Google+Reader

=[|Google Reader]=

Creates a customized RSS agragator

Resources

 * [|Tour of Google Reader]
 * [|Google Reader Help Page]
 * [|Google Reader Blog]
 * [|Google Reader in the Classroom]
 * [|Step by step on how to use Google Reader] (easy to follow!)

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Strengths

 * Free
 * No downloads necessary
 * Easily interfaces with iGoogle and Google Groups
 * Organize RSS feeds by folders and tabs
 * Available in a mobile version
 * Share with friends and your Google Groups
 * Ability to add notes to items in your feed
 * It is really easy to use, subscribe to feeds, organize and access
 * Can be accessed from any computer with Internet access
 * Constantly checks your favorite news sites and blogs for new content so you won't miss any updates
 * Shows you all your favorite sites in one place
 * You can create your own tags
 * Just provides text and images, getting rid of the sites style and formatting (making it hard to read at times)
 * Keyboard shortcuts are available
 * Google Gears allows you to access Google Reader when Internet access is not available
 * Keeps track of what has already been read
 * Star format helps you find your favorite articles faster
 * New feature allows for creating a custom feed to pages on the web that don't have their own feed.
 * Information is brought to you, once you've subscribed to sites. Less time spent searching.

Weaknesses

 * Requires an account and email address
 * May lead to media overload-Reader can become inundated with articles you may never have time to read!
 * Not always reliable in obtaining updates from every feed you select
 * Formatting is messed up at times, making it hard to read
 * If you don't visit google reader daily and delete stories your reader will overflow with thousands of articles
 * Google reader can't identify repeated stories
 * Subscription updates are inconsistent

Opportunities

 * Add Reader feed to your blog or website
 * Access favorite feeds from your mobile phone
 * Add Google Reader (RSS feeds) right to your iGoogle home page
 * Allows teachers to follow student blogs right from the reader
 * Students can keep up-to-date on current events and news they care about
 * Students can collect, annotate, and share research for collaborative projects
 * Students can read items that are shared by their teacher to help with current assignments
 * Students can view feeds from home or from places other than the classroom (great for when students are absent!)

Threats

 * Some of the "theme" templates for the reader page may be inappropriate for the classroom.
 * Students may obtain or receive feeds that are inappropriate or too complex for them to understand
 * Search feature is uncensored

Ideas for Use in the Classroom

 * Create a Google Reader feed for classes and projects
 * Create a Google Reader feed for lesson plan ideas
 * Definitely a great tool for students to use while compiling research for a project
 * Students can receive instant news from various resources such as experts in a particular content, news agencies, and other important and relevant organizations when new information is posted
 * Teachers can add student blogs to their Reader and receive notification every time the blogs are updated.
 * Students can read up on a specific feed or topic and share it with the class (Jigsaw style of learning)
 * Teachers can subscribe to other elementary school blogs to follow what students around the world are creating on the web - and then share the best posts with their own students, complete with annotations that relate the international posts to content being learned in class.
 * Add your Reader feed to your Blog, website or iGoogle homepage.
 * Check out your Reader Trends and hone in on what sites and topics are catching your interest.
 * Highlight sections of a website and share it with students or colleagues.
 * Add “Note in Reader” to your browser tool bar to grab a snippet of any website (even one you’re not subscribed to) and save in Reader.
 * Use a service like RSSMix.com to create a class feed that consolidates all of the students’ individual shared item feeds.
 * Read your feeds on the go. With Google Reader on your phone you can access your favorite feeds from your mobile device.

Examples of Use in the Classroom
 **G** **rade/Subject:** Ninth Grade Students learned to use Google Reader for independent research projects. Then the students led a staff development workshop in which each student coached a teacher on using Google Reader to aggregate RSS feeds. View the resources aggregated by the students: //[] //
 * Project:** Google Reader Staff Development led by 9th graders
 * School:** Eleanor Roosevelt High School in New York City

View pictures of the workshop://[] // //See hangout video here //