Page Contents after H1 in DOM

[shawna-slh]

Currently it's before h1. Consider if we want it after the h1. Semantically it makes sense after the h1. However, screen reader users don't really need it, so maybe leave it before the h1 so Skip to content bypasses it?

[mcking65]

Please leave the page contents outside of the main content. It is in the side bar for people who can see, and it should be in the sidebar (out of the way) for people who cannot see.

The ideal reading order and attention management for people who use a screen reader is basically the same as it is for anyone else. Make the title of the page the most obvious heading (make it an H1). Make the content that goes with that title the most prominent feature of the page, i.e., it immediately follows the H1 in the reading order.

That is, the ideal reading order for page title and main content for most types of pages is:

<main>
  <H1>Page Title</h1>
<p>Hellow world! this is the wonderful content you are dying to read. So, enjoy without delay.</p>
</main>

If you are going to have a TOC for the page, it should be before or after the main element. Before is probably better in most circumstances; visual positioning and logical tab sequence are also factors.