The Web search-engine company Google Inc. has unveiled a package of online interactive tools, curriculum resources, and lesson plans for teachers.
Inspired in part by an increasing number of e-mails from educators asking for help, the new site features a tutorial for teachers on conducting better Web searches.
Other tools include Google Earth, three-dimensional mapping software based on satellite imagery; SketchUp, a 3-D software program that lets students design buildings and explore geometric concepts; Google Book Search, which finds books that match students’ search terms; blog and photo-sharing software; and word-processing applications that allow students to work simultaneously on the same document from different computers. Teacher's guides with lesson ideas accompany the featured tools.
The company also invites teachers to add their own ideas and feedback to the site.