Boolify Project - Easy Boolean Search Techniques and Practice for Kids!

This Thursday and Friday, we are studying Internet Search Tips in class.  For many of my 6th Grade Students, an Internet Search is typing the exact information or question you want to find information about into google, ask.com, or answers.com.  For example, if a student wants to know details about George Washington's Early Career, they will simply type in "What did George Washington do in his early career?" in one of the above mentioned sites. 

One of our discussions this week covers basic Boolean Search Operators such as "and, or, & not."  The Boolify Project offers a very cool visual search engine so students can see the exact logic behind their search and how changing their search can change their results.  Their search is put together like the pieces of a puzzle that they can easily add or remove one by one.  Their search results are then placed at the bottom of the page. 

This is not only a great site for helping students learn Internet Searching Tips, but also a great resource for helping your visual learners research various subjects. 

They even have lessons to help use the site, and many new and awesome tools promised to come later this year.  I am sure if they are as good as their Search Engine, I will be blogging about them as well. 

http://www.boolify.org/index.php

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Yebol - A visual, organized, cluster filled search engine, in a good way!

Yebol is an alternative search engine that organizes your search results into small clusters in an attempt to find the information you are looking for.  Yebol will display your search results in small clusters of video of your search query, photos of your search query, the top websites that contain your search query, tweets about your subject, related searches,  and much more.

An Example of results from a basic Yebol Search

Here is an example of a search I did just for the name of former Italian Fascist Dictator Benito Mussolini.  I didn't ask for anything specific, but you can see how my results are clustered by Images, Search Results, News, & Videos.  You have the Top Sites on the top left of the page, Related Searches just below that, and the tweets are below the Related Searches (not in the picture).

The search results also make it very clear where the information is coming from by listing the name of the website in bold print next to the Search Results under the Search Results Heading.

Yebol clearly lables the websites' name next to your results!

I am not exactly ready to use Yebol as my go to alternative to other search engines I use in class, however, the site does a good job of organizing your search results in an attempt to narrow your search results.  I would recommend Yebol to be used in your classroom for students who are overwhelmed with the information they get from a Google Search.  Yebol is also a great search engine for your visual learners since it does a nice job of dividing up your search results visually.  Finally, I have found Yebol to do a great job as a Multimedia search engine since it will clearly define images and videos within your search results.

Check out the Yebol Search Engine in your classroom and be sure to share any impressions!
http://yebol.com/

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Biography Search Resources - Where to find the best information about people!

In my 6th Grade Computer Class, we are starting our Historical Figure Presentations.  These are presentations about the Historical Figures in our Social Studies Text Book.

When you are researching information about famous or historical figures, it can be hard for some students to find factual and easy to read information.

Below are the sites I have shared with my students to help them in their searches for Historical Figures.

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Gwigle Game: Google Searching Tips Made Fun!

Gwigle is a Google Search Game that asks you to guess what the search query was based on the search results.  Gwigle is a fun and interactive way to learn google searching tips and practice your search skills.  Gwigle is a great extension to any Internet Searching Discussions or lessons you may have in class.  Share it with your students and see if they are aware of how search results and the search keyword are related. 

Gwigle shows you the results, and you must guess what the search was for!

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Qwiki - Multimedia Web Searches

Qwiki is a site I have beta tested for several months and has just recently advanced to Alpha Release for all to use.  Although I was not overly impressed in my initial searches, the site is very engaging and improving everyday.  Qwiki is a multimedia search engine that creates small presentations from pictures, text, links and more based on your search.  It even uses text recognition to read the information to you.

The site would be a great Ice Breaker on a subject to kick start investigation.  You could also use it with your ESL students for extended learning within your curriculum.  You can even look up your home town and see how your town is recognized via Internet Search.

We are using Qwiki for initial searches on our Overcoming Adversity Presentations to research our awesome people and various disabilities. 

My cities Qwiki presentation made a huge point about our Shopping Mall.  Although there is still plenty of work left in updating Qwikis, there is an option to improve each presentation by suggesting photos, suggesting YouTube Videos, and making suggestions on the voice pronunciations and speed.  Qwiki is going to improve as users continue to suggest improvements to current presentations/searches. 

Here is a Qwiki Search Presentation I found on the WWW.




http://www.qwiki.com/q/#!/World_Wide_Web

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