Google definitely has its finger on the pulse of what people want. This summer, I have explored several Google Tools for educators. Here are just a few of my impressions and ideas.
Google Earth: This is a "must-have" program for history/geography teachers, but it also has many possible uses in other subjects, as well. I love the idea of students going on "lit trips" by creating a collection of placemarks that relate to a book or author study. See this great site for more information about lit trips.
Google Scholar: I can see lots of potential value in this tool, but, like anything else on the Web, the results of the search may be disappointing if few sources exist online about your topic.
Google Notebook: I didn't realize that Google Notebook was different than Google Docs. I'm still uneasy with the idea of keeping "my stuff" out there in cyberspace instead of on a hard drive, but I can see the usefulness of being able to access it from any Internet-accessible location. For students working on group projects, being able to share a notebook would be very useful. I just wonder when teachers will start to hear excuses like "Google ate my notebook" instead of the proverbial dog eating it. ;-)
Google Advanced Search: I've used this tool for years, and it is so helpful! It is especially helpful if you are looking for worksheets or presentations about a particular concept you teach. Just enter .doc or .ppt in the filetype field and you have much less wheel-reinventing to do.
Google Docs: My favorite new tool in Google Docs is the Forms feature within Spreadsheets. Share your form to collect instant feedback! This would be a great way to do peer-reviews for student presentations, or even to poll students on preferred research topics.
Have fun googling today!
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