Teaching with Technology

Using educational technology to enhance the learning environment and increase student engagement!

Google Drive, gClass, and Shared Files

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I’m beginning my journey with gClassFolders, and its working very well.

My students and I encountered a slight issue today…not with the script, just with navigating Google Drive. If your students aren’t familiar with Drive, you may experience similar issues.
All of my students can access their gClassFolder created specifically for them and their assignments. This folder is awesome because only the student and I have rights to the documents. It’s perfect and…dare I say…eliminates the need to upload documents to Edmodo folders?
The only problem we have had is that when students create a file in their “My Drive,” they can’t easily move their document to their “Shared with Me” folders, which is where the gClass assignment folder can be found. We tried making copies of the document, dragging and dropping, and were unsuccessful.
If you’re having this issue, or thinking about giving gClassFolders a try, please click here to access simple directions for your students made by yours truly 🙂
Good luck with your Google classroom!
Thanks for reading 🙂

Doctopus in YOUR Classroom

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Are you ready for another awesome Google Script? Check out Doctopus! Crazy name…awesome tool!

Doctopus works with gClassFolders to distribute documents to your students directly from your Drive. Teachers can use the gClassFolders Spreadsheet file to run the Doctopus script…making the process extremely easy!

For a simple Doctopus tutorial, created by me, please click here. (Just a side note…the tutorial accessible at this link is for the “old” Doctopus-not the add-on. Super simple instructions for the Doctopus add-on are coming soon!)

Check out the article below for a question and answer session with Doctopus creator, Andrew Stillman!

I am so excited to use this with my students!

Once teachers set up a master Spreadsheet with the appropriate information, using apps and add-ons like Doctopus will make our lives so much easier!

Thanks for reading 🙂

Note-Taking with Technology

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Our classrooms are becoming increasingly digitized…which is extremely exciting!

At the same time, many of our students, especially at the secondary level, have been taught a specific way to take notes…an activity we can agree is essential to student success.
However, with many classrooms becoming “flipped” or “blended” learning environments, the way our students have been taught to take notes may no longer be the best way to take notes. Let me explain.
Student Using ComputerAs a student, I was taught the typical outline approach to note-taking. My teacher recorded a rough outline on the board with Roman numerals, letters, numbers, and the occasional bullet. My classmates and I filled in the outline as the lecture progressed. I, like most of you, used a notebook and a pencil. The teacher was the center of the classroom…my teacher provided the students with knowledge, and then the students regurgitated that knowledge on a test. If you could master that concept..boom, you get an A!
Times, though, they are a-changin! 
Next year, when I have a true 1:1 classroom, I don’t plan on having my students purchase notebooks and folders and pencils and pens. Our classroom will be “cloud-based,” so my students won’t require those typical classroom tools.
Will my students still be required to take notes…YES!!! Will their notes still need to be structured? YES!!
So, what tools can my students use to take notes in this new learning environment? Check out a few resources below:
Evernote
I LOVE Evernote! This tools works with so many other apps-including the digital version of my textbooks. Students can create notebooks, highlight, include images, video, recordings, and so much more. For more information about this amazing tool, please click here.
Quick Note (Chrome)
Add this app to your Chrome account! It’s free! Highlight a selection of text on a page, right click, and add it to your notes. 

Google Keep (Chrome)
This is seriously an awesome app, and is definitely a must have for my Chromebook classroom. Students could use this as a note-taking tool, but it would also be beneficial for just recording tasks or reminders. Check it out! It’s FREE!

VideoNot.es
Due to the increasing digital nature of our classrooms, our students will most likely be watching short video clips at some point in time. These videos could be created by the teacher in the flipped model, found on YouTube, Vimeo, etc. VideoNot.es is an incredible tool that students can use to take notes while watching a video…and it can be save in the student’s Google Drive and Evernote! For more information about VideoNot.es, please click here.

Thanks for reading 🙂


Create a Google Classroom with gClass Folders

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Are you a Google school? Looking to run a totally paperless classroom? Excited about a “cloud-based” classroom? Check out gClassFolders!

If you’ve read my previous post about Flubaroo, you know that I, like many others, am NOT totally comfortable with Spreadsheet or Excel. I just don’t use it enough to be fluent with the formulas and functions, etc. So, after tinkering with the gClassFolder script, I have finally figured it out, and I feel comfortable with telling you how to work with it!

For a SIMPLE yet detailed tutorial about using gClassFolders, please click here.

Why use gClassFolders? My number one reason…students only have to remember one password.

File:Google Drive Logo.svg

You know I love Edmodo. The problem I keep running into, especially with classes that don’t use Edmodo everyday, is that the students just can’t seem to remember their password. I find myself saying, “did you write it down like I told you to?” I’ve even gone so far as to create information cards for each individual student. Still, I have to look up usernames and passwords, almost daily. Eeek!

Using this script will also allow my students to access, download, complete, and submit assignments all in one place. The gClass script creates the following folders…

  • Teacher folder (not for students)
  • Edit folder (a folder for documents all students can edit…simultaneously!)
  • View folder (a view only folder for students…where they can make a copy of or download their assignments)
  • Assignment folder (an assignment dropbox that only the teacher and individual student can view)
The gClassFolder script creates the latter three folders for EACH student! The teacher need only include the students email address in the Spreadsheet. Voila!
I am SO excited to use this with my students. I’ll report back soon! 
Thanks for reading 🙂