This has been sitting as draft for over three months, I don’t know why I never published it…
Google continues to just make life easier. Now you can create a customize a search engine by including only specific resources. Using Google Co-op, you can simply add sites you want to include in a search. Here is a way for many teachers to teach their students to search in a safe environment. It also allows you to embed the search box into your web page, blog, wiki, etc. I hope to build one just for world history. I could then point students to it for research and enrichment.
It might also be a nice addition to the world of the WebQuests – generally the rule is that the links are included. However, if the teacher provides a customized search engine, you get the best of both worlds. Contained searching on a specific topic (let’s say the Holocaust) and the comfort that your students are still only looking at sites the teacher has verified as suitable.
Enjoy.
danmcdowell.net 
I learned about the custom search engine at the NECC conference in Atlanta a few weeks ago.
For our last unit of the year, we have a culminating reasearch project about New York City. For the past several years, we’ve given our 8th graders a giant packet with links to helpful websites to expedite the research phase of the project. I really like the idea of using a custom search engine instead.
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Hi Dan!
My name is Marissa and I’m a University of Michigan grad student earning my Masters of Ed. I found your website on a recommended blog list given by our Ed Tech professor. I’m particularly interested in what you have to say because I am going to be a history teacher as well. I’m also on a quest to learn more about technology in the classroom… even though I’m young, I always been quite deficient in the area of technology. You might see comments from me pop up every week or so as I try and keep up with the requirements of my Ed Tech course!
In response to your latest post, I think Google Co-op is great. I’ve been experimenting with blogs and wikis recently, and Google Co-op seems like another useful, personalized tool for students. Throughout college I have lost touch with searching the web as a resource. Playing around with Google Co-op made me realize that there are a lot of great history sites out there that are perfectly acceptable for secondary level research. I will definitely keeping track of the new history databases I find!
Thanks for your great site, Dan! One of these I will have time to browse some of your archives.
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great idea. thanks for bringing this to our attention. I would always encourage students to find information on the web but check their sources first… this, makes it that much easier.
google always impresses me.
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oh and another option is to visit my website which has only “good” links to lesson plans… http://USHistorySite.com – it has a search engine for the site.
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