December 13, 2016

Introducing Team Drives!
A new feature recently added by Google is the ability to now create a Team Drive within Google Plus. (not all domains will have this feature yet but it is coming in early 2017!)

What does Team Drive do?
Team Drive was designed to be used by large groups of people or clubs as an easy way to share information without cluttering up a person’s shared folder or google drive. The biggest issue with a common shared folder dealt with ownership of a file. If the owner of important documents leaves a school, their files will be removed if their account is deleted. This means any files or documents shared to others will automatically disappear. In Team Drive, all files created are automatically owned by the team members....not one person.

How does Team Drive work?
Once your Google Plus administrator sets up Team Drive for your domain, it will appear as an option in your Google Drive account. Creating a Team Drive is similar to creating a new folder or a new class in Google Classroom. The interface (or look) of Team Drive will be slightly different. It looks more like Google Classroom but looks to be really easy to navigate and use.

To Learn More: https://goo.gl/y48L11 

December 13, 2016

Google Doc Tips and Tricks 

Below is a list of a few of my favorite Google Doc tips and tricks.

Changing Fonts:
In Google Docs, the top fonts are displayed at the very top. But most students do not realize they can find more if they click More Fonts at the bottom of the drop down menu. If you want to see all of the fonts in an easy menu, head over to fonts.google.com. What is great about this site is not only can you see the fonts in all of the different versions but it will give you recommendations as to which fonts go together. There are many different fonts to choose from but it is best to only use 3 or less in your document.

Use Hidden Tables:
Sometimes, you find yourself wanting to have text in a document in more than three columns. Or, you want some of the text in the middle of the document to be in columns while the rest is in a regular paragraph form. To do this easily, insert a table. Decide how many columns you want to use. Once you have the text inserted into the columns, hide the lines by double clicking (or right clicking) anywhere inside the table. Go to Table Properties and change the Table Border to match the background of the document and select Save.

Add Table of Contents
Google Docs will add a table of contents for your document. To make this work, on every section you want to show up in the table of documents, pull down the box that says Normal Text and select Heading. When you are done, go to the top of the document and select the Insert tool. Clear at the bottom is the selection for Insert Table of Contents. Select either the table in a number form or with links to the section of the document. 

December 6, 2016

It’s Back!

Quickly and easily cite sources in Google Docs

Around September, Google replaced the Research tool with a new one called Explore. Explore was designed to provide suggestions to help the user in creating a better final product. But educators quickly discovered the Explore tool was lacking some critical components students and teachers came to depend upon. One of those was the ability to quickly and easily cite sources as well as create footnotes in the Google Doc.

Recently, G Suite has released many new updates including the return of citations as footnotes being a part of Explore. You can change the format of your citation from MLA, APA, and Chicago.

(hint: Explore does bring websites & images based upon what has previously been typed in the document but I still find it’s best is to teach students how to use the search bar at the top and do their own advanced Google search to find exactly what they need from a reliable source.)

For more information on how to use the Google Explore feature, click here: https://support.google.com/docs/answer/2481802 

December 6, 2016

4 Hidden Chrome Tricks to Increase Your Efficiency

This article was posted by BetterCloud Monitor on November 17th, 2016.

“To make your browsing experience even better, here are four great hidden tricks in Google Chrome that can save you time and increase your efficiency.”

1. Pin a tab: Never accidentally close a tab again.

2. Organize tabs by moving them in bulk: You probably know that you can drag tabs around to organize them by just clicking and dragging, but did you know that you can drag multiple tabs?

3. Use a keyboard shortcut to go to specific tabs: Love keyboard shortcuts? How about a keyboard shortcut to go right to a specific tab?

4. Drag a URL to instantly create a shortcut on your desktop: You can highlight a link in the address bar and then drag it to your desktop.

Click here to watch the video with step-by-step instructions:

https://goo.gl/pYfxau 

November 29, 2016

FAKE NEWS versus The Truth: how to spot the difference

One of the biggest discussions right now is about the use of fake news in social media sites, especially on Twitter and Facebook, and how quickly it can be shared.

Here are just a few articles concerning this trend:

• Students have 'Dismaying' Inability to Tell Fake News From Real, Study Finds - NPR
• Facebook, Fake News and the Meaning of Truth - BBC
• We Tracked Down a Fake-News Creator in the Suburbs. Here's What We Learned - NPR

School Librarians are Information Teachers and are here to help. We are at the forefront of teaching Information Literacy.  These are must-have skills both students and adults should process such as the ability to:

• Consider the source. (Authority) 
• Read beyond the headline. (Authority)
• Check the author. (Authority) 
• What's the support? (Accuracy & Reliability) 
• Check the date. (Relevance and Reliability) 
• Is this some kind of joke? (New in the post-truth world!) 
• Check your biases. (Questioning) 
• Consult the Experts. (Questioning)

The above information was shared in a wonderful blog post by Judi Moreillon: https://goo.gl/OLqpC

November 29, 2016

5 Excellent Google Doc Templates for Teachers

I am always a firm believer in sharing of resources so no one has to spend time “reinventing the wheel” so to speak. This includes using resources that have already been created and then customizing them for my own purposes. This is why I always search for a Google Doc or Sheet template before I start from scratch. There are many wonderful templates available online that can save you a lot of time. 

In a blog post by Educational Technology and Mobile Learning, is an article titled 5 Excellent Google Dos Templates for Teachers.  Here are the top 5 templates:

• Newsletter
• Project Proposal
• Lesson Plans
• Brochure
• Class Notes

To access any of these Templates, go to Docs Gallery and click on the Template Gallery on the top right-hand side and scroll through the different templates.

November 22, 2016

Practical Ed Tech Tips Facebook Page 

Richard Byrne, the writer of the blog titled Free Technology for Teachers, has recently created a Facebook page where he and others share practical educational technology tips with each other.

The new Facebook page is:

https://goo.gl/UHEUPR

Today, there is a podcast between Richard, Dr. Wesley Fryer and Larry Ferlazzo.

In addition, there is an interesting article about not clicking on a link that looks like this: ɢoogle.com as it is a fake site. The real site is Google.com. Here is part of the article: “When you point your browser to ɢoogle.com, it’s actually leading you to xn— oogle-wmc.com...Yeah, that sounds fishy enough, and I don’t recommend visiting it. It’s definitely not the same as google.com, and looks spammy enough to potentially do harm to your computer.” ....sneaky...very sneaky.

And that is not all.....I could spend all day on this Facebook page. I am sure you will enjoy it too. Take a look at it today and Like it to continue to stay on top of the latest information.

November 22, 2016

Work in Google Docs Offline 

Last week, our school ran into some internet issues. It happens to the best of us. You are working on a document in Google Docs or Sheets and suddenly, you lose connection to the internet. However, what most people forget is you can continue to work in Google Docs offline as long as you have it selected in Settings and you are using Google Chrome.

Here is how:

1. Go to your drive account (drive.google.com)
2. In the top right, click on the cog icon 
   
3. Go to Settings
4. Make sure to put a checkmark in the box under Offline. This will allow you to work offline and allow the documents to sync when the internet returns.

That’s it! It is not perfect and there are some bugs with working offline such as not being able to use all of the functions (like use the Explore feature) and you do need to have Google Drive already opened in your browser before you go offline but it does work in a jiffy if you need it.

For More Information: https://goo.gl/Qpc6af 

November 15, 2016

Improve Reading Comprehension with Google Docs "Black Out"

This idea was shared on the G+ for Education Group by Eric Curtis from his blog titled Control Alt Achieve.

Basically, he heard about a way for students to identify main ideas, and summarization skills to help with their reading comprehension called the “Text Reduction Strategy” by Andrea Heick in a post at TeachThought. 
(link to original article: https://goo.gl/8Rs0Xe

Here is how it works. Students are given a piece of text and a black marker. They are instructed to read the article and to decide what information is critical and what is not. Then they re-read the article and black out all text that is not critical leaving behind just the main ideas.

In the original article, Andrea Heick suggested giving students a magazine article and a black marker. However, Eric Curtis suggested sharing a Google Doc with the students and having them use the highlighting feature that is built into the program.

Eric Curtis does an excellent job of showing step-by-step instructions on where to find articles of interest for the students, how to share the document and finally how to “black out” what is not critical. Read his post here: https://goo.gl/5FbZN6 

November 15, 2016

Tricks for Searching in Google Drive

Have you ever had a file or document in your Google Drive but suddenly can't find it? Did you know you can use the search bar at the very top to help?

In this article from Educational Technology comes 8 easy Google Drive search tips every teacher should know. 

November 1, 2016

From CommonSense Media:

“Mangahigh is a web-based platform that boasts dozens of math games and hundreds of tutorials and quizzes, all aligned with Common Core standards. It teaches and reinforces a wide variety of math fundamentals, from counting and number sense all the way up to beginning algebra and geometry concepts. Students can play through games at their own pace or work on teacher-assigned challenges and lessons. For extra-competitive flavor, students can earn medals, badges, and rewards, compete in social games with students across the world, or take part in school-wide challenges against other schools."

An impressive teacher dashboard lets instructors manage the whole experience with a gorgeous gradebook system, easy class setup, comprehensive analytics at the class or student level, and full interactive previews of all games and lessons. Classroom Mode allows teachers to lock down student access to teacher-assigned tasks (games or activities) for up to 90 minutes. “

For more information:
https://goo.gl/gm0gSH 

November 1, 2016

Teacher Rubric - A Google Doc Add-On

Within Google Docs, there are Add-Ons which are tools you can use within your project. These Add-Ons are developed by third-party vendors and most are free. 

To add an Add-On to your G Suite account, follow these instructions: https://goo.gl/cmXlYF

Today, I want to spotlight one add-on called  Teacher Rubric. This Add-On was created by a classroom teacher and is available under the name OrangeSlice.

What I like the most about this add-on is how it saves teachers time by creating rubrics that can then be embedded within each of the student documents. And what is even better, the rubric works very well with Google Classroom as after the rubric has been graded, it will insert the grade into the title of the document. This making it easy for the teacher and the student to see the final grade.

To see a short video over Teacher Rubric, click here: https://goo.gl/36Ivzt 

November 8, 2016

Key Questions To Ask When Analyzing Media Messages

Authorship

Who made this message?

Purpose

Why was this made? Who is the target audience (and how do you know)?

Economics

Who paid for this?

Impact

Who might benefit from this message? Who might be harmed by it? Why might this message matter to me?

Response

What kinds of actions might I take in response to this message?

Content

What ideas, values, information and/or points of view are overt? implied? What is left out of this message that might be important to know?

Techniques

What techniques are used? Why were those techniques used? How do they communicate the message?

Interpretations

How might different people understand this message differently? What is my interpretation of this and what do I learn about myself from my reaction or interpretation?

Context

When was this made? Where or how was it shared with the public?

November 8, 2016

FormLimiter is a Google Forms add-on that works really well for Google Classroom purposes and does exactly what the name implies…..it helps limit the use of the form.

FormLimiter can be used as a way to make sure only students in a certain class can complete a quiz using Google Forms by setting the time when it will no longer be available. (hint: create one quiz using Google Forms and make a copy for each class. Then use the add-on formLimiter to make the quiz only available during the class period). 

You can also use formLimiter to cut off responses after a certain number has been received or after a certain period or due date.

Carol LaRow has created a PDF handout to walk you through all of the steps on how to use formLimiter. You can access it here:

https://goo.gl/jdDbpa

To watch a how to video, click here: https://youtu.be/X3rQyf1wc_4

October 25, 2016

Google Chrome Extensions

What are they?: “Extensions are small software programs that can modify and enhance the functionality of the Chrome browser.”

What Are The Top Ones?: Like everything else, there are a wide variety of Google Chrome Extensions to choose from. Below are just a few of my favorite ones.

goo.gl URL Shortener: If I could only use one, this is the one I would choose. It is so easy to use and for someone who shares links to websites, it is a must have. Very simply put, it takes those long url’s and shortens them into an easier format.

Share to Classroom: The extension allows you to push webpages to any of your Classroom classes, so they open instantly on your students' computers.

Save to Google Drive: This extension allow you to save web content directly to Google Drive through a browser action or context menu.

LastPass: We have all been there...trying to remember a password or having to create yet another one for a program. This extension is here to help. All you have to do is remember one password to LastPass and it will automatically sign in and sync all of the other programs for you. 

October 25, 2016

Assign Action Items in Google Docs, Sheets & Slides

From Better Cloud Monitor comes news of a new feature within Google Docs, Slides and Sheets that allows you to assign action items for specific people when working in a large group.

You can assign action items in two ways:

1. Simply type in the action item within Google Docs, Sheets or Slides followed by the person’s name. For example: “To do Brett writes the summary.” or “Kevin will assign the roles at a later date.” Google will recognize this and give you a suggested action item off to the side. For this to work correctly, the text must mention someone’s name or email who has access to the file.
   
2. In Sheets, Docs, or Slides, you can manually assign an action item through a comment. Just insert a comment and mention your teammate’s email account.
   

When there is an action item assigned to the individual, a notification will appear in their Google Drive at the top of the document, slide, or sheet.

To watch a how-to video over this new feature, click here:
https://youtu.be/DNHNIoCsURI

To read the entire article, click here:
https://goo.gl/XE3vi5 

October 18, 2016

Yesterday, Chapman hosted its first Edcamp. It was a fun time and a lot of great information was shared. One of the topics that seemed to always come up was on how to use Twitter as a professional and learning tool. This morning, as I was preparing for today’s tech tidbits, I came across this very timely blog post on Ask A Tech Teacher titled 10 ways to Use Twitter in Class. Below is a copy and paste from the blog post as well as a link to read the entire post.

Top Ten Ways To Use Twitter in Class: 

1. Answer Tech Problems
2. Use as a Backchannel Device
3. Gather Feedback
4. Formative Assessment
5. Group Study Session
6. Keep Parents Up To Date
7. Last-minute Notifications
8. Notetaking
9. Teach Digital Citizenship
10. Twitter Novel

For more information on each of the ten ways, go to:
https://goo.gl/7EmLlu 

October 18, 2016

Google Slides Presenter View

If you have used Google Slides recently, you may have noticed it now has an updated presenter view.

The biggest update is the ability of the presenter to have the audience submit questions as the presentation is occurring. As the presenter, you have an option to control the presentation slides and whether to show the questions as well. This lets the audience become more of an active partner in the exchange of information. As the presenter, you can answer the questions as they come or wait until the end and answer them as a review.

Techy Coach has a really good blog posts showing you step by step on how to use this new tool. 

To learn more, go to: https://goo.gl/XBWWYp 

October 11, 2016

Newsela and Google Classroom

Newsela is a wonderful site to find up-to-date news articles in a students lexile level. New articles are provided daily in 5 different lexile levels to chose from. There is even an assessment at the end for students to take to check for understanding.

Recently, Newsela has teamed up with Google Classroom. It is now easy to share news articles with your whole entire class. Before you begin, you and your students must have accounts set up in Newsela. But even this step has been made easier as you can upload your entire Google Classroom. To find out how, click on the Quick Start Guide for Teachers: https://goo.gl/lwsSv0

For more information, click on the Newsela support pages:
https://goo.gl/89FrBP 

October 11, 2016

MySimpleShow is a really easy site to use to create videos with animation using 3 steps. (you can even upload an existing powerpoint and have it converted)

Step 1: Writing the Script: To begin, mysimpleshow will ask you what type of video you would like to create by offering a series of storylines and templates to choose from. After you select one, it will guide you through the steps necessary to create an effective video for this type of content.

Step 2: Image Selection: when you are done with the script, it is time to add the bells and whistles to the video. MySimpleShow will read your script and based upon key words, it brings up suggestions of images to use. You do not have to follow these suggestions. You can upload your own images or choose another image from their library.

Step 3: Publishing: You can choose a computer-generated voice to narrate your video or upload your own voice recording. When you are done, you simply select FINALIZE and mysimpleshow does the rest by adding polishes such as timing the images to the narration, adding soft background music, and more. The video can then be shared through Google Drive and Google Classroom.

More Info: https://goo.gl/SxcIdW 

October 4, 2016

Create Fillable Text Boxes in Google Docs 

From BetterCloud Monitor comes a post on how to create fillable text boxes when you are creating a worksheet in Google Docs.

"If you’ve ever tried to make a worksheet or form in Google Docs, you’ve probably created lines for people to enter their information on. But all too often, this:

Name: __________________ turns to this:

Name: ______Hermione Granger______”

BetterCloud Monitor then provides step-by-step instructions, complete with small little video clips, on how to insert and use the table function instead.

To see how, click on the following link: https://goo.gl/r5MWwh 

October 4, 2016

From GAFE to G Suite

You have probably heard by now Google has recently announced a new name for all of their Google Apps For Education and Business accounts. The new title is G Suite. Along with the new name comes a few new features. Listed below are just two of them: 

In Google Docs, you can now use columns. To find out how, go to: https://goo.gl/0mBIS0

In Docs, Sheets, and Slides, comes a tool called Explore. Explore uses technology to offer suggestions such as design tips or research recommendations. This tool works very well in Google Sheets and Slides. BUT....in Google Docs, Explore falls short. To make room for this new tool, Google removed the Research tool that was widely used in education. This is a huge setback....especially for those that depended on the Research tool to help find reliable information and open source images. The Research tool even assisted in adding the website citations in the footnotes of the paper. By removing this tool, many educators are upset and a letter campaign has started asking for its return. Let’s hope this is one feature Google decides to bring back.

For more information over Google Explore, go to: https://goo.gl/PSEkOy 

September 27, 2016

Matific is a web-based site that provides curriculum aligned math resources for grades K-6 and encourages conceptual understanding.

“Explore Matific's library of hundreds of interactive and playful activities, called “episodes”. Discover the award winning pedagogy that earned Matific the endorsement of math teachers worldwide.”

There are hundreds of episodes available with new ones added each week. As a teacher, you can sign up for a free 30-Day trial. After the trial period, you can register for access for as little as $10.00 for twelve months. As a parent, you can sign up to use Matific for 3 months to a full year for the price of $30.00

For more information, please visit the Matific website or watch this 30 minute webinar: https://youtu.be/MxhLQnBI-5Y 

September 27, 2016

I love when I discover a new technology blog / resource person, especially if their blog is full of really good stuff that can be used right away. I would like to introduce you to.....

Tammy’s Technology Tips for Teachers.

Tammy Worcester Tang, who incidentally is married to Greg Tang, has over 25 years experience in the educational world. She is currently retired from ESSDACK as an Instructional Technology Specialist but continues to provide staff development and training in the field of tech integration. Her blog is full of wonderful technology tips such as Google templates ready to be used, step-by-step instruction for student activities and a link to her favorite website and iPad apps.

One of my favorites is her post over Self-Check Quiz Templates.

These templates can be used to share a quiz through Google Classroom with your students to self-check their understanding. It even automatically grades the responses giving immediate feedback. Try it out today.

September 20, 2016

Spice up your lesson plans by adding an image, colorful banner, sign or funny meme by using ImageChef.

It’s very easy to use just choose an image from the site, add the words, and click Preview. To save a creation, click Post to Blog, choose the size image, and then drag it to your desktop.

The Fodey Generator is another site that works much like ImageChef if you want to try something else. 

September 20, 2016

STEM 30 is an interactive classroom program consisting of 30-minute live webcasts that engage middle school students in STEM topics ranging from WWI airplanes to rovers on Mars. 

Chat with experts, submit your questions to be answered live, take a poll, discover related content, and participate in follow-up activities. - https://airandspace.si.edu/connect/stem-30

Watch STEM in 30 live on this page or on NASA TV. 

September 13, 2016

Introducing the NEW Destiny Discover.

Have you recently looked at the schools library catalog? You might notice it has a different look than before.

Destiny, our library catalog, has recently been revamped into a new style with new functions to make finding information even easier than before. Now, not only can you search for books, videos, and more available in the libraries, you and your students can also search for Open
Educational Resources, right from the same page. OER resources are an excellent way to find high-quality information for research purposes.

All you have to do is login to your library catalog and do a search. At the top, you will see a tag for Open Education Resources. Click on it and you suddenly will have access to thousands of wonderful books, articles, and media over your search topic. Try it today! 

September 13, 2016

The Definitive Guide to Google Classroom "Parent View" aka Guardian Summaries

In the blog titled friEdTEchnology, Mike Wallace and Amy Mayer have created a guide to be used by classroom teachers and parents over the new feature in Google Classroom called Guardian Summaries.

In this guide is everything you need to know to successfully use this new feature. There are step-by-step instructions on how to set up the Guardian Summaries. There are even short little video clips to visually guide you through the process.

Just go to:
http://goo.gl/TG51wq

September 6, 2016

TesTeach with Blendspace: Create digital lessons in five minutes.

Tes Teach has interactive lessons and projects already built in ready to use in less than five minutes. Or you can create your own custom lesson plan by simply selecting and dropping in the digital materials you need.

TesTeach works seamlessly with Google Classroom as well as all of your other Google Apps.

For more information on how it works, watch this short introduction video: https://youtu.be/iTqantAbjlk

There are many different video’s created by the company to help get started. Let’s take a look at one titled Primary Sources: https://goo.gl/7i9Kq6

To access TesTeach to try it out for yourself, go to: https://goo.gl/5b7nUA 

September 6, 2016

Protect Your Google Form by Adding A Password

Google Forms can now be used to create a quiz for students and then seamlessly distributed through Google Classroom. But....how do you make sure only students who are suppose to access the quiz are the ones who do? Simple.....add a password.

Here is how:

1. In GoogleForm, add a question at the very top and call it “Password.” Make it a required question.
   
2. Change the type of question to Short Answer.
   
3. Click the three dots on the bottom right- hand corner and select Data Validation.
   
4. In Data Validation-pull down the boxes and make sure it says Regular Expression - Matches - (whatever your password will be)
   
5. In Custom Error Text, you can add a message you want the viewer to receive if they type in the password incorrectly.
   
6. Add another section and carry on with creating the quiz.
   

*HINT: you can put in the password yourself and not tell the student or you can share the password with one class and then change it between classes in the Google Form. 

August 30, 2016

Yes....another post by Richard Byrne. Seriously.....everyone should follow his blog, twitter, facebook, and Pinterest.

Today, Richard Byrne’s new blog post is titled

Two Ways to Show ClassroomNoise.

The first is a website titled BouncyBalls. This website is very easy to use. All you have to do is go to the site and click “begin bouncing”. The louder the students are in your class, the higher the balls will “bounce” on the screen.

The second is another website titled Calmness Counter. This website displays a dial meter that shows a classroom noise level. To make it work better, you can adjust the microphone input sensitivity.

To read more about these two, go to Richard Byrne’s blog at: http://goo.gl/fFl9tC 

August 30, 2016

The latest blog post by Kevin Zahner is titled:

Ten Projects Every GoogleApps Classroom Should Try

In the post, Kevin Zahner explains how he has found success using the following projects in his classroom:

1. Collaborative Notes

2. Selecting Slides (online) 3. Graphic Organizers

4. Inquiry Based Forms

5. You-Tube Playlist

6. Current Events

7. Vlog Post

8. Google My Maps

9. Interactive Review

10. Photo Essay Reflection

To find out how, go to: http://goo.gl/AOxf5r

BONUS: If you are using Google Classroom, make your calendar public so parents are aware of all assignments, posts, and questions. Jenn Judkins shows you how: http://goo.gl/LVxVox 

August 23, 2016

Tony Vincent has a new post in his blog, Learning in Hand, that does a great job in explaining 15 different tools you can use for Formative Assessments. What I love the most is how he has broken them down into little snapshots to you can see exactly what one tool does versus the other.

Take a look!

Know Students

Better: 15 Tools for Formative Assessment 

August 23, 2016

“PBS LearningMedia builds on the strength of public media and is designed to improve teacher effectiveness and student achievement.

Resources are aligned to Common Core and national standards and include videos and inter-actives, as well as audio, documents, and in- depth lesson plans.
You can browse by standards, grade level, subject area, and special collections. You can also favorite and share resources with your class and colleagues. Best of all, PBS LearningMedia’s basic service is free for PreK-12 educators.”

Take a look: http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/