Google Docs is adding the ability to store any file as long as it is under 250MB. Their goal is to eventually do away with the need for USB drives. This is particularly useful for students that need to transfer electronic files between home and school. Another advantage to using Google Docs is the elimination of the problem with file conversion. We’ve all experienced the frustration when a student creates a file at home using a program that we do not have access to at school. Now the student only needs the Internet. He or she can write their report in Google Docs and share it with their teacher and/or other students. Again the only thing needed is Internet access and of course a Google account.

Google Blog

While doing some research, I found a great resource on historical voyages and events that uses Google Earth and a few other Google Tools.  Instead of trying to describe it myself, I thought I would let the developer tell you about it in her own words. Mine wouldn’t do it justice.

“What historical event, explorer, voyage, or local history would you like to share with other schools? Have you studied the settlement history of your own community? Have you studied about your state or country and historical events that helped shape it?

This site is dedicated to the explorers, voyages, events, and historical backgrounds of countries throughout the World. We’d like to hear about famous explorers who surveyed or traveled through your community long ago. Perhaps you’d like to tell us about historical events that shaped your locale or region. You may wish to report about a catastrophic event in your area. Or, you may want to tell us how your community was founded, its historical background, early settlers. Every community, every town, every country has a past, and we’d like to hear about yours.

This project is open to schools all over the World. We invite a “global community” of schools to share this site with us. We can learn about each others’ countries as we contribute to this site.”  -Carol LaRow (developer and site administrator of GHVE)

All you need to get started for the voyages or historcial events tours is Google Earth (a free download) and a kmz download from the GHVE site. The file should automatically open in Google Earth and can be accessed via the tool pane.

Google Historical Voyages and Events

Stony Point Biology teachers have started experimenting with something they are calling 24/7 Tutorial Lessons. Basically these are video tutorials that are posted on the Internet so that students can view them from anywhere (assuming they have access to the Internet). These tutorials are accompanied by handouts using Google Docs. This allows the handout files to be posted to the Internet as well and the user is not required to have MS Office installed to view them. For example, you could convert a Word document to a Google Doc and that file could be viewed and/or edited by the students and they would not have to have Office on their computer to do this.

The first link below is to a Biology teacher’s TeacherWeb. On that page you will find four links to her video tutorials for the students. The second link is to the handouts that accompany these tutorials. If you go to view the handout files, you will notice that they launch in your IE browser instead of opening in Word.

This concept would be great for students that miss class or for topics that are difficult for students to understand. I could see this being used in just about every subject area; especially Math, Science, and Social Studies. Your document/web cameras would work great for the video part of these tutorials.

On a side note, having students use Google Docs instead of Word or Excel would save us all a lot of problems down the road. By doing this students don’t need to email anything to themselves or to you, don’t have to worry about bringing flash drives, and we would no longer have to worry about a student writing a report in some other program that we do not have access to. Those of you that have had problems opening files that students have created in something other than Word know exactly what I mean. Google Docs gives them most of the functionality that MS Office does, but these files are stored online and can be secured or unsecured to any degree. So even if you are just interested in the Google Docs portion, please let me know.

Video Tutorials

Video Tutorial Handouts

Thanks to Brian Weaver for the links and project idea.

Google Docs is a free, Web-based word processor, spreadsheet, presentation, and form application offered by Google. It allows users to create and edit documents online while collaborating in real-time with other users.

There are numerous uses for Google Docs, not only in the classroom, but also in the everyday business of the school and for collaborating between teachers. I can thing of several uses just in the IB program here at Grisham.

Here are just a few ways that teachers are using Google Docs:

• Promote group collaboration and creativity by having your students record their group projects together in a single doc.
• Keep track of grades, attendance, or any other data you can think of using an easily accessible, always available spreadsheet.
• Facilitate writing as a process by encouraging students to write in a document shared with you. You can check up on their work at any time, provide insight and help using the comments feature, and understand better each students strengths.
  
• Create quizzes and tests using spreadsheets forms, your students’ timestamped answers will arrive neatly ordered in a spreadsheet.
  
• Encourage collaborative presentation skills by asking your students to work together on a shared presentation, then present it to the class.
• Collaborate on a document with fellow teachers to help you all track the status and success of students you share.
  
• Maintain, update and share lesson plans over time in a single document.
• Track and organize cumulative project data in a single spreadsheet, accessible to any collaborator at any time.

Below is a video explaining Google Docs in simple terms.

Getting started with Google Docs is simple and all you need is an email address. Below you will find a few links to help you get started:

• Account creation
• Create and share docs
• Edit
• Organize
• More resources

PowerPoint clip-art images are not single drawings. They are actually many small pieces grouped together. There will be some times that you may want to ungroup the parts of an image so some elements can be removed or repositioned.

Step One – Right-click on the image, slide down to Group and then over to Ungroup. Click one time.

Step Two – Before ungrouping the image you must convert the image to a Microsoft drawing object. Click on the Yes button.

Step Three – Repeat the process from step one. This time right-clicking brings up a shorter menu of selections. Once again, select Ungroup.

After selecting Ungroup you will see a large number of boxes on the image, showing how many pieces the clip art had been broken into. Click any where off the image to deselect the image pieces.

Step Four – Some experimentation will be required in order to change the image. Click on any part of the image to find a part to work with. I selected the blue background so I could remove it and have only the pencil remaining. If you do something to the image that you didn’t want to happen, you can quickly reset the image by using the Undo feature. A quick way to Undo is to hold down the Ctrl key while you press the Z key one time.

-Internet4Classrooms

What makes a web page that keeps students and parents coming back? Lots of information that is easy to navigate!

1. Home Page: When you first open the web page you should see the basic information about the class. Keep it simple! Name Course taught Conference period room number work number email

2. Information Page: This page should include information that does not change often. Classroom rules Supply lists Tutoring schedule Grading Policy Course Overview SIM Course Organizers and Unit Organizers

3. Assignment Page: Most important page of your website – requires commitment and needs to be updated frequently! Details, details, details. Suggest that you display this page every day as the kids enter the room. Lesson Objectives Website links for classroom activities and resources Detailed explanations of instructions and navigation for various activities Homework assignments and due dates Project assignments and due dates Substitute assignments and information Handouts provided in class Test review information Test information

4. About Me Page: This is a way to add personality to your site. It could also be a way to hook students into coming to your site more often.

o Travel Pictures

o Educational Background

o Hobby Information

o Family Info

5. NewsFlash page: If your web page does not have a RSS – or a subscription service then you should have a newsflash page so you can send out important info to parents directly.

6. Resource Page: List the 10-15 resources at max that can help a student learn more about that concept or provide extra practice. Instructional Videos to help reteach concepts – think webcam videos, teacher Tube embedded videos, etc.

7. Sharing Page: post student work including written work, scanned images, audio files, multimedia files, etc. DO NOT post last names and grades ALWAYS get permission first

8. Other Pages to Consider:

o Calendar page – consider one that is shared by your team with all major test dates and assignments on it.

o Documents page with handouts

o Blog pages for classroom discussion activities – blog around a book or a topic in class.

o Tutorials page – Include handout or videos for students to review to re-teach concepts being covered in class.

o Schedule page – lists your class schedule

How to promote your web page: Have the assignment page displayed as students come in each day. Include the address in your signature line in emails. Show website to visitors on Back to School Night and in parent conferences Show the webpage during class as often as possible Require students to go to the page to work on projects by providing links and information necessary for the project.

Information taken from: Mortensen, Carolynn. “A Web Site is a Terrible Thing to Waste.” TechEdge 28(2009): 12-14.

Back when I was teaching high school BCIS and BIMM, someone showed me an awesome resource for teachers to find and share lessons related to technology. If you’ve ever taught a technology class, you might already be aware of this site, but most teachers will not be. The great thing about it is that these lessons  not only cover the Technology Applications TEKS, but many of them cover your core curriculum TEKS as well. You do have to sign up for a FREE account, but its well worth it. Once you sign up, just click on the Model Classroom Lessons tab in the left column, select your subject area, and then your grade level.From there you can browse the hundreds of lessons that other teachers have already created. Many of them will include the lesson plan, any handouts used, and a list of materials needed. Check out the two links below for an example of an 8th grade math assignment.

Lesson Plan

Student Handout

http://www.techappsnetwork.org/

I was recently shown a video that a Math teacher from Westwood had done as a screen capture from his desktop computer. The purpose of the video was to have a way to show the students a demonstration/lecture of him working out the problems for an assignment while he had a substitute. The sub would simply play the video for the students and pause it when instructed to so the students could have time to work on their own.

The software he used was a free web-based program called ScreenToaster.  Its simple to use and no installation is needed. A java applet does need to be run initially, but that should be something any user can do. Simply click on run when the applet window pops up. From there its as simple as clicking on the Start Recording button. It allows recording of audio and video from a webcam can be included as well. To store your videos you will need to create an account, but the account is free.  You will notice that the teachers is using notebook software to show the digital notes, but a similar version of software is available with no cost.  Let me know if you would like help with using this software or to installing the free version of the notebook software.

Link to ScreenToaster