Google for Educators

Today I had the opportunity to get onto Google for Educators and check out all the great tools they have to help teachers in their classrooms. I was amazed at the simplicity but yet power these tools have. While exploring the site, there are many tools I can see myself using. However, there were three tools I thought students would benefit from the most. They are Google Book Search, Picassa and Google News.

I can see Google Book Search as being very valuable as my students will be researching projects for the Idaho State History Fair. My students will be able to access information from hundreds of books and be able to view them online. They will even have access in finding books that are out-of-copyright. Students will also be able to locate books at libraries and bookstores if they need to check a book out. Google Book Search will be a great tool for students working on assignments or projects throughout the year.

Picassa is a photo editing software that is free and can be downloaded to any computer. We will be making bilingual books and will be using photographs students have taken to create these books. This software will help students in creating web albums, calendars (another project for Idaho History) and can be accessed from home so a student can continue to work on an assignment.

I really like Google News because just like Google Book Search, students have the capability of searching through thousands of news sources. Many of these news sources have content from 200 years ago. A student can get a feel for what went on in a particular era as they read the article. This can really give their projects a more personable and even distinct voice.

One other tool that is very valuable and I find will be beneficial to my students is Google Docs. With Google Docs, a student can work on a document online from any computer and get feedback from multiple persons that have access to their document. Because multiple students will have access to one document, they can collaborate on these group assignments from their own home.

I am very excited to begin using these tools from Google in my classroom. I believe they will assist me in integrating technology into the classroom as well as create an organized and positive learning atmosphere.