Sourcera is an Add-on for Google Slides that lets you search for historical images and insert them directly into your slides. Sourcera pulls images from eleven sources including Flickr’s Commons, the British Library, and the Digital Public Library of America.

To find an image through Sourcera you need to highlight a word on a slide and then select “search” from the Sourcera menu. When you find an image that you like just click “insert” to add it to your slide. The image source information will be automatically added to the slide too.

Sourcera isn’t a perfect tool, but it is adequate for finding historical images that are either in the public domain or licensed for re-use. There are a couple of quirks in Sourcera. First, it only lets you search through one source at a time. Second, you have to type a word on your slide then highlight it in order to conduct your search. It would be easier to use if Sourcera let you type a search directly into its search box.

Applications for Education
Sourcera is a little quirky to use, but it could be a good resource for high school students who are creating presentations for history courses.

Learn more about Google Slides in my online course, G Suite for Teachers.