"Explore Countries" is an application designed to give young people across the globe the opportunity to learn about other countries' history, culture, flags, foods, animals, and other fun facts. It's like going on a field trip around the world, at any time, without leaving your chair!

The best part about the "Explore Countries" experience is that, most of the time, the websites where you will find interesting information on each country are hand-picked by young people just like YOU. That way, you can be sure that your field trip is hosted by true experts on your topic, and updated all the time! Looking at a website about French cheeses? It might have been recommended by a youngster from the French countryside that LOVES cheese, has a favorite website that he checks all the time to look up cheeses that he's never heard of. Learning about traditional Japanese holidays? That website might have been submitted by schoolchildren in the U.S.A. who have just finished a project on Japanese holidays, and would like to share their knowledge with YOU. It doesn't matter where you are from, only that you have found a GREAT website and want to share it with the rest of the world.

The tutorials below will explain, step-by-step, how to have one of your favorite websites added to a country's list.

Finding a Web Site

With BILLIONS of websites on the internet, how do you find the one that has the most relevant information on the topic you are looking for?

Use a "search engine" like Google or Yahoo to find information on topics that you request. You can even phrase your request in different ways to get more accurate results. For instance, if you were looking for information on "dinosaur eggs," you could type the following into a search engine's text box:

• dinosaur eggs (no problem with this, but it might return vague results)
• "dinosaur eggs" (adding quotation marks will make sure results include the entire phrase "dinosaur eggs")
• dinosaur AND eggs NOT chicken (adding words like AND, OR, and NOT can make your searches even more accurate. These words are called Boolean operators, and you can read more about them here)

By default, search engines usually report about ten results per page. You can increase this (maybe to 100 results?) by adjusting the search engine's "Preferences," located near the top of the screen.

HINT: You can also use Wikipedia to find internet sites related to your topic. Simply navigate to Wikipedia's front page, choose a language, and enter your search term. When you find a Wikipedia article pertaining to your topic, scroll down near the bottom of the page. Usually, there will be a section entitled "References," or "Related Links." These sections contain links to useful websites, recommended by Wikipedia authors.

Deciding Whether a Web Site is Good (or Great)

What makes a website a good choice for addition to the "Explore Countries" application? Well, each website that you suggest will add to the experience of the "global field trip." You should pick sites that are:

Appropriate: Recommended websites should contain material that is appropriate for viewing by families and children.

Relevant: Recommended websites should deal with one interesting topic in-depth, such as "Egyptian Food" or "Holidays in Turkey." Hint: Check to see if the Title of the page specifically mentions your topic.

Trusted: Recommended websites should be chosen from a mix of primary and secondary sources, and should avoid websites with lots of paid advertisements and disruptive features (such as "pop-ups")

Suggesting a Website for Addition to "Explore Countries"

This tutorial will walk you through all the steps needed to add a new website to the "Explore Countries" global field trip. First, you will learn how to capture your website's address in URL form, and then you will take a screenshot of what the website looks like on-screen. Next, you will write a short creative description that will "grab" people's attention and encourage them to visit the site. Lastly, you will learn how to submit your package of information for approval and addition.

Capturing Your Website's Address

When you find a website that you really like, highlight its entire URL (starts with "http://") in the address bar of your internet browser, go to the "Edit" menu item and select "Copy" (alternatively you can press the shortcut Ctrl + C on your keyboard). This will copy your selection to the Clipboard.

Open a text editing program (like Notepad) and Paste the URL into the document ("Edit"→"Paste", or Ctrl + V, alternatively). This will Paste your text from the Clipboard, to the document. (To double-check the URL, copy the URL from the text-editor and paste it back into the address bar of an internet browser to see if it works)

Creating a Short Description for Your Website

Now that you have your website's address (URL) in a safe place, you can get started writing a short description of the website that will encourage people to visit. Browse around "Explore Countries" to see good examples of website descriptions, written by other field trip leaders just like you. Remember to keep it short and simple, and be really specific about what sorts of fun things you can find at your recommended site; for example, "Make sure you scroll to the bottom of the page, and click the lion face to hear an actual African Lion roar!".

Creating your Thumbnail Image

Creating a "Thumbnail" Image is a lot of fun, because it allows you to show visitors a tiny peek of the site, to get them excited about going there. To create a "thumbnail" image, we are going to take a "snapshot" of the screen while you are browsing the website, and then bring that snapshot into an image editing program to get it ready for submission. First, navigate to your recommended website. If it looks correct on-screen, press the button on the top-right of your keyboard marked "Print Screen," or "Prt Sc." This will take a snapshot of the entire screen at this moment in time, and copy it as an image to the Clipboard. Open your favorite image-editing program, and select "New..." from the File Menu. This will create a new document that is the same size as the image you have copied to the Clipboard. When you have this new document open, Paste (Ctrl + V) the "snapshot" into the document. The recommended thumbnail size for this application is 150x100 pixels, and the recommended format is JPG/GIF. There are many ways to get your thumbnail into this format; here is an easy one:

• Open up a new document (File→New...) and set its size as 150x100 pixels.
• Copy your "screenshot" onto the new, smaller canvas. Use the SCALE tool to manipulate and shrink your images, until just the right amount is visible in the 150x100 pixel window. Then save your work (File→Save As...) as a JPG or GIF, and make sure you save it into your project folder so it can be easily retrieved.

Submitting Your Site for Review

(Procedures for submission [to be established], Terms and Conditions [if this terminology even fits], Trigger [final template for submission, which will be comprise a URL, a short text description, and a properly-formatted thumbnail image].