Lesson 8 – HTML & CSS
I. Introduction
Welcome to the world of web development! Whether you're looking to build
stunning websites, create interactive user interfaces, or enhance your career in tech,
learning HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) is the
first step.
II. Learning Outcomes
At the end of the lesson, the student should be able to:
• Explain the fundamental structure and syntax of HTML and CSS, including their
roles in web development.
• Explain the fundamental structure and syntax of HTML and CSS, including their
roles in web development.
• Create and structure a basic web page using semantic HTML elements (e.g.,
headings, paragraphs, lists, links, images).
• Apply CSS to style web pages by modifying layout, colors, fonts, and other
design aspects.
• Use external, internal, and inline CSS effectively to manage styles.
• Implement responsive design techniques using media queries and CSS
properties.
• Debug and validate HTML and CSS code to ensure web standards compliance.
• Optimize web pages for usability and accessibility.
• Design and build a fully functional, visually appealing web page or a simple
website incorporating HTML and CSS principles.
III. Learning Contents
• HTML
• Introduction
• Editors
• Basic
• Elements
• Attributes
• Headings
• Paragraphs
• CSS
IV. Content
Why Learn HTML and CSS?
HTML and CSS form the backbone of web development:
• HTML structures the content of a webpage, such as headings, paragraphs,
images, and links. Think of it as the skeleton of a website.
• CSS styles that content, controlling the colors, fonts, layouts, and overall
appearance, much like the skin and clothes of a website.
With these two technologies, you can create everything from simple personal blogs to
complex business websites.
What You'll Learn
1. HTML Basics:
o Understanding HTML elements and tags (e.g., <h1>, <p>, <img>)
o Structuring content using headings, paragraphs, lists, tables, and forms
o Linking pages and adding multimedia like images and videos
2. CSS Fundamentals:
o Applying styles with selectors and properties
o Managing colors, fonts, and spacing
o Designing layouts with box models, grids, and flexbox
o Enhancing responsiveness for mobile and desktop devices
Why This is Important
By mastering HTML and CSS, you'll gain the foundational skills to:
• Build and style your own websites
• Understand and collaborate with developers and designers
• Transition into more advanced web technologies like JavaScript, frameworks,
and backend programming
Getting Started
All you need is a text editor (like Visual Studio Code) and a web browser. No prior
coding experience? No problem! HTML and CSS are beginner-friendly and intuitive,
making them a great entry point for learning programming and design.
Let’s dive in and start creating!
HTML is the standard markup language for Web pages. With HTML you can create
your own website.
Code Output
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Page Title</title>
</head>
<body>
<h1>This is a Heading</h1>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
</body>
</html>
What is HTML?
• HTML stands for Hyper Text Markup Language
• HTML is the standard markup language for creating Web pages
• HTML describes the structure of a Web page
• HTML consists of a series of elements
• HTML elements tell the browser how to display the content
• HTML elements label pieces of content such as "this is a heading", "this is a
paragraph", "this is a link", etc.
Code Output
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Page Title</title>
</head>
<body>
<h1>My First Heading</h1>
<p>My first paragraph.</p>
</body>
</html>
Example Explained
• The <!DOCTYPE html> declaration defines that this document is an HTML5
document
• The <html> element is the root element of an HTML page
• The <head> element contains meta information about the HTML page
• The <title> element specifies a title for the HTML page (which is shown in the
browser's title bar or in the page's tab)
• The <body> element defines the document's body, and is a container for all the
visible contents, such as headings, paragraphs, images, hyperlinks, tables,
lists, etc.
• The <h1> element defines a large heading
• The <p> element defines a paragraph
What is an HTML Element?
An HTML element is defined by a start tag, some content, and an end tag:
<tagname> Content goes here... </tagname>
The HTML element is everything from the start tag to the end tag:
<h1>My First Heading</h1>
<p>My first paragraph.</p>
Start tag Element content End tag
<h1> My First Heading </h1>
<p> My first paragraph. </p>
<br> none none
Note: Some HTML elements have no content (like the <br> element). These elements
are called empty elements. Empty elements do not have an end tag!
Web Browsers
The purpose of a web browser (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari) is to read HTML
documents and display them correctly.
A browser does not display the HTML tags, but uses them to determine how to display
the document:
HTML Page Structure
Below is a visualization of an HTML page structure:
Note: The content inside the <body> section will be displayed in a browser. The content
inside the <title> element will be shown in the browser's title bar or in the page's tab.
HTML History
Since the early days of the World Wide Web, there have been many versions of HTML:
Year Version
1989 Tim Berners-Lee invented www
1991 Tim Berners-Lee invented HTML
1993 Dave Raggett drafted HTML+
1995 HTML Working Group defined HTML 2.0
1997 W3C Recommendation: HTML 3.2
1999 W3C Recommendation: HTML 4.01
2000 W3C Recommendation: XHTML 1.0
2008 WHATWG HTML5 First Public Draft
2012 WHATWG HTML5 Living Standard
2014 W3C Recommendation: HTML5
2016 W3C Candidate Recommendation: HTML 5.1
2017 W3C Recommendation: HTML5.1 2nd Edition
2017 W3C Recommendation: HTML5.2
Learn HTML Using Notepad or TextEdit
Web pages can be created and modified by using professional HTML editors.
However, for learning HTML we recommend a simple text editor like Notepad (PC) or
TextEdit (Mac).
We believe that using a simple text editor is a good way to learn HTML.
Follow the steps below to create your first web page with Notepad or TextEdit.
Step 1: Open Notepad (PC)
Open the Start Screen (the window symbol at the bottom left on your screen). Type Notepad.
Or Open Start > Programs > Accessories > Notepad
Step 2: Write Some HTML
Write or copy the following HTML code into Notepad:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<body>
<h1>My First Heading</h1>
<p>My first paragraph.</p>
</body>
</html>
Step 3: Save the HTML Page
Save the file on your computer. Select File > Save as in the Notepad menu.
Name the file "[Link]" and set the encoding to UTF-8 (which is the preferred encoding for HTML
files).
Tip: You can use either .htm or .html as file extension. There is no difference; it is up to you.
Step 4: View the HTML Page in Your Browser
Open the saved HTML file in your favorite browser (double click on the file, or right-click - and choose
"Open with").
The result will look much like this:
HTML Basic Examples
HTML Documents
All HTML documents must start with a document type declaration: <!DOCTYPE
html>.
The HTML document itself begins with <html> and ends with </html>.
The visible part of the HTML document is between <body> and </body>.
The <!DOCTYPE> Declaration
The <!DOCTYPE> declaration represents the document type, and helps browsers
to display web pages correctly.
It must only appear once, at the top of the page (before any HTML tags).
The <!DOCTYPE> declaration is not case sensitive.
The <!DOCTYPE> declaration for HTML5 is:
HTML Headings
HTML headings are defined with the <h1> to <h6> tags.
<h1> defines the most important heading. <h6> defines the least important
heading:
Example
HTML Paragraphs
HTML paragraphs are defined with the <p> tag:
Example
HTML Links
HTML links are defined with the <a> tag:
Example
The link's destination is specified in the href attribute.
Attributes are used to provide additional information about HTML elements.
You will learn more about attributes in a later chapter.
HTML Images
HTML images are defined with the <img> tag.
The source file (src), alternative text (alt), width, and height are provided as
attributes:
Example
How to View HTML Source
Have you ever seen a Web page and wondered "Hey! How did they do that?"
View HTML Source Code:
Click CTRL + U in an HTML page, or right-click on the page and select "View
Page Source". This will open a new tab containing the HTML source code of the
page.
Inspect an HTML Element:
Right-click on an element (or a blank area), and choose "Inspect" to see what
elements are made up of (you will see both the HTML and the CSS). You can
also edit the HTML or CSS on-the-fly in the Elements or Styles panel that opens.
HTML Elements
An HTML element is defined by a start tag, some content, and an end tag.
HTML Elements
The HTML element is everything from the start tag to the end tag:
<tagname>Content goes here...</tagname>
Examples of some HTML elements:
<h1>My First Heading</h1>
<p>My first paragraph.</p>
Nested HTML Elements
HTML elements can be nested (this means that elements can contain other elements).
All HTML documents consist of nested HTML elements.
The following example contains four HTML elements (<html>, <body>, <h1> and <p>):
Example
Example Explained
The <html> element is the root element and it defines the whole HTML document.
It has a start tag <html> and an end tag </html>.
Then, inside the <html> element there is a <body> element:
The <body> element defines the document's body.
It has a start tag <body> and an end tag </body>.
Then, inside the <body> element there are two other elements: <h1> and <p>:
The <h1> element defines a heading.
It has a start tag <h1> and an end tag </h1>:
The <p> element defines a paragraph.
It has a start tag <p> and an end tag </p>:
Never Skip the End Tag
Some HTML elements will display correctly, even if you forget the end tag:
Example
However, never rely on this! Unexpected results and errors may occur if you forget the end tag!
Empty HTML Elements
HTML elements with no content are called empty elements.
The <br> tag defines a line break, and is an empty element without a closing tag:
Example
HTML is Not Case Sensitive
HTML tags are not case sensitive: <P> means the same as <p>.
The HTML standard does not require lowercase tags, but W3C recommends lowercase in
HTML, and demands lowercase for stricter document types like XHTML.
HTML Attributes
HTML attributes provide additional information about HTML elements.
HTML Attributes
• All HTML elements can have attributes
• Attributes provide additional information about elements
• Attributes are always specified in the start tag
• Attributes usually come in name/value pairs like: name="value"
The href Attribute
The <a> tag defines a hyperlink. The href attribute specifies the URL of the page the link
goes to:
Example
The src Attribute
The <img> tag is used to embed an image in an HTML page. The src attribute specifies the
path to the image to be displayed:
Example
There are two ways to specify the URL in the src attribute:
1. Absolute URL - Links to an external image that is hosted on another website.
Example: src="[Link]
Notes: External images might be under copyright. If you do not get permission to use it, you may be in violation
of copyright laws. In addition, you cannot control external images; it can suddenly be removed or changed.
2. Relative URL - Links to an image that is hosted within the website. Here, the URL does not include the domain
name. If the URL begins without a slash, it will be relative to the current page. Example: src="img_girl.jpg". If the
URL begins with a slash, it will be relative to the domain. Example: src="/images/img_girl.jpg".
Tip: It is almost always best to use relative URLs. They will not break if you change domain.
The width and height Attributes
The <img> tag should also contain the width and height attributes, which specify the width
and height of the image (in pixels):
Example
The alt Attribute
The required alt attribute for the <img> tag specifies an alternate text for an image, if the
image for some reason cannot be displayed. This can be due to a slow connection, or an
error in the src attribute, or if the user uses a screen reader.
Example
See what happens if we try to display an image that does not exist:
The style Attribute
The style attribute is used to add styles to an element, such as color, font,
size, and more.
Example
The lang Attribute
You should always include the lang attribute inside the <html> tag, to declare the language
of the Web page. This is meant to assist search engines and browsers.
The following example specifies English as the language:
Country codes can also be added to the language code in the lang attribute. So, the first
two characters define the language of the HTML page, and the last two characters define the
country.
The following example specifies English as the language and United States as the country:
The title Attribute
The title attribute defines some extra information about an element.
The value of the title attribute will be displayed as a tooltip when you mouse over the
element:
Example
The HTML standard does not require lowercase attribute names.
The title attribute (and all other attributes) can be written with uppercase or lowercase like title or TITLE.
However, W3C recommends lowercase attributes in HTML, and demands lowercase attributes for
stricter document types like XHTML.
Always Quote Attribute Values
The HTML standard does not require quotes around attribute values.
However, W3C recommends quotes in HTML, and demands quotes for stricter document types like
XHTML.
Good:
Bad:
Sometimes you have to use quotes. This example will not display the title attribute correctly, because it
contains a space:
Example
Single or Double Quotes?
Double quotes around attribute values are the most common in HTML, but single quotes can also be
used.
In some situations, when the attribute value itself contains double quotes, it is necessary to use single
quotes:
Or vice versa:
HTML Headings
HTML headings are defined with the <h1> to <h6> tags.
<h1> defines the most important heading. <h6> defines the least important heading.
Example
Headings Are Important
Search engines use the headings to index the structure and content of your web pages.
Users often skim a page by its headings. It is important to use headings to show the
document structure.
<h1> headings should be used for main headings, followed by <h2> headings, then the less
important <h3>, and so on.
Bigger Headings
Each HTML heading has a default size. However, you can specify the size for any heading
with the style attribute, using the CSS font-size property:
Example
HTML Paragraphs
A paragraph always starts on a new line, and is usually a block of text.
HTML Paragraphs
The HTML <p> element defines a paragraph.
A paragraph always starts on a new line, and browsers automatically add some white space
(a margin) before and after a paragraph.
Example
HTML Display
You cannot be sure how HTML will be displayed.
Large or small screens, and resized windows will create different results.
With HTML, you cannot change the display by adding extra spaces or extra lines in your HTML code.
The browser will automatically remove any extra spaces and lines when the page is displayed:
Example
HTML Horizontal Rules
The <hr> tag defines a thematic break in an HTML page, and is most often displayed as a
horizontal rule.
The <hr> element is used to separate content (or define a change) in an HTML page:
Example
The <hr> tag is an empty tag, which means that it has no end tag.
HTML Line Breaks
The HTML <br> element defines a line break.
Use <br> if you want a line break (a new line) without starting a new paragraph:
Example
The <br> tag is an empty tag, which means that it has no end tag.
The Poem Problem
This poem will display on a single line:
Example
Solution - The HTML <pre> Element
The HTML <pre> element defines preformatted text.
The text inside a <pre> element is displayed in a fixed-width font (usually Courier), and it
preserves both spaces and line breaks:
Example
CSS
• CSS is the language we use to style an HTML document.
• CSS describes how HTML elements should be displayed.
• This tutorial will teach you CSS from basic to advanced.
Example
CSS is the language we use to style a Web page.
What is CSS?
• CSS stands for Cascading Style Sheets
• CSS describes how HTML elements are to be displayed on screen, paper, or in other media
• CSS saves a lot of work. It can control the layout of multiple web pages all at once
• External stylesheets are stored in CSS files
Why Use CSS?
CSS is used to define styles for your web pages, including the design, layout and variations in display for
different devices and screen sizes.
Example
CSS Solved a Big Problem
HTML was NEVER intended to contain tags for formatting a web page!
HTML was created to describe the content of a web page, like:
<h1>This is a heading</h1>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
When tags like <font>, and color attributes were added to the HTML 3.2 specification, it started a
nightmare for web developers. Development of large websites, where fonts and color information were
added to every single page, became a long and expensive process.
To solve this problem, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) created CSS.
CSS removed the style formatting from the HTML page!
CSS Saves a Lot of Work!
he style definitions are normally saved in external .css files.
With an external stylesheet file, you can change the look of an entire website by changing just one file!
CSS Syntax
A CSS rule consists of a selector and a declaration block.
The selector points to the HTML element you want to style.
The declaration block contains one or more declarations separated by semicolons.
Each declaration includes a CSS property name and a value, separated by a colon.
Multiple CSS declarations are separated with semicolons, and declaration blocks are surrounded by curly
braces.
Example
In this example all <p> elements will be center-aligned, with a red text color:
Example Explained
• p is a selector in CSS (it points to the HTML element you want to style:
<p>).
• color is a property, and red is the property value
• text-align is a property, and center is the property value
Three Ways to Insert CSS
There are three ways of inserting a style sheet:
• External CSS
• Internal CSS
• Inline CSS
External CSS
With an external style sheet, you can change the look of an entire website by changing just one file!
Each HTML page must include a reference to the external style sheet file inside the <link> element, inside
the head section.
Example
External styles are defined within the <link> element, inside the <head> section of an HTML page:
An external style sheet can be written in any text editor, and must be saved with a .css extension.
The external .css file should not contain any HTML tags.
Here is how the "[Link]" file looks:
Internal CSS
An internal style sheet may be used if one single HTML page has a unique style.
The internal style is defined inside the <style> element, inside the head section.
Example
Internal styles are defined within the <style> element, inside the <head> section of an HTML page:
Inline CSS
An inline style may be used to apply a unique style for a single element.
To use inline styles, add the style attribute to the relevant element. The style attribute can contain any
CSS property.
Example
Inline styles are defined within the "style" attribute of the relevant element:
Multiple Style Sheets
If some properties have been defined for the same selector (element) in different style sheets, the value
from the last read style sheet will be used.
Assume that an external style sheet has the following style for the <h1> element:
Then, assume that an internal style sheet also has the following style for the <h1> element:
Example
If the internal style is defined after the link to the external style sheet, the <h1> elements will be "orange":
Example
However, if the internal style is defined before the link to the external style sheet, the <h1> elements will
be "navy":
Cascading Order
What style will be used when there is more than one style specified for an HTML element?
All the styles in a page will "cascade" into a new "virtual" style sheet by the following rules, where number
one has the highest priority:
1. Inline style (inside an HTML element)
2. External and internal style sheets (in the head section)
3. Browser default
So, an inline style has the highest priority, and will override external and internal styles and browser
defaults.
