strange presentation frequently confirms this "under development" status. Text doesn't always fit on menu bars, some sections are missing content, and images don't always layout cleanly. Plus, kids can choose to see the whole puzzle image but can't change midstream if they find the puzzle is too difficult, and they'll lose their work if they do. Although w3kids does seem to have lots of possible ways to engage kids, its content missteps and design errors prevent it from fully accomplishing its educational goals.