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

Google Sites for Educators

Communication with parents, students, and community members is easier than it has ever been for teachers.  One of my favorite ways to communicate with everyone is through a website! Google sites has a very easy and FREE way of creating a website as a teacher. I have created a Google website for my parents and students to view regularly. It has announcements, Google docs we use everyday, and also many resources I use in the classroom.

Here is the link to my Google Website. 

Here are some other great examples of teachers using google sites in their own classroom:

Mrs. Purdy's Class

Mrs. Ardinger's Class

Another great way to use Google Sites is for a student's portfolio or for a unit or project. Google sites has great advantages over Wix and other websites because it is user friendly. Also, it makes it very easy to add a Google doc, form, and calendar. 

Here is a tutorial to show you how to get started!

Google Earth vs. Google Tour Builder

There are many great technology tools out there that bring Earth to life. A couple tools to use in the classroom are Google Earth and Google Tour Builder! They are similar, but still very different at the same time.

Google Earth

Google Earth is an application that you can download to your computer. Follow the link above, and you can use it on the web, mobile device, or you can download it to your desktop. Here is a video that gives a beginner a tutorial on how to use Google Earth.

Google Earth is great way to explore different parts of the world. It helps engage students' learning, and it brings places to life more than just a picture. There are several great resources and websites to help you plan an activity with Google Earth in your classroom.

Google Earth Teaching Websites and Ideas:
-How Teachers are using Google Earth in the Classroom
-How to Teach with Google Earth

Another great tool to bring Earth to life is Google Tour Builder. Google Tour Builder reminds me of a mix of Google Slides and Google Earth mixed into one great resource for a teacher. It makes a presentation of different locations. It is a very easy resource to use to create a presentation that brings places to life. Here is a tutorial of how to create a Google Tour.

 I have created a Google Tour for my Social Studies class this year. The purpose of my tour is to get the students excited about Ancient Civilizations! Here is the link to my Google Tour.

It's very easy to share your Google Tour Builder with students or colleagues. Here are some other resources I found for teaching and Google Tour Builder:

The War for Independence
Tool of the Month

I think Google Tour Builder can be better than Google Earth because there are set locations, descriptions, videos and pictures that can be added to every location. Your students will love this application!

Google's World Wonders Project

I am a 6th grade teacher who teaches all subject areas. One of my favorite subjects is social studies. The 6th grade ancient civilizations curriculum is fascinating to me. The students get to explore civilizations from all around the world and different time periods. However, when planning a field trip to help my students make connections to the curriculum doesn't always come easy. Most of the ancient civilizations we study are across the oceans. Google has a great app to help students explore these cultural sites without taking a bus (or a plane). The app is called World Wonders Project. It brings places around the world to life.

Click here to view the app.

This a quick video that describes the app!

The World Wonders Project has hundreds of locations and archaeological sites that can be explored. Here is a screen shot of different areas that can be explored on the site.

This is one way you can explore the World Wonders Project. You can click on any site that is shown. Another way is to search based on the time-era. You can also search by an event as well.

I think this is a great tool for educators because students can take a virtual field trip to see these different sites. Also, artifacts can be easily analyzed as well.

Here is a tutorial about the Google World Wonders Project that I found helpful for explaining the site!

One of my favorite parts about the app for educators is that it has many great lessons and ideas. If you follow this link, it will take you to guides for using the app and also many great lesson plans to use with your students!