EdTechTeam

Global Network of Educational Technologists

Google

Teacher Organization Hacks: Declutter your Digital Workspace

Raise your hand if your digital workspace could use a good declutter! You find yourself spending 25 minutes searching for that one Doc you need or you can’t even open your inbox because that unread number causes your stress and anxiety to shoot through the roof.

We’re here to help with some tips for managing multiple Google accounts, organizing bookmarks, and taking control of your inbox. Are you ready to go Marie Kondo on your digital workspace? Let’s dive right in!

All of the tips below include G Suite tools and demonstrated inside Google Chrome.

Tip #1: How to Manage Multiple Google Accounts

If you’re like us, then you have multiple Google accounts. You’re constantly signing in and out of your personal or work account, but things get messy this way. Something always gets created under the wrong account making it even harder to find what you’re searching for. Our solution…separate your digital houses. There are two ways to access your Google account: log into your account inside your preferred browser or create a separate Chrome profile for each account. Spoiler alert – option two is the one you want! In the video below, Amanda Taylor is showing you exactly what we mean by “separate your digital houses” and how to switch between your accounts with the click of a button to keep everything separated so you can always find what you’re looking for inside your account.

Tip #2: How to Organize Your Bookmarks

This might seem like a simple tip, but trust us when we say that it’s a game-changer! Go and look at your bookmarks. How many do you have? How often do you actually use what you have saved to your bookmarks? Now, what are those top 6-10 websites you visit every day? Are they bookmarked or do you find yourself typing out the websites in your search box again and again because somehow it just feels easier?

If you’re like the majority of people (even us!) you’re bookmarks are a little out of control. The thing about bookmarks is they can save us so much time if they are used correctly. We’re talking about saving icons to your bookmark bar to take up less space, utilizing folders, and organizing your bookmarks so you can quickly and easily access what you need and use the most. In the video below, Amanda is showing you how to do all of this step-by-step.

Tip #3: How to Take Control of Your Inbox

We’ve saved the best for last…taking control of your inbox. If we had a dime for every time someone said they were excited to open their inbox we would have about 2 dimes. Shocking we know, but most people dread opening their inbox. We want to change that! We want to help you manage your inbox and get you to the point where you maybe aren’t excited to open your inbox, but you don’t feel that overwhelming stress when you see that unread number.

We’re showing you how to remove old emails from your inbox (quickly!), create filters & labels so you can easily search and find what you’re looking for, and how to set up your inbox so it best works for you. Dive into Amanda’s top tips in the video below.

We’ll be tackling Google Drive, Calendar, and Chrome extensions in another post, but for now, we hope you found all of these tips helpful and you can start to declutter your digital workspace. Let us know in the comments below if you’ll be incorporating any of these tips into your daily workflow.

Looking for ways to tried and true techniques, customizable templates, proven protocols, and interactive support to create high-impact learning experiences in your classroom?

Check out our virtual conference – Untamed Learning and get access to 32 sessions to help you ignite your teaching practice in 2021! 

 

How to Create Digital Lessons in Google Slides

Creating lessons in a face-to-face learning environment is challenging enough, but trying to translate lessons to a digital format takes it to a whole new level. So, we’ve called on Emma Pass (the Hybrid Teacher Guru) to walk through a simple workflow you can use to create lessons quickly and easily inside Google Slides. Whether you’re teaching in a remote, blended/hybrid, or in-person learning environment, this lesson system will work for you! Below, Emma is walking you step-by-step through how to use this plug and play system so you can start putting it to use right away. Say goodbye to staying up until 2 a.m. creating lessons! Let’s dive in.

Tip #1: Best Practices for Creating Lessons in Google Slides

In the video below, Emma is showing you a couple of examples of what effective lessons look like in Google Slides. She’s also walking you through the main elements she always includes in a lesson and how to create a new slide deck.

Tip #2: How to Set up Your Slides

You’re probably thinking that there’s nothing new here, but there’s a shortcut in the video below that will save you a ton of time setting up your slides all while still looking nice.

Tip #3: Add in the Learning Target

You always want to make sure you add in the learning target at the very beginning of your lesson. In the video below, Emma shows you how to do this so that your students actually see it.

Tip #4: Always Add a Video (It’s Easier Than you Think!)

Emma always adds a video to all of her lessons to switch up the content and keep students engaged. This might seem intimidating or sound time consuming, but Emma is showing you a quick way to embed videos in your slide deck without leaving Google Slides.

Tip #5: Ask Your Students to Go Do Something

This is the section of the lesson where you can really give your students some voice and choice. Emma is showing you how you can create a choiceboard right in your slide deck and really make the lesson interactive.

Tip #6: Add a “You’re Done!” Slide

Emma always adds a “You’re Done” slide at the end of all her lessons for students to click and turn in their assignment. In the video below, Emma is showing you how she connects this to Google Classroom, but you can use whatever LMS works for you.

Tip #7: Grade Your Lesson in Google Classroom

If you’re using Google Classroom then this whole lesson design system is even easier for you. In the video below, Emma is walking you through how to create a copy of the lesson for each student, keep track of student progress, use rubrics and grade the lesson all in Classroom. Super easy and streamlined workflow to help you save a ton of time!

There you have it! A plug and play lesson design workflow you can use in any type of learning environment. We hope you found this blog post helpful and if you try out this system, leave a comment below and tell us what type of lesson you created.

Also, if you’re looking for more support on Google Classroom, check out our blog post here on how to get set up.

How to use Google Classroom as an Instructional Coach

Google Classroom has become an increasingly popular platform for teachers and educators, especially in the midst of the transition to remote learning caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Though Google Classroom has – up to this point – been regarded as a tool for teachers to work with students, we are reinventing Google Classroom as a tool for instructional coaches. Google Classroom is an all-inclusive tool for coaches to communicate, connect and support their teachers as we continue on this remote learning journey. 

What is Google Classroom?

Google Classroom can be thought of as a one-stop-shop for students and teachers. Google Classroom is an easy way to seamlessly integrate all of Google’s G Suite tools used for teaching and learning, especially in remote and asynchronous environments. Some teachers were initially interested in Google Classroom as an organizational system to rid their desks of paper clutter, but this program has proven to be significantly more robust than just being a virtual filing cabinet.

How do Teachers use Google Classroom?

Though teachers first began using Google Classroom as a means to go paperless, this learning tool has gained popularity because of its functionality and ease of use. Teachers most often use Google Classroom to streamline how they manage their classroom resources. From the syllabus to the final exam, teachers can store all their lesson content, assignments, and additional resources all in one place for students. Because Google Classroom integrates with other G Suite tools, there are several benefits to using this platform. For example, when assignments are posted in Google Classroom, the Calendar app recognizes the due date of that assignment and will automatically post the assignment to the calendar as a reminder for students to easily keep track of when their work is due.

Teachers also love the ability to digitally organize, distribute, and collect assignments or other course materials via Google Classroom. Teachers can easily post the same assignment to multiple classes at the same time, or assign something to individual students that require differentiation or additional support. Any assignment or material posted to Google Classroom can be reposted to future classes, which saves teachers from reinventing the wheel each year.

Google Classroom also allows teachers to communicate with students via announcements and discussion boards, which can help keep students organized and on track. Teachers can set various permissions that allow students to comment on announcements or simply view them depending on the needs of the class. Parents can also receive notifications from Google Classroom about what assignments have been posted and what assignments their student may be missing, which helps to support an open line of communication for all stakeholders.

How can Instructional Coaches use Google Classroom?

Tip #1: Organization

Though Google Classroom is typically considered a one-stop-shop for teachers and students, it can be a great resource for instructional coaches as well. When I first began coaching, I had resources all over the place and my solution to that was to print everything out and make a binder that I could share with the teachers I was coaching. While the binder was a great way to keep everything in one place, those resources were only accessible when the binder was in my possession. If I wanted to look up a resource at home or refer back to meeting notes, I was unable to do so without the binder. Another downside to the paper binder was that when things changed, as they always do in education, those resources became outdated and unusable.

As an instructional coach, Google Classroom can replace your paper-based organizational system, for a more complete resource hub. Google Classroom can house all the materials, announcements, videos, and resources you want to share with your teachers. You can make a different classroom for each teacher you are coaching, or one classroom for everyone which would allow teachers to collaborate with each other as well. Regardless of which method you choose, Google Classroom will help instructional coaches organize all of their coaching materials for teachers. Even better – these classrooms remain active and available for teachers long after the coaching cycle ends. Teachers do not need to fear that resources will go away once the cycle ends, and can refer back to their meeting notes, videos, or discussions at any point throughout the year.

Tip #2: Announcements & Communication

As an instructional coach, there are often times you find a cool new tool or think of new ways to implement instructional strategies, but you’ve already had your meetings with teachers for the week. Usually, I would send an email to the teacher with my findings, but if you’ve ever seen a teacher’s inbox, you know it is very likely that those emails go unread or get buried somewhere. Google Classroom would allow you as an instructional coach to post announcements for teachers that would draw attention to whatever resources you are sharing at that time. These announcements also help teachers keep coaching related materials together, instead of having a folder in their email in addition to a folder on their drive, and then some random papers printed out too.

Announcements would also be a good way for coaches to send reminders to teachers about when you are facilitating coaching meetings, campus training, and other professional development opportunities. Announcements, especially in collective classes, could be used to highlight and celebrate the awesome things teachers are doing in their classrooms as well.

Tip #3: Giving and Collecting Feedback

Similarly to the ways in which teachers provide and collect feedback from students, instructional coaches can use Google Classroom to provide and collect feedback from teachers. Maybe you want a teacher to try a new strategy in their classroom, Google Classroom would allow you to create an assignment for that teacher to remind them of the task that needs to be completed. You could ask teachers to reflect on a particular lesson or activity using discussion boards or even assign a coaching survey through Google Forms to collect data about the coaching cycle. Using assignments and discussions within Google Classroom allows the teacher to tangibly keep track of and complete tasks while also providing the coach with opportunities to provide feedback. Just Google Classroom allows teachers and students to communicate asynchronously, Google Classroom can provide the same opportunities to teachers and coaches.

Tip #4: Scheduling

Another benefit to using Google Classroom as a coaching tool is the integration of other G Suite products like Google Calendar. Coaches can create a collaborative calendar with the teachers they are supporting and schedule things like meeting reminders or tasks that need to be accomplished. Oftentimes coaches need teachers to answer some questions, reflect on their lesson or prepare a challenge to be discussed – all of which can be posted in the Classroom as ungraded assignments so they will show up on the teacher’s calendar as to-do items. This can help teachers keep track of their participation in coaching, as well as where they currently are in their coaching cycle.

Google Classroom has long proven itself to be an impactful tool for teachers to use in their classrooms, but now has an opportunity to serve instructional coaches as well. Google Classroom is an easily accessible, intuitive tool to facilitate continuous communication and support between instructional coaches and teachers despite challenges of time and physical space.

Megan Purcell is a Digital Learning Specialist and Certified Dynamic Learning Project coach in Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD located in Carrollton, TX. She enjoys working with teachers to help them elevate their teaching through the use of impactful technology tools and strategies. Megan holds a masters degree in Educational Technology, which she earned overseas at the National University of Ireland in Galway, in addition to being a certified Microsoft Innovative Educator and Apple Teacher. She is a former high school English teacher who loves learning, technology, and helping make life easier for her teachers. She believes that every student should have access to current technology in order to develop 21st century skills necessary for participating in a global society.

How to Use the Google Assistant in your Classroom

This blog post is sponsored by Acer Education, a partner of EdTechTeam.

“OK, Google”… Can you be my classroom assistant? 

Voice Assistant Devices can be useful tools in the classroom. Students can use the devices to check their spelling and mathematics, ask general knowledge questions, and manage their time with reminders. Teachers can use templates to develop custom games and quizzes without writing any code.

Devices such as Amazon Alexa and Apple’s Siri all work in similar ways, but this blog will focus on the Google Assistant with the Google Home Mini device.

Google Assistant can be found in a number of Google products, including Chromebooks. To obtain a Google Home Assistant, they are readily available in a number of stores and online.

NOTE: This blog has been written for a Global Audience – You should always check school, local and national rules before using a device or new service in this classroom. Google Search and Assistant may need to be enabled.

Everyday Uses ~ Inquiries

With a bit of prompting and practice, even young students can use Google Assistant independently. Here are ten prompts you might want to try with your class to get started:

  • “Okay Google, spell ________.”
  • “Hey Google, what’s ___ x ___?”
  • “Okay Google, what’s the capital of ________?”
  • “Hey Google, roll a dice.”
  • “Okay Google, what should I write my speech about?”
  • “Hey Google, how far away is the sun?”
  • “Okay Google, tell us a joke.”
  • “Hey Google, what are some local theatres?”
  • “Okay Google, how long will it take to drive to _____?”
  • “Hey Google, what’s the weather forecast?”

If you don’t have a Google Home, you can test this by opening the Google Home app and clicking the speaker icon in the bottom-middle of the screen. You can also use the same Google Assistant icon on a number of products, including Google Search on some devices.

Third-Party Actions

The abilities of Google Assistant can be extended by enabling third-party Actions, in the same way as you might use an app onto your device. You don’t need to download anything special, just ask Google Assistant to ‘talk’ or ‘speak’ to the Action you’d like you to use. You can view all available actions in the directory here.

Some tried and tested third-party Actions to get you started in the classroom are: 

Strangest Day Ever – an oral language ‘choose your own adventure’ story appropriate for students of all ages. It encourages students to listen to stories, infer and predict.

Word Problems for Kids – maths word problems in a range of contexts. Ideal for more confident students this Action includes some ‘tricky’ questions encouraging students to listen carefully and think about the problem they are solving.

Mad Libs – the classic game gives you the phrase and you add in the promoted words to make a silly story. Great as a grammar treat or for reluctant writers.

Classroom Organisation

Teachers and students find Google Assistant to be helpful with classroom organization. Here are a few things to try:

  • “Okay Google, add parent-teacher conferences to my calendar.”
  • “Hey Google, on Thursday remind me ‘homework is due tomorrow’.”
  • “Okay Google, set a timer for 20 minutes.”
  • “Hey Google create a list called ‘spelling list 4.’”
    → “Okay Google, add ‘holiday’ to  ‘Spelling List 4.”
  • “Okay Google, play the clean up song using Spotify.”*

*You’ll need to link your account during setup, or in the Google Home app under ‘Settings’.

Student Support

Google Home with Google Assistant are great tools for any classroom, but they do a particularly good job supporting students with additional learning needs.

Students can use the device as a reader/writer. They can dictate writing into Notes or Lists, and have it read back to them using commands like ‘Hey Google, create a new note.’ Unlike performing a Google search, students using Assistant on Google Home can check their spelling and access the internet without having to type anything.

For English Language learners, there are plenty of Actions that make practicing conversational English fun and allow them to make mistakes without feeling judged. Google Translate is also available using inquiries like ‘Hey Google, how do you say [phrase] in [language]?’ or ‘Okay Google translate [phrase] into [language].’

Additionally, for students with an audio learning style, or who like to listen to stories (‘Hey Google, tell us a story’), or just have a chat, the device can be a useful stand-in when an adult is not available.

If you would like to learn more about how to set up and customize your device, enroll in our  ‘Google Assistant in Education’ online course! 

Quick Links:

Explore and apply the novel tools that educators are using to integrate technology in the classroom with more free online courses, sponsored by ACER. https://www.edtechteam.online/acer 

 

Laura is a teacher and tech coach from New Zealand, with over 7 years of experience in the classroom. In 2019, as her Master’s thesis, she completed the second-biggest study of voice assistant devices in the classroom. Laura has presented and participated in panels on AI in education and works with teachers 1-1 to get them started with Smart Tech in their classrooms. She is a Seesaw Ambassador, Apple Teacher and Google Innovator (#SYD19). You can find her on Twitter @ElleButlerEDU.

4 Amazing Google Tools to Help You Engage Your Students

Have you ever found yourself in a classroom full of students, wondering if anyone is enjoying the content? Or at the very least, engaged and invested in what they’re learning? This can be a defeating feeling as a teacher, especially considering the hours we put into lesson planning. It doesn’t have to be this way! As teachers, one of our main goals in the classroom is to engage our students in meaningful activities. And it’s a huge bonus if we can plan these activities in a reasonable amount of time, with free and simple tools. 

In this post, I’m going to show you four awesome tools that will help you engage your students in almost any lesson. Incorporating the right tools, along with a strategic approach, can help you engage students so they’re invested in what they’re learning. Every time. What’s even better, all of the tools in this post are 100% free!  And what’s even better is I’m taking somewhat of a classic approach to this topic, bringing out some oldies but goodies. Which means you’re likely to have background knowledge in some, if not all of these tools, making it that much easier to dive right in.

Tool #1: Google Drawings

One of my absolute favorite and most underrated Google tools (in my opinion) is Google Drawings. Drawings can engage just about any level of student, from kindergarten right up to higher ed. Google Drawings allows users to create collaborative, custom images and diagrams quite easily. So, right away, you gain engagement with the collaborative nature and simplicity of this tool. 

Have you ever found yourself at the end of a lesson where your students spent the entire time cutting out a bunch of manipulatives, only to run out of time and lose half of the pieces? This was me more times than I’d like to admit. Drawings can help solve this dilemma. One of my favorite uses of Google Drawings is to use them for manipulatives – and if you’re a middle or high school teacher and think manipulatives are mainly for elementary students, please hang with me. 

Google Drawings is hands-down the reason I am able to successfully have my students complete our school-wide required word sorts. See this example to see how to set up a word sort using Google Drawings, and feel free to make a copy for yourself! Notice how the Drawing utilizes the space outside of the “canvas.” The directions and word cards are in this blank space for a reason. Only the student’s work will end up on the Drawing itself, and this means that if the student embeds or downloads this Drawing to use somewhere like an eportfolio, etc., the directions and unused word cards (if there are any) won’t distract away from the student’s work. 

And just to clarify how I’d get this Drawing to my students, I would either have them make a copy from the link, like I did for you above (once the Drawing is open, just go to File, then Make a Copy, or, I could change the link to force the students to make a copy (learn more here), or the best way (in my opinion) would be to pass the file out through an assignment in Google Classroom.

Once you start manipulating in Google Drawings, you won’t be able to stop! You’ll find yourself using them to classify polygons, animals, sentences, and the list goes on (and on). And then you’ll find yourself in Drawings to create diagrams for the water cycle, human body systems, atoms…maybe you’ll create a Choice Board. Who knows?! The possibilities are endless! 

Please do me a favor, think of one activity in your classroom, just one, that Google Drawings could enhance. Then brainstorm, create, and implement the lesson in your room. I have a feeling you’ll quickly be hooked on Drawings, along with your students.

Tool #2: Slides 

Google Slides, Google’s presentation tool,  is one of the most widely-used Google tools. Too much of the time, Slides is used to present to a passive audience, creating an atmosphere of low engagement. What so many people miss with Slides is that there are a few simple ways to make your presentations interactive for students. 

Interactive Tip #1: Links

It’s really simple to insert links into Google Slides. All you need to do is highlight the words/objects you want to link, click “Insert” then “Link.”  You can link students to other websites, continuing the learning beyond your content. It is also possible to insert links to other slides in your presentation. This allows for students to take a nonlinear path through your presentation. This choice and control gives students a sense of ownership over their learning, and in turn, creates an engaging experience. See how this lengthy slideshow is organized with a Table of Contents, giving the audience a chance to choose how they access the content. This is just one of many ways to increase engagement by linking to other slides in a slideshow.

Interactive Tip #2: Add-Ons

Not all that long ago, Google added Add-Ons to Google Slides. Add-Ons extend a user’s capability in Slides, making what was previously impossible, possible. One of my absolute favorite Google Slides Add-ons is Pear Deck. The Pear Deck Add-On allows you to instantly transform your previously passive Google Slides presentation into a valuable formative assessment or interactive presentation. Pear Deck does have a premium version, but there is a ton that you can do with the free version, so it’s definitely worth checking out!  Click here to learn more.

Interactive Tip #3: Google Slides Presenter View

If you find yourself presenting a good, old fashioned slideshow without much interaction, please know that Google has an option for you: Google Slides presenter view. In the Slides presenter view (find it under the magical sharktooth triangle next to “Present”), you have the ability to start an audience Q&A session that can run while you’re presenting. This feature allows your audience to ask questions without interrupting the flow of your presentation. Viewers can also like others’ questions and comments so that you can quickly prioritize which entries you address. It’s a wonderful built-in interactive feature in Google Slides! 

For more information on the three interactive tips above, please visit a quick excerpt from one of our contractor’s Summit presentation on Google Slides by clicking here.

Tool #3: Forms 

Google’s survey tool, Google Forms, is an incredibly powerful tool. From collecting data to charting results by student or group, the possibilities are endless. Once teachers start using Google Forms, oftentimes they can’t stop! They’re just that great. 

Want to take the Forms student engagement to the next level in your classroom? Try student-created Google Forms. For better or worse, students are influenced and motivated by their peers. They love having the ability to easily collect peer responses using a familiar, free tool. And as a teacher, I loved having my students collect data in Forms for so many reasons. Forms are:

  1. Completely free
  2. Part of the core Google Suite and can be created and easily organized in Google Drive 
  3. Easily emailed 
  4. Easily passed out or submitted in Google Classroom
  5. Easily embedded into Google Sites

And the list goes on. What’s even better, the learning doesn’t stop there. Once students collect the data, then the real learning can begin. In just a few clicks, the data can be sent to a Google Sheet where students can analyze, chart, and manipulate the collected data. These charts can be easily pasted into related Docs, Slides, Sites, you name it. Now you’ve created multiple meaningful and engaging lessons all from one student-created Google Form. It doesn’t get much better than that!

Tool #4: Sites  

Google Sites, or I should specify, the “New” Google Sites can be an extremely engaging tool. As Google’s website creation tool, Google Sites allows users to create a hub of information. Teachers love Google Sites for creating a classroom or unit website. 

What takes the “new” Google Sites to the next level of engagement is to have the students create the sites. Google Sites is a super simple tool, so it lends itself to student use. When students are creating work for an audience outside of their teachers (and possibly parents), the level of motivation increases exponentially. 

One way students can use Google Sites is to create ePortfolios, a collection of work that demonstrates their learning over a period of time. Think: a 3-ring binder portfolio, but online. And Google Drive files can be easily embedded into a Google Site with just a couple of clicks. And the file stays live so that when a change is made to the file, it automatically updates on the Google Site. So essentially it’s one and done as far as embedding the file onto the site. 

What’s great about Google Sites is that you are in complete control of the audience. You can create a completely private site, you can share the site with specific individuals to view and/or edit, you can share the site within your organization, or you can make your site completely public. When having students create a site, I would have them work their way up to a more open audience. We always would start private, and then with safe online practice, the students could work their way to a more public audience (if that was appropriate for that situation). I am always extremely deliberate about safe online practice when helping students reach a larger audience. 

Some critics might say that Google Sites aren’t super interactive for the audience. This couldn’t be further from the truth if you stretch your thinking outside the box. In order to make a Google Site more interactive, think about embedding a Google Form for viewers to fill out right there on the webpage. You can even embed the Spreadsheet of responses for viewers to see what others responded. Or link the users to an embedded, collaborative Doc, Sheet, or Slideshow. These are just a few options to get you started with making a new Google Site interactive for the audience. 

Once you get students started with reaching a larger audience, you’ll immediately see a jump in engagement and care that goes into their work. You immediately realize you (and your students) wouldn’t want it any other way.

So there you have it: 4 classic tools to help you engage your students. My hope is to give you a new lens for a tool you might have already been using in the classroom. Which idea will you try first? And what engaging ideas do you have to share? Please share below!

As Director of Education Partnerships at EdTechTeam, Christina brings a passion for rethinking education to ensure experiences are learner-centered, with a focus on developing the capacity of others to lead and implement transformational work. Christina has worked in various roles in elementary, middle, and high school environments, as Associate Director of the Institute for Personalized Learning, and as a Manager of Partnerships at Discovery Education. She uses her experience as a classroom teacher, instructional coach, principal, and professional development specialist to understand the challenges districts face, and partners with them to create a design that works toward the district’s vision and goals. From Design Thinking to STEM to apprenticeship experiences, Christina is always looking for ways to further empower educators and engage learners in real-life experiences that impact their future.