How can the tools within Google help teachers and students make learning both collaborative and engaging, along with adding ease to education?
Most Helpful Tool
While learning about all the different tools that Google offers, I believe that Google Classroom with the use of documents, slides, and forms have been the most helpful in my classroom. The ability to use Google Classroom as a Learning Mangement System has provided me with the opportunity to post announcements and assignments to my students while away from the classroom due to professional development, sickness, and snow days. It allows the teacher to communicate with students in a classroom feed, that collects and organizing responses and products of the students. Through Google Classroom I can post an assignment/exit ticket for students to answer questions using a google form. The Google form will then provide me with immediate feedback on responses from the students. I can also post an announcement for students to watch a video on safeshare or provide information on a project. One of my favorite uses of Google Classroom is that if I create a document, attach it to Google Classroom with the make a copy option for each student, I am the owner of their work and have continued access to it without each student needing to share it with me. Google Classroom will keep track of the student work and organize it in my Google Drive.
Success and Challenges
During my exploration of Google Tools, I had both success and challenges. One of the challenges was determining how to connect my Google Calendar with my Google Classroom. I was unable to determine how to get items I posted on the Google Calendar to show on a Google Calendar within Google Classroom. I know that this is something that is possible but at the current time I have not figured out how. I have learned through this research on the connection between Calendar and Classroom, that the assignments posted on my Google Calendar for selected classrooms will show-up on a student's Google Calendar. I find the use of Google Calendar to be difficult compared to the other tools created by Google. I also believe that 6th-grade students still benefit from the use of a paper calendar/agenda. I was successful at using Google Maps for something more than exploration. I look forward to creating additional Google Map Tours for my students to explore the world with guided tours, that are teacher generated based on current learning.
Online Learning
When I was initially a college student, I did think online learning was for me, and I actually did very poorly as a student in an online course. I believe that there are two significant drawbacks to online learning, pacing and face-to-face learning. I think as a teacher it is essential to have a schedule and timeline for the learning process, whereas with online learning it is easy to get busy and "forget" or procrastinate about completing online learning. Online learning scheduling can allow for flexibility of time and education also, this learning style just requires discipline and desire to do well. As a teacher, I find the ability to look at a student while teaching beneficial. I am able to read students facial and body language to get an understanding of their level of knowledge of the topic. As a student, it is easier to ask questions and be engaged in a face-to-face learning environment. I work with a teacher that after teaching all day wants to be away from people, so the ability to do online learning is what is best for her. One of the great things about Google Tools is that it is making online learning closer to the of the classroom setting with the use of tools to promote engagement and collaboration.
Google Extension and Apps
The first step to successfully using Google Extension and Apps in the classroom is to know the difference between an extension and an app. Extensions are added to your chrome browser to enhance what you are able to do with google chrome. Whereas an app is a shortcut to a regularly used web-based application. While exploring the different uses and hurdles to implementing extensions and apps in the classroom, I have learned the following helpful tips.
Search Strategies:
- Narrow your Search based on the type of extension or application you are looking for, with the multitude of extensions and applications available through the Chrome Store, I have found that it is beneficial to narrow that search through the drop-down selection “categories.” The use of the “categories” search narrowing allows you to determine if you want educational, business, games and many more, each of the categories also has subcategories to narrow your search.
- I have also used web searches and website to help me find information on extensions and apps
- https://www.teachthought.com/technology/50-of-the-best-google-chrome-extensions-for-teachers/
- https://www.bettercloud.com/monitor/the-academy/8-chrome-extensions-teachers-love/
- https://www.weareteachers.com/google-chrome-extensions-students/
- Check the rating stars and how many people have used the Chrome extension/spp before determining if it is the right one for you
- Explore the “related” items that are displayed after you add an extension, many times you will find extensions that you didn't know that you were looking for or needed!
Useful Chromebook Extensions/Apps Help Pages:
- How to install or add an app or extension
- How to uninstall an app or extension
- How to pin a Chrome app on your shelf
- How to sync your Chrome account settings - this information is great if you use different Chromebooks or use Google Chrome on a laptop, it will sync your apps and extensions so that you will have the same ones no matter which device you are using to access Google Chrome
Mrs. Wise's Top Google Extensions
- Alice Keller Drive 20 - As a Google Classroom school and user this is one extension that saves me the most time throughout the year. This extension allows me to go to one of my google classroom drive folders, click on this extension and it will open the first 20 documents for me. I group my classrooms by core so I then only have to open 6-8 additional documents singularly.
- Print Friendly & PDF - This extension allows you to create a webpage article into a printable PDF without all the advertisements and links that surround it when web browser based
- Google Dictionary - This extension allows students to quickly check the definition of a word without having to open an additional tab. I like the benefit of this allowing students to stay on the website or document that they are reading without the distraction of opening and searching on a different tab.
- Grammarly - A very advanced spell and grammar checker, I use this for all documents that I will be presenting to students, parents, and colleagues; this extension is one that I pay for the premium version. Grammarly is a website based extension that will check our writing on many different levels of critique based on your settings. One of the things I like about Grammarly is it also monitors your writing for repetition of words and makes suggestions to improve your style of writing. FYI - this is NOT Google based and will not sync with google documents, to check the google documents it requires copy and paste into the website.
- Google Cast for Education - This extension allows students to cast their Chromebook Screen to another computer. I let this to cast to my school laptop and then onto the smartboard in my classroom. I have used this at different times when students found something fascinating on their Chromebook or we are working through a process, and I want the students to see it from a student view.
- Screencastify - An extension that allows you to record a screencast of your Chromebook screen with an audio recording for students to then use to learn, reinforce, or remind; I have used this for how to format a paper, shared it in google classroom, and then students always have it as a reference of paper formatting.
Google Tools
The use of Google maps allows students to see the world without leaving the classroom. Students can explore different countries or even locally. The purpose of maps in my 6th-grade social studies classroom, allows students to explore Antartica. Students will be able to use Google Maps to see the locations they are labeling on the map. I am also able to create a Google Maps Tour for students to explore the places preset by the teacher. I believe this will be an exciting way for students to become engaged in labeling their map before completing the map.
Example of student Australia Map Tour: https://goo.gl/e8X25P
This tool can also be used for elementary students to explore their address. A student can take turns typing in their address into Google Maps and showing their classmates on a projection board where they live. This is an exciting way to encourage students to learn their home address. As a 6th-grade teacher, I am surprised by the number of students that do not know their address.
Google Drive and Google Classroom
Google Drive and Google Classroom allow teachers and students to organize their Google produced items including documents, files, and slides.
Google Drive, can be used by students to create a folder to organize their class work based on a grade level or subject. Students also need to be taught how to use Google Drive as a starting point for creating products. I have many students that continue to use the actual product application to find items they are already started. For example, a student looking for his Arctic Animal slides will start in Google Slides to locate it, I teach my students to always start in drive, this allows them to search more accessible and if they believe that it was launched in a different application, they are still able to locate it. The drive is also essential for students to use when searching for a collaborative project by searching through the shared with me function.
As an educator one, the most significant benefits of Google Drive for me is the ability to always have things saved. I have lost and broken many thumb drives causing me to lose work. I like the ease of organizing materials within my Google Drive. I have been able to collaborate with other teachers in the building on documents through the use of sharing in Google Drive. The benefit of the ability to share allows teachers to share educational resources.
Google Classroom is the Learning Mangement System that is used in my school district. Google Classroom is a tool that allows teachers to post announcements and assignments for students. Students are able to comment on items in the classroom feed. For teachers, after placing a document in Google Classroom, it will create a copy of the document for students and then collect them into a folder on the teachers Google Drive.
ScreenCast Tour of My Google Classroom
Google Documents, Slides, and Forms
Google Documents allows students to work collaboratively. Workplace readiness shows that those entering the workplace need to have the ability to work collaboratively especially have the skills to work with those that may not see or believe the same as them on how to complete a project. One of the reasons that I implement collaborative projects in my classroom is for them to have experience working with others to complete a project. I have had students create brochures for a fundraiser for Water for South Sudan after reading the book "A Long Walk to Water." The students had to work with a partner to research different ways that 6th-grade students could raise money through a fundraiser, and then they needed to complete a plan and a brochure to share their idea. Students required to work together to determine how to make an aesthetically appealing brochure that contained all the informational requirements.
My Thoughts on Incorporating Google Tools into the Classroom
Google tools are the exact thing that helps a teacher incorporate beneficial technology into the classroom without wanting to pull his or her hair out due to learning new tech and tools. My experience with Google is that everything they create has the users ease of mind. Although I continue to learn new things about the use of Google Tools in the classroom below is my top 10 reasons to use Google Tools.
Mrs. Wise's Top 10 Reasons to use Google Tools
- Students and educators can work collaboratively on a product
- Using the Google Image search within Google Documents and Slides allows students to assess non-copyrighted images for use on their products
- Organization and saving of materials
- Google Classroom is an LMS that will enable teachers to post announcements and assignments
- Google Blogger is a way for teachers and students to take student work beyond the classroom, through a classroom blog
- Extension add useful tools to Chrome Browser
- Google Forms allows teachers to collect information from students, like assessments, exit tickets, and surveys.
- ISTE standards can be addressed through the use of Google Tools, teachers are able to incorporate learning beyond substitution
- Google Cast allows teachers to project students work onto a smartboard or projection board for classroom viewing
- Google Hang-out is a way for students to have face-to-face conversations with classrooms or speakers around the world
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