Ever tell your students to “Google” something and then you are horrified with some of the results or images that come up? It doesn’t happen often, but sometimes it does, and while it does provide a good teaching opportunity, most teachers (especially of younger students) probably want to avoid inappropriate results most of the time.
So that’s where Kiddle come in. Google just released this new Kid-Friendly search engine. Going to Kiddle.co will give you a Google-like experience which is said to be safer and a better environment for young children. Here’s how:
- Results are kid-oriented. The first 1-3 returned results are pages that are written specifically for young kids and checked by Kiddle editors. Results 4-7 are pages written simply (not necessarily for kids), and also checked by Kiddle. Results 8+ are safe search filtered, but may be harder for kids to understand.
- Thumbnails/Fonts are larger than normal. This makes them easier for kids to see and evaluate. Younger humans often choose the link to click on based on the thumbnails that the search-engine returns. Larger fonts are also used to make reading on a screen easier for children.
- Safe-Search. Sites that are returned by Kiddle are automatically filtered for exciplict or deceptive content.
- Privacy. Kiddle does not collect any personal information and says that they wipe their logs every 24 hours.
You can read more about how Kiddle.co is “designed specifically for kids” or about the Kiddle Kids Safe Search.
Either way, it looks like this tool is going to be pretty valuable. Finally something that can be used in school without modification! I hope…
#EdTech Tips & Tools 