Why Do We Need The Sheridan School Web Portal?
A Note to Parents and Teachers
Should students just "Google" it?
Yes...but....
Educators contend that in this new digital landscape students need to learn how to critically evaluate the content of a website. And since Google is so widely recognized as the default search engine, they feel it is important to teach students how to critically think about and evaluate all the content Google offers.
We do not argue the fact that students need to be critical of the content of a website, but we believe that we should not just let elementary students loose on the entire Internet at school. One reason is that combing through all the results from a Google search takes a lot of time and secondly, one never can be sure that the searches will respond with appropriate material for elementary students.
So what is the answer? The control afforded by creating a Google Custom Search Engine enables us not only to choose the precise websites that we want students to search from, but also gives students a variety of qualified sources for their searching. Thus the Sheridan School Research Sites custom search engine came to be.
In addition to the Google Custom Search Engine option, more and more search engines have been developed solely for young children. Like a Google Custom Search Engine, all sites contained in these search engines have been vetted by educators and/or librarians. That is why you will also find Quintura For Kids, Sweet Search 4 Me and Ask Kids on our Search: General page.
More custom search engines can be found on the Search: Specific page and more will be embedded as they are created for specific class and grade level projects.
Once it was decided to create a site to serve as a one-stop for searching, the idea of expanding the site to include other important links and tools seemed only natural. Our Sheridan School Web Portal will expand as teachers, parents and students recommend other websites and resources for inclusion.
We welcome your comments. Use the Contact page to leave a comment for Mrs. Newtown.
Should students just "Google" it?
Yes...but....
Educators contend that in this new digital landscape students need to learn how to critically evaluate the content of a website. And since Google is so widely recognized as the default search engine, they feel it is important to teach students how to critically think about and evaluate all the content Google offers.
We do not argue the fact that students need to be critical of the content of a website, but we believe that we should not just let elementary students loose on the entire Internet at school. One reason is that combing through all the results from a Google search takes a lot of time and secondly, one never can be sure that the searches will respond with appropriate material for elementary students.
So what is the answer? The control afforded by creating a Google Custom Search Engine enables us not only to choose the precise websites that we want students to search from, but also gives students a variety of qualified sources for their searching. Thus the Sheridan School Research Sites custom search engine came to be.
In addition to the Google Custom Search Engine option, more and more search engines have been developed solely for young children. Like a Google Custom Search Engine, all sites contained in these search engines have been vetted by educators and/or librarians. That is why you will also find Quintura For Kids, Sweet Search 4 Me and Ask Kids on our Search: General page.
More custom search engines can be found on the Search: Specific page and more will be embedded as they are created for specific class and grade level projects.
Once it was decided to create a site to serve as a one-stop for searching, the idea of expanding the site to include other important links and tools seemed only natural. Our Sheridan School Web Portal will expand as teachers, parents and students recommend other websites and resources for inclusion.
We welcome your comments. Use the Contact page to leave a comment for Mrs. Newtown.
