The Internet and Websites
When your family watches videos of a puppy, checks the weather, or looks up a recipe, you are visiting a website. There are more than one billion websites in the world! Today you'll learn what a website really is and how the internet lets pages travel from far-away computers to the screen in front of you.
- What the internet is and how it connects computers - What a website is made of - What a link does when you click it - How to stay safe when visiting websites
- What the internet is and how it connects computers - What a website is made of
What Is the Internet?
The internet is a giant web of connections between computers all over the world. Think of it like invisible roads connecting every computer, phone, and tablet on Earth. When you ask to see a website, your device sends a message zooming along these invisible roads to a special computer called a server, and the server sends the website back to you -- often in less than one second!
A website is a page (or group of pages) stored on a server that you can visit using the internet, usually filled with words, pictures, and sometimes videos.
What's on a Website?
Most websites have a few common parts: a name at the top (like a store's sign), pictures, words to read, and buttons you can click called links. A link is like a magic door -- when you click it, it takes you to a different page or a whole different website.
Businesses Use Websites Too
Just like a toy store has a sign and shelves of toys, a business puts up a website so people far away can see what it sells. A bakery's website might show pictures of cupcakes and a button that says 'Order Now.' That's an early example of what grown-ups call marketing -- showing people something so they want to visit or buy it.
Always ask a grown-up before clicking on a link you don't recognize or typing your name into a website.
What is a server's job?
What does clicking a link on a website usually do?
Flashcards — click each card to reveal the answer
Design Your Own Website
On a piece of paper, draw your own pretend website. Give it a name at the top, draw one picture, write one sentence about what it's for, and draw one button that would be a 'link.' Tell a grown-up where your link would take someone if they clicked it.
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