Are you ready for some Google tips and tricks? Here are some of our favorites!

Google might be your search engine of choice, but do you know any of these tricks below? From instant weather reports, to stopwatch features, to helpful research tips, read below for some of our favorite Google hacks!

1. Did you know you can use Google as a timer or stopwatch? Enter a search phrase such as “set timer for 15 minutes” and Google will do just that.

2. Use Google for quick conversions of linear or liquid measurements, or even to convert currencies for a social studies lesson. Type in “amount + currency A to currency B” to get your conversion.

3. If you are looking for books by a particular author, type in “books written by + author name.”

4. To find origins of words using Google, type in “etymology + word.”

5. You can search for particular file types in Google by entering “search term + filetype:extension.” For example, to find a Powerpoint file on the Constitution, you would search “Constitution filetype:pptx.”

6. Get a quick weather report when you type in “weather + zipcode”!

7. Ready for some interesting trivia? Learn some random fun facts by simply typing “fun facts” into Google.

8. Did you know you can change your language setting in Google to fun ways of speaking like Muppets (Bork, bork, bork!), Elmer Fudd (Ewmew Fudd), Klingon, and pirate? On the top of your Google homepage, go to My Account. Scroll to the bottom to find Language under Data and Personalization. From here, you can change to your fun and/or make believe language of choice.

9. My, how the internet has changed! Check out what Google looked like in 1998. Type in “Google in 1998” to see it.

10. Sometimes you just need a quick brain break. Type “do a barrel roll” into Google and see what happens.

If you want to learn about other (and possibly more serious) ways to use and integrate instructional technology into your classroom, sign up for a trial of Teq Online Professional Development.