Jontracation
STRATEGIES TO IMPROVE YOUR SEARCH RESULTS
Safe Search
Go to Search settings.
- Select the gear in the top right-hand corner of the search window
- Choose Search Settings
- Under Safe Search Filters, CHECK the Filter Explicit Results option
Web Searching in Plain English
Image Search
Filter images by license.
- Google
- Choose Images
- Type butterfly in the search window > Enter
- Choose Search Tools >Usage Rights>Labeled for Reuse
Filter your search to a specific color.
- Google
- Choose Images
- Type Crimea
- Choose More Tools >Color>Black and White
TRY IT: Find a black and white map of the Indian Ocean that is licensed for reuse.
Search with an image
Words Matter
- Order matters
- Simplify your search terms
- Capitalization does NOT matter
- Advanced Search options
Quotation marks, plus and minus signs
Remove unwanted results with minus sign
(spacing matters: there should not be a space after the minus)
TRY IT: Search for information on the Apollo moon landing. What search terms can you use to get the smallest number of results? Use all the Advanced Search tools.
Advanced Search
- .edu
- .gov
- .org
2. Limit search to a certain domain
- british imperialism site: fordham.edu
- british imperialism site:edu
3. Limit search to a specific file type
- PPT
- KMZ
TRY IT: Find a PowerPoint presentation on cyber bullying.
CTRL + F
Here's how to use CTRL-F. Rather than scanning an entire web page looking for a key word, select CTRL-F. A small window will open in the top right-hand corner. Type your key word into the window. The window will tell you how many times that word appears in the article or website, and will highlight the word.
TRY IT: Go to Texas Beyond History. Use the CTRL+F strategy and search for Tigua. How many times does the word Tigua appear on the web page?
Google Books
One of my favorite lines from the movie Shawshank Redemption is, "Get busy living, or get busy dying." Use Google books to find out if the line also appears in the original short story, "Shawshank Redemption."
- Go to books.google.com
- Search for Shawshank Redemption
- Search for the following line, "Get busy living or get busy dying."
Establish Authority -- GLEANWHOIS.ORG
TRY IT: Here are two web sites that deal with Holocaust death statistics. Using gleanwhois, determine which site is reliable and which one is not.
http://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/kolomea/holocaust.htm
http://www.whale.to/b/holocaust_death_stats.html
- Open gleanwhois.org
- Enter a web address into the search window.
- Choose option 3 to learn about a web site's ownership.
Use Other Search Engines
Always encourage your students to use more than one search engine. The one I recommend most often to students is SweetSearch. www.sweetsearch.com/sweetsites
SweetSearch doesn't search the entire internet, instead, it searches through approximately 35,000 websites that have been vetted by teachers, librarians, and other research experts.
SweetSearch also has a tool that allows you to seamlessly send web resources to your Google doc without ever leaving the site.
Previous Jontracations
Jontracation - November 4, 2013 - Click here
Jontracation - October 3, 2013 - Click here
Jontracation - September 23, 2013 - Click here
Christina Jontra
Grace Community School
Email: cjontra@gracetyler.org
Twitter: @jontracation