Just how much can Google do for your classroom?

I pulled out of the school parking lot, already late for a meeting. Heading north I had to give a large SUV parked next to the curb a wide birth. I was surprised to notice the Google logo on it, and when I slowed to look at the odd antenna, I realized that this was none other than the Google Streetview Camera Vehicle.
I jumped out of my car, with my iPhone in hand and asked the driver if I could take a picture. “Sure!” he said. And as I did, I had the proverbial lightbulb flicker in my head.
“That’s the school where I teach,” I explained, pointing back at Ruth Thompson Middle School. “would you mind parking in front of the school so I can take a better photo? By the way, our school uses Google Apps for Education,” I added proudly.
“Sure!” he said, this time more emphatically. You could tell he was thrilled to be working for Google. He told me about driving the vehicle, which sported California plates, all the way from Google headquarters to Mississauga, Ontario.
He offered to take my picture in front of the school, and I invited him to go inside and look around after I thanked him for taking my picture. I headed off to my meeting and he headed inside, as I had suggested. Apparently the Google Guy was coerced into allowing more photos to be taken by other staff members (read “geeks like me”).
There’s a little allegory in this true story. What if you invited Google into your school? What would that mean for student learning, collaboration and engagement?
The Google Apps for Education tools are an excellent way to begin the technology journey with your class. You can teach paperless, deliver documents, share and collaborate, blog, create video, presentations… the list is limited only by your creatvity.
The bonus is- it’s all free!
So why not invite Google into your school?