User:Danrendine
From School Computing
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[edit] Welcome to my Google Technology Resource Wiki!
On this site you will find some of the new products from Google that can be used in the classroom to enhance teaching, including Google Earth and Google Sketchup. Enjoy!
[edit] Google Sketchup
Google Sketchupis a tool for creating, viewing, and modifying 3D ideas. They advertise the product as "quick and easy" and "deceptively simple" to use; from my limited experience with the tool, I found those things to be true. In my first session with the tutorial, I was able to create my own 3D model. As I was working with it, I began to imagine possibilities for using it as an adjunct to literature lessons, and even thought of some cross-curricular possibilities as well.
[edit] Sketchup Case Study
The images below are part of a Google Sketchup Case Study from an elementary school in Seattle, Washington:
Elementary School Apartment Design Project
Elementary Apartment Design Detail
The 9 and 10 year old students featured in the study drew up scale construction drawings of an apartment following a list of instructions of what to include. The case study highlighted the students' enthusiasm with the software and the ease of using it. Their teacher says of Sketchup, "...I saw a multitude of curriculum connections; geometry, measurement, logic, problem solving, art, perspective...the list goes on and on."
[edit] Death of a Salesman Project
In thinking about applying Google Sketchup to my English classes, I came up with an idea to enhance a project I have done with the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller in previous years.
In the past I have asked students to read the detailed description of the main physical features of the stage, the Loman house, and design a miniature replica of what they think it would look like using cardboard boxes and art supplies. I found this was a good way to help students express their understanding of the written language and to provide context for the play before reading. With Google Sketchup, they would be able to visualize and design much more accurate replicas. This would also eliminate the time, space and material limitations of an art project. I can even imagine a cross-curricular connection with our 10th grade Geometry component, in which measurements and formulas could be applied to their designs in order to bring their ideas and skills together in "real-life" applications.
Google Sketchup 6 is free to download and is compatible with Windows 2000/XP Mac OS X (10.3.9) Operating Systems.
[edit] Google Earth
Google Earth is another new technology from the Google company. Google Earth contains a wealth of Earth imagery and other geographic information. Here you can see satellite images of your childhood home or read articles from Wikipedia. Google Earth is free for personal use. No registration is required. Google Earth Blog gives an example of the 3D geography possibilities using Google Earth.
Google Earth is more than a map of the planet. Using overlays students can develop projects such as remapping the Lewis and Clark trail using labels and popups on a Google Earth map. Science teachers can use Google Earth to track hurricanes and earthquakes. At Google Earth's featured content pageyou can visit the Jane Goodall Institute's Africa's Gombe preserve chimpanzees and follow their daily exploits with the Institute’s "geo-blog" in Google Earth. There you will also find historical maps around the world spanning from year 1680 to 1892, including a Map of Africa from 1787 at Rumsey Historical Maps.
[edit] Google Littrips
Google Lit Tripsuses Google Earth in conjunction with literature projects.As creator of Google Littrips, Jerome Burg says in his
The Infinite Thinking Machinepodcast interview "Take Five" his idea in creating the site was to help students "chew on" the really important ideas of novels. He feels that Google Maps projects can draw students into really studying literature in a way that the authors would have wanted. For example, in
The Grapes of Wrath, you can see the flatness of the land, watch a video of a dust storm, see photos or art of the time period, and read chapter notes and questions from the teacher.
Other 9-12 Littrips include The Aeneid, The Odyssey, Macbeth, Night, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and Candide.
[edit] Google Docs and Spreadsheets
Google Docs and Spreadsheetsis a product that makes it possible to create, share, store and publish word documents and spreadsheets all from the internet. Teachers and students can share documents at different stages in the writing process. The product has sharing features
[edit] More Google Resources
This wiki has many good Google resources (including Sketch up) http://kpaccio.wikispaces.com/
[edit] Acknowledgements
Special Thanks to Ralph Maltese, CFF coach at Abington High School for many great links and info. Keep those emails coming! Back to Top