Nina Sanchez-Flores

Online Reading Assignment

Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.W.7 - Conduct short as well as more sustained research

projects based on focused questions, demonstrating understanding of the subject under
investigation.

Grade Level

9th-12th grade English Language Learners

Time Allotted

70 minute class period

Materials

Computers

iPads

Google Search Tips poster

Google Search Practice worksheet

Learning Targets

Students will describe how and why to conduct an effective Google search.

Students will apply effective search strategies on Google.

Procedures (Steps)
1. First, we will discuss as a class how we find information (most students will say Google).
I will then conduct an erroneous search on jaguars and we will discuss why we cannot
find information the animal. We will also discuss Wikipedia and why it is not a reliable
source.

2. Next, I will introduce the Google Search Tips poster. As a class, we will practice each
type of search and come up with our own examples of situations when we would need to
use this search strategy.
3. Students will then be given the Google Search Practice worksheet to complete on either
computers or iPads (depending on the number of students). Students will be encouraged
to look at search results to see if they return the information that students need for their
research.
4. We will then discuss worksheet results as a class. What search strategies were most
effective? What strategies were ineffective? What have you learned from this activity?
5. Students will complete the exit slip sentence stem on the back of the worksheet.
Assessment

Formative Assessment - Students will practice effective search strategies, evident by

teacher observation and worksheet answers. On the back of the worksheet, students will
complete the sentence stem "It is important to search effectively because ___."

Accommodations

Bilingual dictionaries/use of Google translate

Student pairing when needed

Connection to the Literature

An article by Baildon and Baildon effectively described my students' experiences with
research:
They typically didn't have a plan in mind as to what they were trying to find in sources of
information they encountered during their investigations. Most often students were
willing to use any sources they could locate (from the library, Internet, or home) that

related to their topic and didn't carefully consider the reading level of the source. For
notes, they often copies sentences of entire paragraphs they didn't fully comprehend.
Pictures copied from other sources were often used to fill up space, and great care was
especially obvious in the creative use of font and text color to make their work attractive.
(Baildon & Baildon, 2008, p. 636)
While this occurs in classrooms across the country, it is perhaps even more prominent in ESL
classrooms, where students may have little experience with technology and have often not been
taught critical thinking and evaluation skills in their native countries. While this lesson does not
address the reliability of various of websites, it begins with the first step of how to conduct an
effective search. Once students have developed the strategies to narrow searches and recognize
helpful keywords, I can then move to teaching them how to evaluate a website for readability,
trustworthiness, and usefulness.
STANDARD
IRA 1.2

IRA 2.2

IRA 2.3

IRA 4.2

IRA 5.1

KTS 6.1

HOW THE LESSON CONNECTS

When I was the age of my students, research was conducted
entirely through books in the library. The new literacies require
that students learn how to conduct research in a new way that
involves effectively using technology.
The unique needs of beginning English Language Learners
requires significant adaptations on teaching to use Google
search. While grade level high school students may be able to
effectively use Google independently, my students require more
scaffolding and instruction in how to utilize this resource.
Using Google search, students will be able to access a wide
variety of reading materials, in addition to learning how to use
online resources.
Teaching students how to effectively search helps students
become agents of their own learning, allowing them to find
reading material on their own and utilize Google in real world
situations.
Teaching students how to use Google will allow them to conduct
research in a wide variety of settings. Furthermore, as they
advance in English skills, I can teach them more advanced skills.
In planning this lesson, I used various web resources to find

KTS 6.2

KTS 6.3

KTS 6.4

KTS 6.5

ISTE 1

ISTE 2

ISTE 3

ISTE 4

ISTE 5

ISTE 6

TPACK

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lesson plans and examples. I also had to design the Search Tips
poster and worksheet using technology.
This lesson utilizes various types of technology (laptop, iPad,
smartphone) to teach research skills to a wide variety of English
language learners.
This lesson provides a real world context for students. The use of
Google is a necessary skill in today's world and part of the new
literacies.
My students have access to two ways of viewing their progress
in my class. I give descriptive feedback through Edmodo and
more quantitative data through Infinite Campus.
At school, students will not be able to access unsafe websites,
but I will also show them how to avoid websites that may causes
viruses or show inappropriate content.
This lesson doesn't directly address developing new products,
but it does teach them a new process which they can use later in
developing new works.
Especially with newcomer students, I would allow the students
to work in cooperative groups in order to interact with their peers
to develop academic language and also to scaffold the lesson.
Students will have to use this knowledge of search techniques to
evaluate which search keywords to use for various research
types.
Students will have to make decisions about what search terms to
use when conducting research. They will also have to evaluate
what search techniques will give them the results they desire.
This lesson teaches students the skills they will need to be
independent in researching information. They are learning to
take personal responsibility for their learning and to be more
productive in research.
Students must learn the various technology shortcuts for
effective searches. They have to know when to choose certain
options to obtain the desired result.
In this lesson, I had to acquire the technology knowledge first,
such as the various searching tips and techniques for obtaining
more specific results. Without this knowledge, I would not be
able to teach it to the students. Furthermore, I needed a
knowledge of various media devices (computer, iPad,
smartphone) to troubleshoot any issues that may arise as students
begin implementing the activity.
Pedagogical knowledge, especially for English Language
Learners, is essential in teaching both technology and content.
Because this class is composed of students who have been
learning English for a year or less, they need significant amount
of scaffolding. Furthermore, another issue that may arise is that
some students may not be familiar with technology such as a

TPACK

CCSS.ELALITERACY.CCRA.W.7 Conduct short as well as

more sustained research
projects based on focused
questions, demonstrating
understanding of the subject
under investigation.

telephone, let alone iPads and laptop computers. There may

need to be lessons on these skills prior to this lesson.
Content knowledge is necessary for this lesson because the
common core emphasizes both the integration of technology and
conducting sustained research. While research was done in the
library during my high school education, students now need to
be able to utilize the internet to research various topics.
In the next lesson, students will be given a topic and develop
research questions that will address that topic. This lesson is the
first step in learning to conduct effective research.

Resources

Baildon, R., & Baildon, M. Guiding Independence: Developing a Research Tool to Support
Student Decision Making in Selecting Online Information Sources. The Reading Teacher,
61, 636-647.