RESEARCH TOOL IN GOOGLE DOCS
Today, I want to bring your attention to an underutilized tool that is available in google docs. The research tool (found under the 'tools' menu) is a great way to get information quickly and insert it directly into your google doc without having to open other tabs or leave your document.
HOW IT WORKS
Let's say I am typing a report on Abraham Lincoln. In my report, I want to include the date of his assassination, but I do not know it. I can highlight the search term I want to use in my google doc ("Abraham Lincoln" or "Abraham Lincoln Assassination") and then select "Research" from the "Tools" menu. Immediately, a window opens to the right of my document that has information about Abraham Lincoln, including his assassination date, pictures, and links to websites with more information.
IMAGES
This tool works great when you decide you want to insert an image into a document as well. Instead of opening up another tab, highlight your search term and hit "Research" and immediately you have your choice of many images that you can just drag and drop into your doc. It will automatically create a footnote that cites the source for you (you can choose the format of citation). Here is a quick video to see how it works:
Other Features
In the dropdown menu at the left of the search bar (letter 'G'), you can choose to search for the following:
- Everything: Text and images related to your topic from any source
- Images: Images related to your topic found on the web
- Scholar: Educational information related to your topic that you can read, add to your file, or cite in a footnote
- Quotes: Quotes related to your topic that you can add to your file
- Dictionary: Definitions, synonyms, and antonyms related to your topic
- Personal: Results from your personal documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and photos that you can open, cite, or link to from your file
- Tables: Data presented in tables related to your topic that you can open, cite, or export
I think students and teachers alike would benefit from knowing about this tool. Thanks for reading and have a great week! GO INDIANS!!!
HEY, TECH THIS OUT!!
WORD CLOUD GENERATORS
Name: Word it out, Wordle, ABCYa
Type: Sites
Subject: Any
Grade: Any
What they do: Take word lists or text and creates interesting looking "word clouds".
My Take: All three of these sites do basically the same thing. First, you copy a piece of text or a word list. Next, you paste it into a box, and select color schemes, fonts, and other settings. Then, the program creates a visually-pleasing arrangement of your words. Why would you do this? Maybe you are reading the declaration of independence in class, and there are some words that you want students to know. Putting the whole declaration of independence into the box, and using the built in features that eliminate certain words (and, of, the, it, a, etc.), will create a cloud that just has your base words in it (and some will make the most frequent words larger or standout). Another option is to take your weekly spelling list, word wall words, vocab list, etc. and create a different representation than a standard list that may get more attention from your students.
I found Word it Out to be my favorite, with ABCya second. Wordle works well and is quite popular, but requires JAVA which I didn't have on all my devices. I would recommend ABCya for the younger grades especially. They don't take long to create, so I recommend you experiment with all three to best fit your needs. Here is a sample using my digital literacy vocab words:
Links:
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