I have to admit that I am guilty of telling my students to "just go to Google" for many of their basic internet searching needs (we use databases for our research projects, I promise!). I teach elementary students, K-6, so I focused on learning about the search tools for younger students. However, I was interested on a personal level by the search tools that did not track your history. I could do without the almost psychic Facebook ads!
The first search engine that I looked at was KidRex. I enjoyed the cute interface (who doesn't love dinosaurs?) and that it was very straightforward. Enter your search terms, and hit the search button. I usually do an ecosystem project with 4th grade. While we use our databases for the majority of the research, I do allow them to search for "interesting" facts elsewhere. One issue that I see with KidRex is that the first 4-5 links are actually ads. So the top results for "tundra" are actually for a restaurant supply store and the Toyota Tundra- neither of which are very helpful to a kid looking for a fun fact! Obviously, this would be require some discussion ahead of time about really making sure the link matches what you need! I ran into this same issue with SweetSearch as well.
I liked the filtering capabilities of Choosito. Being able to choose a reading level would be great for our early researchers or our struggling readers! While I wish that it was free to have those options, I can definitely see the draw for paying for the subscription. This would be a great tool for differentiating. I also like the other options such as citation tools, student accounts, and the ability to track their research data to help fine tune their skills. The ads do still appear first on this one (at least the free version) as well. Clearly this is just a lesson that will have to be covered before internet searching!
I love PebbleGo and use it all the time! I find it great for all the grade levels, even if it is just a starting point for our students. I love that it has text, audio, and video options. The graphic organizers it provides are also great. I have had students do PebbleGo scavenger hunts to get them used to using the database, and we use it for almost all of our research projects. Most of the students head there first when looking for information on something.
Reading the article "6 Steps to Teaching Students to Search" by Alice Keeler brought to mind some of the issues I have when teaching students how to internet search. We do talk about keyword searching and checking the reliability of the website. However, one of her points is to not "search for the question". Thinking about it, that is exactly what my younger students do! They type the whole question "What animals live in the tundra" (for example) into Google. I also did not know about the ctrl-f shortcut, which allows students to jump to where the keyword is on the site. I practiced this with my Tundra search, using "adaptation" as my keyword. Sure enough, it highlighted the word adaptation, making it easy to find!
Another issue I face is students using whatever pops up in the "box" after a Google search for their final answers. I like that some of these other search engines do not have that option, forcing them to actually click on the links and read (oh the horror!!). I plan on testing some of these out with our upcoming biography research project in April!
Tuesday, March 26, 2019
Thing 20: Social Reading and "Book Stuff"
One of my favorite aspects of being a school librarians is talking to my students about the books that they are reading. What are they loving? What are they disliking? What would they recommend to a friend? It is my goal to develop a culture of reading here at Abraham Wing, with open discussions about books and reading happening across grade levels, and even with the faculty and staff.
Many of the tools shown here would be helpful to help me achieve this goal. The first one I looked at was OverDrive. I know that I have access to Overdrive with my public library, but have rarely used it. One thing that I like about it is the ability to download either an e-book or and audio book. This is something that I could really use in my personal life, as I love to listen to books on my long commute. I have downloaded the Libby app on my phone and hope to soon check out my first audio book (There's so many to choose from!).
Using OverDrive with my students via the Sora App is something that I would really like to start before the end of the school year. I believe it would really help some of our students to be able to have an audio version of their book to listen to while they follow along in the text. I also would like to get it up and running before the end of the school year so that my students have access to books all summer long. Our school library is not open, and while the public library is within walking distance, most do not take advantage of it. Using the Sora app would mean that my students would have access to a variety of books all summer long! The fact that the books would be free would also be a huge benefit for our students, as many cannot afford to buy new books.
In the same line as Overdrive, I also explored Epic Books! I feel this is a great tool for classroom teachers to use, as well as a good center for library time. I loved the range of books that they had, especially that they have so many popular titles. The different levels of books is impressive, and I like that you could assign specific ones to your students if you wanted to (would make a great literature circle center!).
Both of these free e-book sites will be great for our students and I hope help me to get more students excited about reading by providing them with more options and formats for reading.
Another great idea that I saw on this "Thing" was using FlipGrid with Book Club. We just started a Book Club this year, and have been discussing ways to make it more "interesting and fun" and less like work for the students. FlipGrid would be a great way to get them talking about books and listening to their club members talk about different books. I have used FlipGrid in Library before, but it did not occur to me to use it for Book Club. What a great way to handle discussion questions as well as get book reviews!
Many of the tools shown here would be helpful to help me achieve this goal. The first one I looked at was OverDrive. I know that I have access to Overdrive with my public library, but have rarely used it. One thing that I like about it is the ability to download either an e-book or and audio book. This is something that I could really use in my personal life, as I love to listen to books on my long commute. I have downloaded the Libby app on my phone and hope to soon check out my first audio book (There's so many to choose from!).
Using OverDrive with my students via the Sora App is something that I would really like to start before the end of the school year. I believe it would really help some of our students to be able to have an audio version of their book to listen to while they follow along in the text. I also would like to get it up and running before the end of the school year so that my students have access to books all summer long. Our school library is not open, and while the public library is within walking distance, most do not take advantage of it. Using the Sora app would mean that my students would have access to a variety of books all summer long! The fact that the books would be free would also be a huge benefit for our students, as many cannot afford to buy new books.
In the same line as Overdrive, I also explored Epic Books! I feel this is a great tool for classroom teachers to use, as well as a good center for library time. I loved the range of books that they had, especially that they have so many popular titles. The different levels of books is impressive, and I like that you could assign specific ones to your students if you wanted to (would make a great literature circle center!).
Both of these free e-book sites will be great for our students and I hope help me to get more students excited about reading by providing them with more options and formats for reading.
Another great idea that I saw on this "Thing" was using FlipGrid with Book Club. We just started a Book Club this year, and have been discussing ways to make it more "interesting and fun" and less like work for the students. FlipGrid would be a great way to get them talking about books and listening to their club members talk about different books. I have used FlipGrid in Library before, but it did not occur to me to use it for Book Club. What a great way to handle discussion questions as well as get book reviews!
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