Do you know how to search Google? Of course, a monkey can do that. Not so fast. Searching is a key discipline related to Digital Literacy. Educators take for granted that everyone knows how to search for resources online. According to Google Help, there are fourteen basic search options available. These range from specific punctuation marks to search operators. Knowing how to use these searching skills can improve your returned results. Not only that, but it will quicken the process of vetting the results. Let's see how this works, shall we?
Abraham Lincoln returns 79,500,000 results
Abraham Lincoln -war returns 41,000,000 results
Abraham Lincoln -war "foreign policy" returns 365,000 results
That's not too bad. By harnessing the power of Google search students and teachers can spend less time searching and more time vetting the value of the source. Isn't that our ultimate goal?
Looking for a fun way to integrate searching skills into your classroom? Google has created a website that turns learning about searching skills into a game. I've tried a few games; it is fun and challenging. It is called "a Google a day". (Click here for larger picture)
If you would like to implement this into your classroom, check out the Google Search Education website for classroom materials. Here's a great one minute video showing how to use a Google a day.
Hemingway App Readability: Grade 7
