Effective Google Searching

Students use Google all the time. They use it because they are trying to find an answer. Researching is an important skill to teach students. It aligns with the common core standards, so it is a skill that must be taught.

During my science, social studies, or  reading lessons we are constantly using the internet to find information. I align researching skills to our content in class. Also, my students have been working on their genius hour projects, so before they start on that it's important to build foundational research skills before letting them lose.

If you aren't familiar with Genius Hour here is a quick video that explains it!

Not only are resarching skills important, but also knowing the features of a Google search!

So here are some researching tips to help keep it more efficient and effective:

1. Use quotation marks for an exact phrase. This allows the search to find only resources that have the words exactly in the quotation marks.


2. Use a hyphen to omit certain words form a search

3. Go to books.google.com to search words in books rather than online resources.

Here is a great cheat sheet about different Google search shortcuts and tools!
Google Search Cheat Sheet

Here is a great video that demonstrates some of these tips and tricks:

Webmix with Symabloo and Social Media in Schools

Symabloo is a great tool to use to put all your bookmarks in one place. What I love about Symabloo is that it is a kid friendly site. You can create icons for all the websites your students use. You can create "webmixes" for different subjects or units. I have created my own Webmix of different websites my students use often.

Here is an example of one that I will be using with my students:






Here is a great video that describes and shows you how to create one!

I have also created a guide to Social Media in schools. Please take a look to see my favorite social media tools for the classroom and what we need to do as educators to make social media safe for our students.

Time Saving and Organizational Tools

Teachers can not function effectively if they are not organized. In the past 5 years of teaching, my organizational tactics have changed greatly. My first two years, it was important that my file cabinets and desk were organized. However, now it is my computer that must be organized!

My school has gone 1:1 with iPads for our students. We are encouraged to use less paper, so most of our students' assignments are on the iPad. There are many tools to help keep teachers organized and also save time.

Here are several tools that I use:

1. Planbook

2. Teachers Pay Teachers

3. Sign Up Genius

4. Remind

If you are a Google user, another great tool is Google Keep. This a way to organize notes and to-do lists.

I saw this great video about many ideas on how to use Google Keep in the classroom.

Advanced Google Drive Features for Educators

In the last few years, how people save things to computers or tablets has changed drastically. You can now get onto to any computer or tablet and your files and folders could possibly be right there!

You might ask yourself, HOW??? 

The answer is Google Drive. Google Drive has many components to it, but to put it in simpler terms: it is your hard-drive that can be accessed anywhere with internet. Educators benefit from this for many reasons. 

1. You are able to access lessons, resources, and notes from anywhere. You don't have to be in your classroom!

2. Google drive allows you to collaborate. You can share folders, files, etc. with students and your colleagues. For example, my team and I are building a unit in science for forces and interactions. We are all adding resources and lesson plans to the unit without being in the same place. 

3. No matter how many computers and tablets you have, all your files are stored in one place! 

Here is a video that helps you get started as an educator:

My favorite features as an educator are:

1. Google Forms - This a great way to send students questions. It might be a quiz, test, exit ticket, or just a poll for the classroom. The teacher can receive immediate feedback from students. Below is an exit ticket I have created for my students on a math lesson. I am able to alter my lessons based on the feedback the students give me. 

Google Form - Exit Ticket

2. Google Slides - This tool is very similar to PowerPoint. However, students can share with each other, so both students can add to the presentation at the same time. I love using this feature for presentations in my classroom. 

3. Shared folders - This feature allows me to share notes and resources with my students easily. I have a folder named "Math Notes." My math notes are automatically backed up to my Google Drive, then students have the ability to access this folder to read my notes. This is perfect for when students are absent. 

Learning Management Systems

In the world of technology in education, I tend to get overwhelmed by how many apps and websites offer similar features, and I'm sure my students do to. My school purchases many different resources for our curriculum. We have some through several different publishers. Here is a list of the many websites and apps my students could use daily and what they would have to do:

• Math: Log in to hrw.com, type in your log-in and password, complete the assignment
• Reading/ELA: Login to connected.mcgraw-hill.com, type in your log-in and password, complete the assignment 
• Social Studies: Login to teachtci.com, type in your username and password, complete the assignment
• Istation - practice reading and math for 20 minutes during rotations
• Prodigy - Play the game and take the assessment
• Xtra Math - go to the website and play the game for 10 minutes

The list goes on and on and on.... During the day, they need at least 5 different usernames/passwords for all the resources we could use. However, there are tools to consolidate the notes, assignments, and grades to all one place! It is called a Learning Management System. It's a great way to help students not feel overwhelmed by all the resources they could use. A few examples of learning management systems are:

1. Google Classroom
2. Edmodo
3. Schoology

There would be no reason to use all three, so here a few items about each one to help you decide what you think might be best.

Google Classroom vs. Edmodo vs. Schoology

In my school we use Google Classroom. I use Google Classroom to post discussions, assignments, polls, and quizzes. It is very easy to attach items from Google Drive. Students would have to create a g-mail account in order to use Google Classroom. As a teacher, you can grade and give students feedback on assignments. You can also see who has completed the assignment and who hasn't. Here is a quick video that shows you what Google Classroom has to offer.

Edmodo is another great learning management system. This website or app is very user friendly. It has more of a social media feel rather than another website. The layout looks very similar to Facebook which might engage the students in using it. Different features it has is creating classes, posting assignments, sharing folders, and creating polls or quizzes.

Schoology (last but not least) is a learning management system very similar to Edmodo. It has a very similar look to Facebook as well. There is an extra feature on Schoology and that is creating courses or groups. Courses would be used for your classroom, but you could use the groups for possibly a club or connecting with parents. You can also grade with a rubric and it has a gradebook feature.

 All of these learning management systems are great! I encourage you to explore them and decide which would work best for you and your students!

Diigo in Education

When working on an assignment for a class that I'm taking, I had the opportunity to explore Diigo. Diigo is a tool that helps save, annotate, and bookmark websites. Diigo also allows you to share your bookmarks with others. As a student taking graduate classes, this resource is perfect for researching, taking notes, and outlining the resources. However, this resource could be used for many ways in the classroom as well!

I found this great video that helps describe different ways to use Diigo in the classroom.

Here are a couple ways I will be using it in my classroom:


1. Using Diigo for Genius Hour

In my own classroom students have been working on a genius hour project. I thought Diigo would be a great way to check in with students. I created a group within Diigo, so students can share the articles they have come across for their driving question. Also, Diigo is a great tool for them to highlight and annotate the articles.

2. Supporting a claim and using text evidence
I am always looking for ways students can find articles to help support a claim they are making, and share their resources with me. Diigo is a great tool for students sharing their resources they are using, but also highlight the text evidence that helps them create a paper or support a claim.



3. Group Projects
Students will be able to easily share resources through Diigo for group projects. Also, no matter the computer or tablet they are on, they are able to see their bookmarks!

If you haven't explored Diigo yet, give it a try!

Professional Development Through Blogging Using Feedly

My school district provides us with many opportunities for professional development throughout the year. We are able to collaborate with other teachers in the district, attend Edcamps, and read new books together. I am so lucky I have this opportunity to share the lifelong learning culture with coworkers. However, sometimes the best professional development I am provided with is through blogs! Blogging is a great tool to learn new ideas, activities, and innovative methods for the classroom.

Reading blogs can be time consuming especially if you have to type in each url to find your favorites. There is a perfect tool to have all of your blogs in one place. It is called Feedly! Feedly allows you to follow any blogs you want, and it stores them all in one place. You can categorize the blogs into the different categories you enjoy. It updates and lets you know the ones you have read and haven't read. Another feature is the search option, you can search for different topics, or you can search for a topic in only the blogs you follow. I recommend Feedly to any user of blogs. It is an efficient way to use Blogging to help manage your time especially if you are an educator like me! 

Here is a great video to help you get started with your own Feedly account. 

Several blogs I follow on Feedly are:

1. The Innovative Educator

2. Mindshift

3. Teachthought