Google for Educators

It looks like there are some pretty promising tools to use through Google. There are a few that jumped out at me as ones I could use for teaching history:

1. The first tool I like is the Book Search function. Using this my students would be able to search for books to use in research that will pertain directly to a topic they are looking for. They can even see some (or all) of the book online in order to see if it would be a good source, easy to read, or usable. Also, they they can find where they can buy the book in case they need (or want) to for any reason.

2. The second feature of Google for Educators that seems really fun to me is the Blogger. I really like the idea of students each taking a day of the year, and looking for some big event that happened on that day in history. Then, when that day roles around they can post a blog about their research. They could post text, pictures, movies, or even film their own reenactments of the events. There are just so many great options that could promote learning in a different way. This way all the students would have a hand in educating each other, and we would be able to learn about many events that maybe wouldn't be discussed otherwise.

3. Google Groups also seems like a promising tool. Through using it, my students could organize groups more efficiently, stay in contact with each other easier, and share data with each other more easily. All around it seems like a promising tool to use.

As for using Google Docs, even though you can't do as much stuff on it as you can on Word, it is still easier for multiple users to share the file. If a group is working on a paper together, it is so much easier to promote a collaborative effort over distance using Google Docs than it is using Word.