Google’s True Self-Driving Car

Google’s True Self-Driving Car

Just a few days ago I wrote about Solar Freakin’ Roadways. Well that same rant belongs here. I love how car companies are trying to fit a new technology into an old design…and they’ll do it. However when you think of what this really means for travel. What the car of the future looks like without a driver, a steering […]

Google Voice Search 2013

Google Voice Search 2013

I often show off a lot of these features when I’m presenting….blows teachers away on what you can do….and a great conversation on how this along changes learning…because it has to. This works on ANY device (the searching part not the “OK Google” part..that is for MotoX phones only and why I’m excited to get mine.) Android devices built in. […]

7 Google+ Communities

7 Google+ Communities

Just about a year ago I wrote a post outlining why educators should be at least starting to play with Google+. Since writing that post my use of Google+ has gone through ups and downs for sure. But around April or so I started reading my Google+ stream more frequently and now I head to Google+ before Flipboard on my […]

Google I/O Reflection

Google I/O Reflection

Now I have admitted before that I am a google fan boy. I love Google, I love their products, I love the way they take risks in development, I love the future they are trying to make a reality. So it should be no surprise that on Wednesday I prepared myself for the 3 hour Keynote that kicked off Google […]

The Bright Side of Google Reader Leaving Us

The Bright Side of Google Reader Leaving Us

Now don’t get me wrong, the announcement that Google Reader will no longer be after July 1st came as a shocker….but then again…not really. We know where Google is headed…everything tied to Google+ and Google+ integration across all apps. Which now that I see that and treat the Google ecosystem that way, well, it turns out it is a pretty […]

Does Your EQ Pass the Google Test?

Does Your EQ Pass the Google Test?

I have been thinking a lot about questions lately and Jim Laney’s recent post brought some of my thinking to the forefront. Essential Questions are the corner stone, in my opinion, to a good inquiry-based classroom. In thinking about this, I went back to one of my favorite books Understanding by Design (I lived by this book when I was […]

Why K-12 schools are failing by not teaching SEARCH

Why K-12 schools are failing by not teaching SEARCH

This past week I had the opportunity to spend a day with some of the faculty at Western Washington University talking about reverse instruction…or at least my idea of what that means. To get started, we did a little reverse instruction of our own where I had them read the connectivism article by George Siemens before I arrived. Once I […]

Being Comfortable Being a Beginner

Being Comfortable Being a Beginner

I was excited and then frustrated today. Yesterday I read about the changes Google was making to Gmail. Changes that when I read said to myself “That makes sense, that will work for me”. Then today I opened my inbox saw the pop-up that said I had gotten the upgrade and clicked continue. I then went on to struggle figuring […]

9th – 12th Grade Search Lesson

9th – 12th Grade Search Lesson

In this lesson we will focus on the following two ideas: Domain Extensions and the site: syntax (See 6-8th Grade Lesson Plan) Finding current research Set Up: Each student with their own computer or device or as close as possible. Prime the Pump: When learning to do research not only is it worth your time to do in depth research, […]

6th – 8th Grade Search Lesson

6th – 8th Grade Search Lesson

In this lesson we will be teaching about domain extensions and the Google Search Syntax ‘site’: as well as how to turn on reading levels in Google Advance Search. Together this knowledge will allow students to find the relevant information they need while doing research. Set Up: It is best if each student has their own computer for this lesson, […]