Don't worry - its mostly good!
I cannot think of a better school/home connection than a teacher website. Forms, calendars, homework and other important details there for the asking 24/7/365. No more calling around town for missing spelling words or pulling a field trip form out of the garbage. A couple of quick clicks and parents are in the know. As a teacher, its my way to extend my classroom outside of the concrete walls. Extra websites, curricula details and other assistance can be offered via the site.
Another beneficial addition would be a section of appropriate websites for your students. Encyclopedias, games, and other classroom-friendly sites for kids to check out at home and eliminate the guesswork for parents. You'll be a hero around their kitchen table.
However, I'm a realist. After a busy day of working, running kids from practice-religion-music-scouts, and finally cooking dinner, probably the last thing many parents want to do is to open a lap top. I know I can barely keep up myself some days. The weekends seem to fly by. That being said, teacher websites need to be concise and pull together the most key elements for the parents - the "what's it to me" factor.
There is also nothing sadder than pulling open a teacher website to find it hopelessly outdated. You might as well not have one available - it will largely be ignored. If you cannot update a spelling list every single week, put out a monthly list or leave it off altogether. Consistency is also key - don't say you will list homework daily then forget it for a week or two.
Extra links are cool and do keep parents informed, but check them out every once in a while. Broken links are unprofessional, but even worse than that - runaway links that take you to not so appropriate sites.
Sharing student work and pictures on-line creates a homey feel, but check with school guidelines first. Ditto with parents. You might not be aware of a custody dispute or any other reason a parent might not want their child's name or picture on a public site.
Finally, be careful of your other websites and social networking (MySpace, FaceBook, LinkedIn). It would certainly be a trip to the principal's office for you if a student or parent googled your name and pulled up that not-so-appropriate vacation picture.
So with a little care, elbow grease and creativity, teacher websites can extend your classroom into the living room acheiving the coveted home-classroom connection.
