Google Classroom Update - Students can Add and Create

Credit given to Alice Keeler on this blog entry.  http://www.alicekeeler.com/teachertech/2015/10/20/google-classroom-add-and-create/

Google Classroom put the Add and Create options back to being separate. When a student clicks on OPEN they have the option to add additional files or to create a blank Google document.

What to Add

After clicking on OPEN students can ADD anything from their Google Drive, a link or attach a file from the computer. Note that students must be the owner of the file in order to attach the document.
 

Students can take screenshots frequently when they are doing digital work and submit the screenshots to show their progress through the activity. Students can click on the paperclip file icon to add the screenshots. Students can hold down the shift key to select multiple screenshots

Attaching screenshots to a Google Classroom assignment.

Group Work

If students are collaborating on a document, only the document owner can add the file from Google Drive to an assignment. The group leader can create a Google Doc in Google Drive and use the ADD button in Google Classroom to add the presentation OR the group leader can click on CREATE in Google Classroom and create a blank Google document right in Classroom. Group members will copy the URL of the collaborative work, click on ADD in Google Classroom and click on the LINK option. While Group members can not attach the actual document from Drive, they can link to the collaborative document.

Do Not Do All The Work

Alternative thought to creating a template for every assignment. Unless a graphic organizer is really necessary it might be good for students to learn to create their own documents and format them in a way that clearly communicates their ideas. Instruct students to click on the OPEN button in Google Classroom and click on CREATE to create a blank Google text document, Google Slides presentation, Google Sheets spreadsheet or a Google Drawing. Even better, have the students determine which tool is the best tool to communicate their ideas.

Send Feedback

The Google Classroom team reads every piece of feedback. Look for the question mark in the bottom left-hand corner of Google Classroom. Choose “Send feedback.” If you like this feature of the create and add buttons being separate make sure you tell the Google Classroom team! Share your other ideas too!

Credit Given To:
Alice Keeler: http://www.alicekeeler.com/teachertech/2015/10/20/google-classroom-add-and-create/ 

Excellent Chrome Extensions for our Students Who Struggle

     

In this day and age, high-quality assistive technology (AT) can be found on almost every computing platform. This widespread availability is making curriculum access easier for struggleing students,  whether they are ELD, have a 504 or an IEP... or maybe they could just use a little extra help learn from online text.  AT supports associated with Google’s Chrome extensions   are becoming popular accommodations.

What Are Chrome Extensions?

Extensions are tools that can be added to the Chrome browser. They are designed to work in combination with websites and the documents in Google Drive, and they are usually intuitive and unobtrusive. They can perform several functions that are helpful to struggling students, including text-to-speech, dictation, word prediction, and text-leveling. Extensions are found and downloaded from the Chrome Web Store, and they are collected and managed in a dedicated tab of the browser. Icons of active extensions are placed in the toolbar for easy access.

1. Read&Write for Google

One of the best and most full-featured extensions is Read&Write for Google, created by Texthelp, a leading AT developer. The extension takes different forms depending on the content with which students are working. For websites, a pop-up toolbar is available with supports, like text-to-speech with synchronized highlighting, a talking dictionary, a picture dictionary, and annotation tools.

For the creation of Google Docs, the toolbar adds functions for dictation and word prediction. If students are working with PDF documents within Google Drive, the Read&Write extension opens those documents in new tabs that contain text-to-speech tools, as well as various note-taking and annotation tools. 

2. Co:Writer Universal

Another leading AT developer, Don Johnston, Inc., has added to the Co:Writer family of tools by creating Co:Writer Universal, a Chrome extension that provides robust word prediction support for students who have difficulty with spelling. There are several appearance options for the word prediction box, and students can use multiple dictionaries depending on their vocabulary levels. In addition, there are different options for auditory feedback, including text-to-speech reading of letters, words, and sentences as they are typed. Co:Writer for Chrome offers the option of using topic dictionaries, which can narrow prediction choices to words associated with specific topics.

3. Clearly

With on click, Clearly makes webpages clean and easy to read. Clearly eliminates all distractions from your online reading experience, and even allows you to browse multi-page articles in one, seamless view.  

4. Snap&Read Universal

Also from Don Johnston, Snap&Read Universal is an extension that utilizes text-to-speech and text-leveling technologies. Students who have difficulty reading can select any text, including text that is inaccessible, and the extension will automatically read it out loud with synchronized highlighting. For inaccessible text, including words that are part of an image, the extension performs OCR on the fly. The other useful feature of Snap&Read is that it can adjust the reading level of any text that a student selects. Difficult-to-understand words are identified and replaced with lower-level vocabulary, and students can adjust the text complexity according to their abilities.

5. Ginger

The Ginger extension is a contextual spelling and grammar checker. Students can copy and paste a piece of writing into the Ginger pop-up window to get advanced editing assistance. The advantage that Ginger has over the spell-checker in Google Docs is that it will look at words in the context of entire sentences — and thus identify more errors, such as homonym confusion. The extension also has a rephrasing tool, which makes suggestions for better sentence construction.

6. SpeakIt!

A simple, easy-to-use extension, SpeakIt! is a basic text-to-speech tool. To activate it, students select the words they want read out loud, and either click on the toolbar icon or utilize a keyboard shortcut. Options that students may select include speaking rate and a variety of voices.

7. Readability

Readability is a Chrome extension that extracts website text from material that can be distracting, like images and advertisements. Once extracted, the text can be adjusted by font and size to meet the needs of individual students. It can also be saved to an account or sent to a Kindle e-reader for later reading. Combined with a text-to-speech extension, Readability is a great reading tool for students with dyslexia and attention issues.

credits given to:http://www.symbaloo.com/mix/aztechcrazyforchromez

https://www.noodle.com/articles/7-google-chrome-extensions-that-help-students-with-dyslexia

 http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2015/08/3-awesome-chrome-extensions-to-enhance.html 

Calendar Integration Comes to Google Classroom!

Calendar Integration Comes to Google Classroom!

In this post you will learn how to:
1. Set up Calendar Integration

2. Give parents access

3. Expand your use

4. Import your original class calendar into your newly made Google Classroom calendar.

1. Setting Up Google Classroom Calendar Integration.

There are two ways to have your Google Calendar integrated with your Google Classroom.
1. From now on, where you create a new Classroom, a Google Calendar will be created for you. This calendar will also be automatically shared with your students in your Classroom.
2. If you already have an existing Classroom, all you need to do is create a new post (announcement or assignment) in the stream. At this point, This calendar will also be automatically shared with your students in your Classroom.

You'll receive this notification in Google Classroom
when you receive the new calendar feature.

Once the calendar has been generated, you and your students will have easy access to it from the About tab.

Easy access to the calendar from the About tab.

View in Classroom will open up the built in calendar in Google Classroom. This is another really nice feature of calendar integration. Teachers and students can access a built in calendar from the side menu. This calendar will include assignments from all classes (and you can filter classes as well).

Check out the new built in calendar in Google Classroom!

Open in Google Calendar will open up the teacher and students' Google Calendar where they can access their class assignments (and other calendars).

The Google Calendar will show all Assignments with due dates.

2. Give Parents Access

Many teachers are still waiting for parent access to Google Classroom. I'm not sure if it will ever truly have parent access, but this new calendar integration offers an easy way for teachers to share information with families at home.

Find the "Share this Calendar" setting in the menu.

Once your calendar has been generated, go visit calendar.google.com. Look for your Classroom calendar in the list of "My Calendars" on the left of the screen. Next to the name of the calendar is a drop down arrow. Click it to access the"Share this Calendar" option.

In order for parents to access the calendar, you need to "Make this calendar public". Check the two boxes at the top (as seen in the above screenshot). The click the SAVE button at the bottom of the page.

Now you need to give parents a way to access the calendar online. You have two options:

1. You can embed the Google Calendar on your webpage and then instruct the parents to access your class website. 

2. You can also give parents the direct URL to the calendar. To do this, click the drop down arrow next to your calendar again. This time choose "Calendar settings".

Find the "Calendar settings" in the menu.

In the settings menu, look for "Calendar Address:" and click the blue "HTML" button. This will give you the direct URL which you can then copy/paste into an email or share with parents.

With either method, you can also instruct the parents to click the "+ Google Calendar" button in the bottom right corner of the calendar. This will allow them to add the calendar to their own list of Google Calendars so they always have easy access to it.

3. Expand the Use of the Google Calendar

The Google Calendar generated by Google Classroom will only include Assignments that have due dates. However, as the teacher, you can add other events to the Google Calendar, such as upcoming field trips, reminders, project deadlines, etc. Just remember to choose the Classroom calendar when you create the event.

Add other class events to the same Google Calendar!

4. Import your originals class calendar into your newly made Google Classroom calendar.

Use the following tutorial like to learn how to migrate two calendars together https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rh0Rgy7XUcQ) 

This blog post is courtesy of: http://technocation.blogspot.com/2015/09/calendar-integration-comes-to-google.html 

11 ways to use Google Classroom’s newest features

Google has released some great new features for Classroom. But what can we do with them? Here are some ideas. (Sketch by Matt Miller)

In fall of 2014, Google released Classroom to anxiously awaiting teachers. In a year’s time, those teachers put Classroom to work, with students turning in more than 70 million assignments.

Google released a handful of useful updates to Classroom recently and some others to come in the next few months that let teachers and students do even more fantastic learning.

So what can teachers do with these changes? Here are 11 ideas for the classroom that these changes have made possible. Please post other ideas you think of as a comment at the end of the article.

1. Create exit tickets and bellringer activities. Want to do  some quick assessment at the beginning or end of class? Classroom’s new question-driven discussions let you post a question where students can post replies to answer it. (Worried about students copying each other’s answers? You choose whether students can see each other’s replies.)

2. Host an out-of-class viewing party. Is there a documentary, a live performance, a play or some other event that’s noteworthy to your class? Let students interact by "adding a question" in your Classroom and letting them reply in real-time with their reflections and observations. Add a single “Post your ideas here!” question or add several different types of questions to elicit answers on different specific topics.

3. Find and post evidence. Students can make all the assertions they want, but if they can’t back them up with solid data, they’re less than useful. Give students free roam of the Internet to find sites with data that supports or refutes what you’re talking about in class. Add a question where they can post links to their findings in a reply. When finished, the class will have a body of Internet research that any of them can go back to.

4. Offer video reflections. Another great use of the new question-driven discussions feature is a private place to comment on videos. When you post a new question, add a YouTube video that students can watch (or a link to a video on another video-hosting site if YouTube is blocked). When students watch that video, they’ll have a dedicated place to take whole-class notes, post opinions or answer questions.

5. Create new assignments from templates. Do you find yourself posting the same kinds of assignments or announcements in Classroom? If so, the new “reuse assignment” feature can help. Create a template that models the kind of assignment, announcement or question that you commonly use. (Maybe create a brand new class called “Templates” as a place to house it.) Then, when you need it, use the “reuse assignment” feature, find that template and change it as necessary before posting it. Save time and effort!

6. Create an easy reminder with a couple clicks. If you’ve assigned an activity or posted an announcement a while back, it can get buried under other posts in your classroom feed. To bring it front and center to students’ attention, use the “bump post” feature to move it back to the top. For longer projects (several weeks or months or an entire semester), bump that assignment once every week or two to keep students aware of it.

7. Host discussions and activities across multiple classes. With Classroom’s new co-teacher feature, multiple teachers can be teachers of record for a class within Classroom. Set up a shared class in Classroom for multiple classes and add all those classes’ teachers as teachers of record within Classroom. Then, those classes can interact together, bringing more students into class work and discussion — and hopefully better conversations and collaboration!

8. Use a photo to create an assignment. The cameras on smartphones and tablets make taking a quick picture a snap. Take a picture of the whiteboard/chalkboard after a good class discussion and pose a question or make an assignment based on it. Take a picture of something relevant to class and start a conversation about it. Pictures are powerful and connect to our brain differently than words. Harness that power!

9. Use the class photo as a bulletin board. The ability to change the class header photo in Google Classroom is not that new. But this may be a new way to use it! Use a tool like Google Drawings to create an image the size of your class header photo. Type reminders and important information on it. Save it as an image file (probably a JPEG or PNG … try 1500 x 400 pixels under File > Page setup > Custom …) and upload it as your class header photo. It will provide timely reminders to students whenever they access Google Classroom. Change it regularly to keep information updated and interest high!

COMING SOON!!!!!

10. Embed a class due-dates calendar in a class website. If you have a class website using Weebly (my favorite), Google Sites or something else, adding a due-dates calendar can be a nice feature. Using these instructions from Google Support, you can take the calendar that Google creates for your class and embed an interactive version of it directly on your site. (Note: The Google Classroom calendar integration had been promised soon but had not yet been released at the time of publication of this post.)

11. Post a quiz or test. Google Classroom has lacked options for assessment, but a new feature will allow teachers to add a Google Form to Classroom. Google Forms, Google’s survey tool, let teachers ask different types of questions and gather them in a spreadsheet. It’s a quick and easy way to gather student feedback or assess students’ progress. If the quiz/test data is from multiple-choice, true-false or matching questions, a great Google Sheets add-on called Flubaroo will grade that quiz/test and provide you a grading report with detailed results. See more about Flubaroo here. (Note: Google Forms integration also had been promised soon as of publication of this post but had not been activated yet.)

courtesy of: http://ditchthattextbook.com/2015/08/27/12-ways-to-use-google-classrooms-newest-features/ 

Top keyboard shortcuts that are super helpful!

Using keyboard shortcuts can greatly increase your productivity, reduce repetitive strain, and help keep you focused. For example, to copy text you can highlight text and press the Ctrl + C shortcut. The shortcut is faster than moving your hands from the keyboard, highlighting with the mouse, choosing copy from the file menu, and then returning to the keyboard. 

Below are some top keyboard shortcuts recommended to memorize and use!

Ctrl + C  and Ctrl + X

Both Ctrl + C  will copy the highlighted text or selected item. If you want to cut instead of copy press Ctrl + X.

Ctrl + V  

Both the Ctrl + V a  will paste the text or object that's in the clipboard.

Ctrl + Z and Ctrl + Y

This one's pretty familiar, and it's saved me a few  hundred times...it's the Undo command! Pressing Ctrl + Z will Undo any change. For example, if you cut text, pressing this will undo it. These shortcuts can also be pressed multiple times to undo or redo multiple changes. Pressing Ctrl + Y would redo the undo. 

Source: http://www.keepcalm-o-matic.co.uk/p/keep-calm-and-ctrl-z-5/

CTRL+T - Opens a new tab in most web browsersCTRL+SHIFT+T - Have you ever accidently closed a tab.... and then you have to open a new tab and try to search for the web page you were just on? Now - ctrl+shift+t will reopen the last tab you closed!!! (Hallelujah!)

Ctrl + F

Pressing Ctrl + F opens the "Find" in any program. Ctrl + F includes your Internet browser to find text on the current page. Quick tip for internet windows: if you're looking for something within a text box, you'll need to click inside it and then press CTRL+F in order to search inside the box.

Alt + Tab or Ctrl + Tab

Pressing Alt + Tab switches between open programs moving forward. For example, if you have your browser window open and other programs running in the background press and hold Alt and then press tab to cycle through each open program.

Tip: Press Ctrl + Tab to switch between tabs in a program. For example, if you have multiple tabs open in your browser now press Ctrl + Tab to switch between open tabs.

Tip: Adding the Shift key to Alt + Tab or Ctrl + Tab moves backward. For example, if you are pressing Alt + Tab and pass the program you want to use, pressAlt + Shift + Tab to move back to that program.

Tip: Windows Vista and 7 users can also press the Windows Key + Tab to switch through open programs in a full screenshot of the window.

Ctrl + Home or Ctrl + End

Ctrl + Home will move the cursor to the beginning of the document, and Ctrl + End will move the cursor to the end of a document. These shortcuts work with most documents, as well as web pages.

Ctrl + P

Open a print preview of the current page or document being viewed. For example, pressCtrl + P now to view a print preview of this page.

Last but not least, one I've been using the entire time I have typed this... text formatting shortcuts:

CTRL+B - Bold
CTRL+I - Italics
CTRL+U - Underline



courtesy of: 
http://teachingtrio.blogspot.com/2014/09/technology-thursday-keyboard-shortcuts.html
and  http://www.computerhope.com/tips/tip79.htm

 

 

 

Google Drive: The Web App & the Desktop App

Google Drive is a cloud storage service. It’s a fantastic tool for document management, sharing and backup. We compare the browser-based web app and the locally installed desktop app to see the real differences. Google says that the full power of Google Drive isn’t experienced until you install the desktop app; let’s take a look. The Google Drive desktop installation process is straightforward.

The Google Drive Web App

The most common way to access Google Drive is through a web browser (drive.google.com). An example Google Drive looks like this:

The Google Drive Desktop App

Google Drive integrates directly into PC Windows Explorer and Macs. Click here for the instrcutions to the The Google Drive desktop installation process is straightforward.

For a brief guide to downloading the desktop version on Google Drive. 

     a. Click on the gear icon in the top right-hand corner on your Drive screen (see image above).

     b. Click "Download Drive" (see image below)

c. the image below will appear on your screen, click on "Download Drive"; Mac and PC" 

  

d. In the pop-up box that appears. Click "Agree and Download" (see image below).

e. You may need to click "Run" (see image below)

   

f. A pop-up will appear, click "Get Started"

g. The next window will ask you to log in (so the downloaded Drive know which Google Account to access). firstname.lastname@mvla.net (see image below)

   

h. Laslty,  if you are a PC, your Drive will not appear on your Desktop

or if you have a Mac it will be located in your Finder:

Click here for the instrcutions to the The Google Drive desktop installation process is straightforward.

Files you’re currently storing online in Google Drive will automatically be downloaded and made available locally. Additionally, any folders and files you save here will be synced online. It’s a two-way sync.

That said, having a folder on your local computer that automatically syncs with Google Drive online is an extremely powerful tool. Why? For one, there’s the aforementioned revision feature; if you have a Microsoft Word document in your Google Drive folder and you edit and save it multiple times, all of those different revisions are automatically stored and saved in the cloud. Additionally it’s nice not to have to worry about remembering to upload a file to have it available in a place other than home or work. For instance, can create a PowerPoint presentation on your computer and save it to your Google Drive folder; it’s automatically uploaded to Google Drive in the cloud. From there you can share it with your team members. Any changes they make will not only be saved as revisions, but the latest version of that document will be synced back to your computer in the Google Drive folder. The utility is undeniable.

Credit to Charles P. Jefferies | August 15, 2012 | in Google Apps, Services, The Cloud