The purpose of this lesson is to
teach students how to search effectively for images online using the Google
Image Search engine. This lesson corresponds with the information literacy lesson,
"Creating an Effective Search Statement."
Students will be able to use the
Google Image Search engine to search effectively for images online.
Students will be able to distinguish between those images that are relevant
and those that are not relevant to a search that they initiate. Using the Advanced
Image search, students will be able to refine their search to locate specific
images.
Students will be able to copy images into a Word document.
Students will be able to cite the appropriate sources.
Set-up
Throughout the lesson, students
are required to be online to do most of the activities. To be most effective,
teachers will want to show students what to do using a computer with online
access. If possible, it is best for teachers to use a computer from which
they can project the computer's screen onto a larger screen so that all of
the students can see. Teachers can teach the lesson from the school's computer
lab. Alternatively, teachers can gather students around a computer in his
or her classroom.
To become familiar with the process,
teachers may want to run through the steps of the activities on their own
before teaching the lesson to their students. Teachers should also keep in
mind that different searches will yield different results. Even similar searches
may yield different results.
Suggested Procedure
How to use a Google Image Search
engine: (Large group instruction- 10 to 15 minutes)
Depending on student access to
the Internet, divide students into groups or instruct them to work individually
at a computer. Ask students to type in the URL - http://www.google.com.
Once all of the students are at
the site, instruct them to click on the "images" tab. Inform them that they
can also go directly to the image search engine by using http://www.image.google.com.
Remind them that when creating search statements
to find the information that they wanted, they have to identify key
words or phrases to describe their topic.
Show students that by typing the
key word, dog, into the image search box and clicking on "Search," they will
see a wide variety of thumbnail images, ranging from posters and drawings
of all different kinds of dogs, to people's personal photos of their pet dogs.
Clicking on these thumbnail images opens up pictures of leashes, Simpson's
cartoons, prairie dogs and even cats. Some of the pictures may be exactly
what they are looking for whereas others may seem irrelevant to the key word.
Show them that by clicking on
"Next" or one of the numbers under the one of the "o"s in the word "Google",
they can open up page after page of images.
Go to the bottom of the web page
and click on the 'Search Within Results' to show the students that they can
focus their search. By clicking on the button, they will also see the number
of results. In this case, the results total 44,200 images.
Point out to students that they can
narrow their search by writing in more specific key words. For example, if one
keys in the word sheepdog, the search will yield 2,010 results instead of 44,200
images.
Show them that spelling sheepdog
as one word and then as two words, sheep dog, will pull up some of the same
images, as well as many different ones. Also, show them that if they write
it in quotes, "sheep dog", the engine will search for the exact phrase.
Ask students to think about ways
to distinguish between those images that are valuable and those that are not
valuable to the search.
Sorting for Use (small group
practice - 10 minutes)
Provide students with roughly 10
minutes to try the Google Image Search engine.
Tell them to choose a key word
and do a search. Encourage them to specify their searches using the 'Search
Within' function.
Once they have thumbnail images,
ask them to tally the number of pictures that are relevant to the key word
and the number of pictures that are irrelevant.
Just for fun, ask students to
identify the picture that is the most irrelevant to their search. If time
permits, bring the whole group together to share their key word and the most
random image that they found on their search.
Refining the search (instruction
and small group practice - 20 to 25 minutes)
Tell students that there are ways
to narrow their search. They can do so by using the Advanced Image Search feature.
Instruct students to click on
"Advanced Image Search" either on the Image search page or on the top of the
search page where they already are. Walk the students through the features.
Show students that how keywords are typed in may affect the results that a
search yields. To experiment, ask half the class to type sheep dog into the
exact phrase box, and ask the other half of the class to type sheep and dog
into the exact phrase box. Do the searches yield different results?
Tell them that if they want to
look for a specific artist, they should type the artist's name in the "related
to the exact phrase" box or type the artist's name in quotation marks, i.e.
"Pablo Picasso".
Point out that they can also specify
the size, filetype and coloration, and a specific Web site.
Show them that once they have
found an image that they like, they should click on the thumbnail to find
out the Web site where it is located.
Divide students into groups of
three or four and tell them that they are going to go on a scavenger
hunt. Hand out the attached
worksheet, and remind them to use the "Search Within Results" feature
to find the results in numbers.
* Students may have different answers
depending on how they searched. Also, note that answers for # of results within
yellow sunflowers and # of results within painted sunflowers may depend on whether
students type in keywords or an exact phrase.
How to Copy Images (Large
group instruction - 10 minutes)
Using one of the images from the
Scavenger Hunt worksheet, show students how to download, and cut and paste an
image into another document. Walk the students through one of the following
procedures.
If you're using a Mac
Open Microsoft Word, and leave
it open, so that you can copy and paste the image into it later.
Then, search for and select an image. Click on the thumbnail version which
will lead you to the website where it is located. Then, click on image, or
click on See full-size image to make the image as large as possible.
Click and hold on the image.
When the menu pops up, go to "copy image" and release the mouse button.
Copy and paste the image into the open Word document.
If you're using a PC
Open Microsoft Word.
Select image. Right click on the thumbnail version which will lead you to
the website where it is located.
Click on 'Save As' on the menu.
Copy and paste the image into the open Word document.
Citing the Source (Large group
instruction - 10 minutes)
Emphasize the importance of ALWAYS,
ALWAYS, ALWAYS citing the source from where the picture came.
Tell students that the best way
to cite the picture's source is to copy and paste the information about the
picture included on the website.
Copying and pasting the information
must be done separately from copying and pasting the image.
Typically, the information, which
for the most part includes the URL and the name of the image, is located above
the image.
Copy and paste that information
under or above the picture.
Assessment
(Paired or individual practice - 20 to 25 minutes)
Bookmark the Copying
Images Worksheet for your students to use. Instruct students to locate the
assigned images, and then copy and paste them into the chart. Review assignments
either on the computer screen or have students print completed worksheets.
This page was last
updated April 18, 2002
This resource was created to support the AT&T/UCLA Initiatives for the 21st Century Literacies.
Locating Images was created by Cricket
Heinze and Cornelia Brunner.
