Pear Deck Vocabulary

Many of you have used Pear Deck before to engage students with content and to get your whole class to respond during a lesson. However, you may not be aware of a new vocabulary feature within Pear Deck.

With Pear Deck Vocabulary, students can work together in the Flashcard Factory to create dynamic flashcards with sentences and illustrations that help increase learning and retention. Once the flashcards are made, they can be exported to Quizlet for review!

Keep in mind that Pear Deck does require students to login with their Google Apps username and password.

Web Paint - Annotate over Google Slides

Annotate over Google Slides with Web Paint

When the news about Activinspire first came out, many teachers began creating new content in Google Slides. This made a lot of sense because Slides presentations are easy to create, edit, and share with colleagues. However, using your pen to draw on slides, especially in "Present" mode, was nearly impossible. 

However, a Chrome extension called Web Paint makes might just be what you are looking for. Watch the video below to find out how to add the extension and use it with Google Slides!

Do your students use Google Apps? Then you better be using Google Classroom

For the last couple of years, we've sung the praises of Google Classroom and it's no different this year. The tools within Google Apps, like Docs, Slides, Sheets, and Drawing are easy to use and very versatile. However, organizing online student work is always a challenge. That's where Google Classroom comes in.

Once students join a class, teachers can share assignments and templates with ease. Each assignment is automatically named, shared with the teacher, and organized into a folder in Google Drive.

Stop having students share work with you! Let Google Classroom do the work for you. We are happy to get you all set up. Do it now before it's too late and you've created that Google Docs nightmare that you've had in the past.

Integrate It! - EasyBib

Integrate It! - Citing Sources with EasyBib

This is normally the time of the year when many classroom research projects are in full swing or about to get started. Part of any research project is giving credit to the informational sources used. The Chrome add-on EasyBib is a great way to take the pain out of this process. Watch the video below to see just how easy it is! Also, be sure to let Colette or Robb know if you have questions or need help as you prepare for your projects. We are happy to assist!

Integrate It! - Google Form Quiz Feature

Google Forms - Quiz Feature 

Most of us have filled out (or made) a Google Form to collect information. Some of you may have even used forms for quizzes with your students. Until recently, an add-on like Flubaroo was needed for grading these quizzes. This added step made it somewhat of a pain. 

Google Forms now has a quiz function that allows you to easily create quizzes that are automatically graded! What's even better is that old forms can be turned into quizzes with one click. It's perfect for quick formative assessments (think electronic exit cards).

For more information, watch this short tutorial or contact Colette and Robb. Say goodbye to correcting all those papers and hello to auto-grading! 

Integrate It! - Dotstorming

Dotstorming

Dotstorming is a cool site that I stumbled upon through Twitter. After checking it out, I was impressed! The site allows teachers to create a question for students to answer with text or images. Students join the conversation with a link provided by the teacher.

In some ways, I see parallels to Padlet. One cool thing about Dotstorming is that students can respond to other students and then vote for their favorite responses.

To see how one teacher combined Google Drawing and Dotstorming, check out this Techie Teacher blogpost.

The site is free and very easy to use. Let Colette or Robb know if you have questions!

Still Using Microsoft Word? STOP IT!

Still Using Microsoft Word? STOP IT!

We have been a Google Apps school for years now and if you haven't made the shift completely to Google Docs at this point, it's time. I know Microsoft Word is still there on your computer, tempting you to use it. But it's time ditch Word and welcome Google Docs with open arms. 

"But, Robb, Google Docs can't do everything that Word can do!"

In reality, other than a few formatting options, I have yet to find something in Word that I can't do in Docs. Plus Docs allows users to easily share, collaborate, link, integrate with Google Classroom, and organize. Making the change will also ensure you are never guilty of attaching a Word doc to an email.

Examples of Google Docs used for...

• Peek of the Week
• Hyperdocs
• Creating Tests/Quizzes
• Field Trip Permission Slips

Need help? Contact Colette or Robb and we can set up a time to meet!