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The Internet is no longer a place where only adults gather. So if your kids are spending time on the Internet, why not help them build their first website? It can prove to be an entertaining and safe way for them to have fun online.

Please note that we’re talking about website builders for adults. Though they’re so intuitive that even kids can use them, they’re aren’t exclusively designed for children. But parents can use them to show how easy and fast building a website can be.

At this point, you will wonder whether there are niche site builders for kids. Frankly, we failed to find any decent services. We did find several web services labeled as ‘website builders for kids’, but when we registered we were more than disappointed.

Wix – The Best Website Builder for Kids

Instead, we’ll show you some of the easiest website builders that you can use to teach your kids upload images, relink pages and create unique content.

Wix – is the most popular, easy-to-user and convenient all-in-one website builder, which ensures intuitive and user-friendly web building environment both for adults and children. Even though, the system does not have any separate education programs or offers, it is still a great place to show kids what it takes to start, customize and publish a quality website. The system works great for the development of business website, small and medium web stores, portfolios and even promo websites. The multi-purpose nature of the service makes it a great pick for the creation of a website for kids.

Wix Features

• Visual Editor. Wix’s editor is fun and very easy-to-navigate. Similar to the most part of such platforms, Wix allows for a visual way of website creation, thanks to its drag-and-drop/WYSIWYG editor. Its colorful control panel is easy-to-navigate – you’ll never get lost there.
• Wix ADI and Standard Editor. The use of the standard editor is a great solution that helps a child independently design a website with the system, explore its control panel and experiments with the toolset. Application of the Wix ADI feature, in its turn, will let a kid see how the process of website creation occurs and take active part in it.
• Mobile-Ready Templates. The website builder boasts one of the richest template collections, which currently encompasses over 550 designs. A child has an opportunity to pick any design he/she likes and start customizing it. Another option is to start with a completely blank theme and customize it from scratch.
• App Market – The website builder grants access to the extensive App Market with lots of free and paid widgets that can be integrated into a project. A kid doesn’t have to use paid apps when exploring the feature set of the website builder, while the use of free widgets may have positive impact upon his/her web design skills.
• Blogging – Wix comes with a powerful integrated blogging engine, which make it possible to start a full-featured blog. This is a nice kind of project, which can be interesting for kids willing to organize a web-based community of co-thinkers or just manage a personal blog, updating it on a regular basis.
• Free Plan – Wix has a free plan, which extends for the unlimited period of time. This means that a child can create a website without any fees, thus practicing and improving web design skills. This is a great start for everyone!

It won’t take much time to explore Wix, but a child will be able to express creative freedom, experimenting with template customization tools and options the system has in stock.

uCoz – Absolutely Free Website Builder

uCoz – is one of the oldest and the most well-known representatives of the web building niche. It stands out from the crowd due to the impressive and rich feature set, powerful functionality and multiple design customization options. The service works well for simple websites for personal use, blogs, business websites, forums, landing pages, portfolios and even online stores. A kid can easily master the system to create interesting websites with it.

uCoz Features

• User-Friendly Interface. The system has a simple and intuitive interface, which is easy-to-understand even to children. All the elements and sections are on their places here.
• Full Access to Code Editing. uCoz provides full control over CSS and HTML editing options, thus allowing for deeper website customization. This is how a kid will be able to learn coding basics and practice the skills.
• Module-Based Structure. The website builder comes with a list of convenient and easy-to-use modules (blog, forum ets) a kid can arrange and modify as he or she needs. Modules will come in handy to a child, enabling him/her to use versatile approaches to the web building process. This skills may be further applied to create a website of his/her website or a sports team, for example.
• Rich Template Selection. uCoz offers over 20 categories of ready-made templates. The collection is regularly being updated to provide freedom of choice. There is also an opportunity to install an own theme to give your website individual design.
• Free Version. uCoz has a free version that never expires yet offers a rich toolset to ensure decent and engaging web building experience. There is even a possibility to connect your own domain at no cost at all here.
• uCoz is an ideal website builder for kids, exploring the basics of website creation. Its interface is understandable to all users with no exception at all. The system is free to use for everyone, unveiling useful web design information and system nuances in the easy-to-perceive way. This knowledge and skills will further make it possible to create quality websites to come up to the needs of a child. uCoz also implies exploration of the basic web technologies like CSS, HTML, PHP, domain connection and management etc.

These features matter a lot for children, who make their first steps in the web design niche.

WordPress – Free and Easiest CMS

WordPress – is the most popular free open-source CMS, which is comparatively easy to use for kids. The system was initially launched as a blogging platform, but it further developed into an all-in-one platform with powerful feature set. When using WordPress, your kid will be able to develop different types of websites, starting with simple landing pages and personal projects and up to complex portfolios, blogs, online stores and business websites.

WordPress Features

• Ease of Use. WordPress is the easiest and the most convenient CMS for children. Its intuitive dashboard and easy-to-navigate interface make the platform a worthy choice for parents willing to teach their kids the basics of website creation in a simple and understandable way.
• Free Template Selection. WordPress is known for its numerous free templates that are both integrated and available online. Template quality is on a decent level. They are responsive and fully customizable. It makes sense to use pre-designed WordPress themes for a kid’s website, which are 100% secured from malicious codes.
• Powerful Blogging Engine. The CMS stands out from the crowd due to its powerful blogging engine. Your child will be able to start and manage a personal blog, thus practicing website development skills.
• Plugins. WordPress comes with rich plugin selection that are either available in stock or can be downloaded from the web. Plugin integration will notably contribute to website performance and visual appeal.
• Extensive Code Editing Options. By using the system, children are able to learn and use code editing skills for better project presentation and unique design creation.
• Strong Community Support. One of the undeniable highlights of the system is its powerful and strong community forum that can help kids find answers to their questions and solve any problem they might face.
• Free Hosting Choice. WordPress provides users with freedom of choice, when it comes to hosting selection. So, if your son or daughter has created a website that is worth being published on the web, you are welcome to select the hosting you give preference to.

WordPress is a renowned CMS, which is absolutely free for everyone, who is going to create a website on the subdomain (if you hosting provider supports such a free option). The system is the most popular and easy-to-use web building solution for children, providing multiple web building tools and even code editing option that can enhance the performance and visual appeal of a project.

How to Teach a Child to Build a Website

Whether it is your child, who has the desire to master the web design “science” or it is you, who wants to evoke his/her interest in website development, you need to make up the to-do list that will help you complete the process with ease. So, what should you start with and what are those must-have steps to be included into this list? Let’s have a quick overview of it now.

1. Reveal the Notion of the “Website”. What is a website? How does it work? What is it used for and what are the most popular types of websites one can create? These are the basic questions you should discuss with your kid even before you actually proceed to the process of website development. It’s important to make your child understand the real goals a website may serve and the actual reasons people might have to launch it.
2. Discuss Popular Web Building Tools. The next step is to provide information about the available web building tools. It’s crucial to underline that learning the basic coding knowledge is desirable, if your kid really wants to succeed at website creation. However, you should also point out that there are special services – website builders – that are created specifically with the needs and skills of beginners in mind. These systems mostly come with a user-friendly and intuitive interface and make it possible to watch every step of the website creation process (as well as the final result) in the visual editor. This matters a lot for newbies, including kids.
3. Focus on the Basic Web Design Aspects. Prior to proceeding to website creation, you have to familiarize your kid with the basics of website design. Tell him/her about the general website structure – header, body and footer – and other must-have elements a standard website is comprised of.
4. Let Your Kid Create a DIY Website. Theory is great and it’s actually important, but nothing will teach your kid better than practice. So, choose a website builder that appeals to you and your child most of all, pick a blank template and… provide your kid with absolute freedom of actions. Let him/her experiment with available web design tools, website elements and options. This may take some time, but it’s really worth that as your child will learn to express his/her creativity and ideas in the process of website development instead of using ready-made design solutions.
5. Discuss SEO Basics. As soon as the website template is ready, it is high time to tell your kid about the basics of Search Engine Optimization and its role in successful website promotion. It’s quite easy to explain that: if your kid wants his/her newly-created website to become accessible online to his/her friends or classmates, for example, correct SEO set up is a must.
6. Get a Domain Name. It goes without saying that boosting SEO positions of a newly-created website is impossible without a proper domain name. Tell your child about the essence of the domain name and the way it should ideally look like. Explain how to pick the right domain and how to connect it to the website. The only possible way to do that is to get the domain for a website by purchasing a paid subscription. However, it is also possible to get a domain for free. To find out the details, go ahead to read this article.

Yes, this will require some financial investments, but this will become an important part of the educational process, which will let you explain the domain choice importance on practice. What’s more, your kid will also feel responsible and “adult” to use a paid plan, which will be an extra urge for him/her to work hard for further blog/website development. This solution works great for teenagers, of course. When working with a younger kid, though, a free plan will be quite enough for the start.

Having a website is an advantage in itself as it’s close to impossible to reach the majority of business or personal goals without having quality online presentation. That’s why, it is so important to teach kids the basics of website development. This might be a pretty good investment into their further education and professional advancement in the long run. Irrespective of your kids’ future profession, the basic knowledge of web design won’t be useless anyway. You never know what exactly will come in handy to your kid one day. So, why not focus on this interesting and so trendy occupation together?