TECH CLUBBOZOMA INNOVATION HUB

Session 12 • Page 1

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Session 12: Search Like a Pro

The Web has billions of pages. Somewhere out there is the answer to almost any question you can ask, and also a lot of rubbish, adverts and rumours. Today you will learn to find the right page fast, and to tell a trustworthy source from a fake one. That is a skill you will use for every project in school and beyond.

1. Plain Talk: The Market Queen Who Knows Every Stall

Imagine you need a blue padlock in Makola Market. You could walk past thousands of stalls for hours. Or you could ask the market queen, who knows exactly which stalls sell padlocks, and which sellers are honest.

A search engine is the market queen of the Web. Long before you ask, its robot programs visit billions of pages and write down what is on each one in a giant catalogue called an index. When you type your keywords, it looks them up in the index and lists the best matches first.

Figure 12.0: How a search engine works. The first result is the best match for your words, not always the truest page.

2. Browser vs. Search Engine: Don't Confuse Them!

🪟 THE WEB BROWSER (Your Window on the Web)

The program on your computer or phone (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari). It is the window you look through to visit any web page. You met it in Session 11.

👑 THE SEARCH ENGINE (The Market Queen)

A website you open inside the browser: Google, Bing or DuckDuckGo. Typing words (not an address) in the address bar also sends them to a search engine: Chrome usually uses Google, Edge uses Bing.

Smart Keywords & Search Operators

Session 12 • Page 2

1. The Art of Keyword Searching

Search engines do not need chatty words like "please" or "tell me". They hunt for keywords: the 2–6 most important words, the ones you expect to see on the perfect page.

❌ Weak Search (too vague or full of filler)	✅ Smart Keyword Search (specific and direct)
`trees in ghana` (millions of random results)	`mangrove trees coastal protection Ghana`
`how can our school get some clean drinking water?`	`ceramic pot water filter schools Ghana`
`plastic`	`plastic sachet recycling projects Accra`

2. Search Operators: Your Power Tools

Operators are special symbols or words that give the search engine exact orders. They work in Google and Bing. DuckDuckGo understands quotes, minus and site:, but not OR.

Operator	What it orders	Example
"quotes"	Find these words together, in this exact order.	`"Kakum National Park" canopy walkway`
-minus	Leave out pages with this word. No space after the minus!	`Mole National Park elephants -hotel`
site:	Only show pages from this website or kind of website. No space after the colon.	`scholarships site:edu.gh` `school calendar site:gov.gh`
OR	Either word will do. Type OR in CAPITAL letters.	`kenkey OR banku recipe`

Figure 12.1: Each operator narrows the search, like a funnel, until only the most useful pages are left.

Your turn: Write a smart search, using at least one operator, for each task.

Pages about the Akosombo Dam from Ghanaian government websites only.
The exact phrase "Volta Lake" and fishing, but no pages about hotels.
Recipes for either waakye or jollof.

Reading Results: Ads, Tabs & Pictures

Session 12 • Page 3

1. Anatomy of a Results Page

Figure 12.2: A results page (it may look slightly different). Adverts marked "Sponsored" or "Ad" often come first.

Read before you click: skip results marked Sponsored or Ad unless you really want to buy something. Read the address and the snippet, then choose. Some search engines now show an AI-written summary at the top: it can be wrong, so check it like any other source (Session 40).

2. Images, Maps & News Tabs

Tab	What it finds	Try it
Images	Pictures that match your words. Click one to see the page it comes from. Pictures belong to their owners (more in Session 27).	`kente weaving Bonwire`
Maps	Places, distances and directions on a map, with a satellite view.	`Kejetia Market Kumasi`
News	Recent news stories, with the date and the news organisation. Use Tools to show only the past week.	`Ghana Meteorological Agency rain`

3. Reverse Image Search: Is This Photo Old or Fake?

A reverse image search searches with a picture instead of words. It shows where else that picture appears on the Web, so you can find out whether a "today" photo is really years old, or from another country.

🔍 HOW TO DO IT

Chrome: right-click the picture and choose Search with Google Lens (the wording may differ). Any browser: go to images.google.com, click the camera icon, then upload the picture or paste its link. Bing Images has a camera icon too.

🕵🏾 WHAT TO LOOK FOR

Pages showing the same picture (look for "Exact matches"). Which is the oldest? What did the first page say the picture shows? If it was online years ago, it is not "today's" news. Edited and AI-made fakes (deepfakes) come in Session 40.

Can You Trust It? Sources & Fact-Checking

Session 12 • Page 4

1. Reliable Sources vs. Rumour Sites

✅ Good places to start (Ghana)	🚩 Warning signs of a rumour site
Government ministries and agencies (.gov.gh): e.g. the Ghana Education Service `ges.gov.gh`, Ghana Statistical Service `statsghana.gov.gh`, Ghana Health Service `ghs.gov.gh`.	No author's name and no date.
Universities (.edu.gh): e.g. `ug.edu.gh`, `knust.edu.gh`, `ucc.edu.gh`.	A shocking headline in CAPITALS, "SHARE BEFORE THEY DELETE THIS!!!"
Established national news: e.g. the Ghana News Agency, the Daily Graphic, GBC. They name their reporters and correct mistakes.	A strange address such as `ghana-breaking-news24.example.net`, lots of pop-ups and adverts.
Encyclopaedias like Wikipedia: a good start, but check the references at the bottom.	No other trustworthy site reports the same story.

2. The 4-Way Fact-Check Shield

Anyone in the world can make a web page and write false information. Before a fact goes into your project, pass it through the shield:

Figure 12.3: The 4-Way Fact-Check Shield. If two independent, reliable sources agree, the fact is trustworthy.

3. Citing a Source: Show Where You Found It

To cite a source means to write down where a fact came from, so your teacher (or anyone) can check it. Write three things: the title of the page, the website, and the date it was published or updated (or "no date"), plus the day you visited.

📝 EXAMPLE CITATION

"Kakum National Park" · Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org) · last edited (the date at the bottom of the page) · visited 14 November 2026

Your turn: Cite a page you visited today (or the Kakum page from Session 11).

🚨 POP-UP TRAP: "YOU HAVE WON A FREE PHONE & 5,000 CEDIS!"

While searching you may see flashing boxes saying you won a prize, or that your computer has a virus. Rule: if you did not buy a ticket, you did not win! Never click inside the box and never type your name, school or phone number. Close the tab (Ctrl+W) and tell your mentor.

Guided Hands-On Lab: The Search Race

Session 12 • Page 5

1. Lab Mission: 5 Facts, 5 Sources

Your team draws a topic card: Lake Volta, Mole National Park, Kente weaving, Cape Coast Castle or cocoa farming in Ghana. Find 5 true facts, each with its source. Points: 1 for every fact with a full citation that passes the shield, 1 for every different operator you use, and 2 extra for the first team to finish. First, sharpen your skills in the Search Detective 3D lab on your session page.

1

Plan your keywords: Write 3–4 keywords for your topic before you touch the keyboard. Which words will be on the perfect page?

2

Search with power tools: Open a search engine and use at least two different operators (for example "Lake Volta" fishing and site:gov.gh). Read the address and snippet of each result before you click. Skip "Sponsored" results.

3

Shield every fact: Who wrote it? When? Why? Does a second, independent site agree? Use Ctrl+F to find the fact on the second page quickly. At least one fact must come from a .gov.gh, .edu.gh or national news website.

4

Cite it: Write the title, website and date for each fact in the table. Bookmark your best source (Ctrl+D).

5

Bonus: photo detective. Your mentor shows a "viral" photo with a caption. Do a reverse image search. Is the caption true? When and where did the photo first appear?

2. Search Race Record Sheet

Our topic:

#	Fact	Search I typed	Source: title · website · date	Agree?
1
2
3
4
5

Photo detective: What did you find out about the viral photo?

Session 12 Review & Verification

Session 12 • Page 6

1. Choose the Best Search

For each task, tick the search that will work best.

Task	A	B	C
1. Facts about the Akosombo Dam from government websites.	`tell me about the dam`	`Akosombo Dam site:gov.gh`	`Akosombo -dam`
2. Pages with the exact name Tetteh Quarshie.	`"Tetteh Quarshie"`	`Tetteh OR Quarshie`	`Tetteh -Quarshie`
3. A WhatsApp photo says "Flood in Tamale today". Is it really new?	Share it, just in case	Search `flood`	Reverse image search it
4. The first result says "Sponsored". What is it?	The most correct page	An advert someone paid for	A government page

2. Written Review Questions

Question 1: Kofi says, "Google and Chrome are the same thing." Explain the difference to him.

Question 2: You find a surprising fact on a website with no author and no date. What should you do before you put it in your project?

3. Self-Assessment & Mentor Sign-Off

Tick the column that reflects your confidence at the end of Session 12:

Searching & Research Competency	With Help	Almost Alone	All By Myself!
1. I can explain the difference between a browser and a search engine.
2. I can search with keywords and the operators "quotes", minus, site: and OR.
3. I can use the Images, Maps and News tabs, spot adverts and do a reverse image search.
4. I can check a source with the 4-Way Shield and cite it (title, website, date).

Mentor Signature: _____________________________

Date Completed: ____________________