Google For Educators

I would love to use Google Maps to enable my students to create real trips all over France, to see the places they'd like to go, where they'd stay, etc. It makes a place so much more real to be able to really see it. It will also give them the opportunity to see actual satellite photos of places in France, and compare and contrast them with where they live. Google Earth would also help with these projects. Students could plan ahead for the weather for their trips, find out how different the weather patterns are in French-speaking countries, and learn how far away these countries really are, both from them and from each other. This would allow them to have historical discussions on how these people became so spread apart but still speak (basically) the same language. Finally, the google search engine itself is incredibly useful for researching those historical questions, grammatical questions, and any other number of topics.
Google Docs is especially desirable because it enables every student, no matter what programs or what computers they use, to work on their documents anywhere they like without losing them or worrying about their operating system being compatible. This means my students can get work done in my classroom and then go home and finish their assignments with no difficulty.


Reading Assignment: Educating Teachers Chapter 4
· In this next activity, you will have an opportunity to explore a collection of free online tools from Google, including a word processor.

Name two Classroom Tools you might want to use with students .
How do you think you would use these tools?