Google Workspace for Education Updates Google Classroom Part 2

Google Classroom  has added many new features to its list of updates for the 2021 year. You can read the full article on the Google Blog here.

Add-Ons:  Classroom will have Add-Ons will be added to an assignment and when students open the assignment they will be able to use the add-on without opening any other tools. 

Rich Text: When entering in instructions for assignments you will now be able to add some of these rich text features.  This means you will be able to Bold, Italic, Underline, etc.. 

Unlimited Originality Reports:  This rolled out earlier this year, but deserves another look. As a Google Workspace Plus district, we have access to unlimited originality reports which is a great way for students to check their work for potential plagiarism and will roll out in 15 languages in 2021. 

Student Engagement Tracking:

Teachers will have engagement tracking inside of classroom.  This will allow teachers to see which students are interacting with Google Classroom each day, and submitted assignments.  I’m looking forward to seeing how this one works. 

Classroom Mobile App:  Offline capabilities are going to be available with IOS and Android apps.  Students will be able to start work offline, open drive attachments, review assignments, create assignments in Google Docs all without an internet connection. Submissions will have to be done online. 

Attach/Take Picture Submissions:  Classroom is making it much easier to take/attach a photo to submit for an assignment. The photo app will be built into the Add part of Google Classroom.

Roster Sync:  Setup Classroom for teachers ahead of time, so they don’t have to send out an email or generate a code for students to join.

As with all updates, some will hit our domain earlier then others, but many of these will roll out later in 2021. For an easy to use guide take a look at the graphic created by John R. Sowash of Chrmbook.com.

Did you miss Part 1? Google Workspace for Education Updates Part 1

Check it out Google Form Add On

I was recently watching a video from Richard Byrne who I follow on YouTube and on his blog Free Tech for Teachers. The video was how to setup a Google Form for a check in and check out system.

The first thing I thought of was classroom libraries and departmental equipment.  No more, who has that book, where are the ipads, or who borrowed the PE equipment.  Now you have a very easy check out/in system you can post to your website.

Using a Google Form add on called Check it out, allows teachers to create a very simple form and system for students and teachers to check out and check in items.  Take a look at this video it explains it very clearly and is less than 5 minutes.

Google Docs & Rubric Options | Orange Slice/Doc Appender

I hear this question all of the time, "Sean, I love using Google Docs with my kids, but I grade using a rubric, and it's hard to do that with Docs".  Here are two options that allow you to use your own rubrics, view them along side the document that you are grading, and have the rubric/feedback inserted directly into the student's work!

Diagram-azing Resource: LucidChart!

Lucidchart is a web-based diagramming program that allows students and teachers to create wonderfully detailed and complex diagrams.  What sort of “diagrams” are we talking about?  Here are a few examples of things that you can create in Lucidchart (these are templates that can be easily modified, or you could build similar diagrams from scratch).  They may take a moment to load; don’t worry, it’s worth it!

How do you access Lucidchart?

Lucidchart is an app that is connected directly to your Google Drive account.  To accomplish this, click on New > More > Connect More Apps.

You will be presented with a selection of apps to choose from.  You can use the search bar at the top to find Lucidpress and connect it to your Drive account.

Once connected, you can open a new Lucidpress file anytime by clicking on New > More > Lucidpress.

Examples

Google Add-ons: You Need These!

In a previous post I talked about some of the new add-ons for Google Forms that greatly expand their functionality.  Today, I want to let you know about some core add-ons for Google Docs that could expand educational opportunities for students (or just make everyone's life easier!).

Adding Addons

Making one of these add-ons available in Google Docs is simple.  First, open your Google Doc and click on the "Add-ons" menu at the top of the page.



Then choose "Get add-ons..." and you will be presented with a pop up window that shows a long list of possible choices.  I will highlight a few of my favorites here.

EasyBib

EasyBib allows you to insert citations and a subsequent bibliography page to your Google Doc.

Easy Accents

This add-on allows students to choose French, German, or Spanish (plus a few others) accents to add to their documents through a button system.  It may or may not be more fluid than learning the keyboard shortcuts, but I'll leave that decision up the experts.

Lucidchart

This is definitely the easiest way I have found to draw flowcharts and mind maps on the web and have them inserted directly into a Google Doc. Uses range widely from having students create mind maps for science notes, to a floor plan image of their sci-fi room during a creative writing project.

Openclipart

With this add-on, you can quickly search through the openclipart.org database for free to use clip art images to insert into a document.  It is worth noting that you can also search for images from within a Google Doc by using the Research tool (Ctrl+Alt+Shift+I), but the resulting images range from clip art to actual photography.  Using the Openclipart add-on is a nice way to filter down those results.

Final Thoughts

There are many other add-ons to explore.  Some have very specific functions that might be perfect for your classroom.  Explore the possibilities, and collaborate with your colleagues when you find something that works!