DIGITAL CLASSROOM A PARADIGM SHIFT

POSTING ASSIGNMENTS Now that students have access to Chromebooks, you can make most of your handouts and worksheets digital! Think of the money we will save on printing! You can continue to use SchoolPointe like the example to the right, or you can get your feet wet with Google Classroom! Drance uses the Announcements section of SchoolPointe

GOOGLE CLASSROOM: CREATE ASSIGNMENTS Attach a file from your computer Include a YouTube video Attach a file from Google Drive* Include a link to other resources Assign to one or all of your sections

GOOGLE CLASSROOM: A COPY FOR EVERYONE Cool feature! When you upload your document from Google Drive, you can choose this option to Make a copy for each student. This will allow them to open their own copy (and the copy will automatically change its name to include the student’s name!).

*A NOTE ABOUT USING GOOGLE DRIVE Google Classroom prefers to work with Google Docs! Here is a quick “how-to” on getting your files quickly converted as you upload them. 1. Open your Google Drive 2. Go to the Options icon in the upper right corner and choose “Settings” 3. Select the box to convert your files as you upload them….DONE!

GOOGLE CLASSROOM: STUDENTS JOIN YOU

GOOGLE CLASSROOM: STUDENT OPENS HANDOUT Student makes the changes to the document (It saves as it goes)

GOOGLE CLASSROOM: STUDENT TURNS IN WORK When the student is done, they click Turn In when it’s ready for grading. Student can add a private comment here

GOOGLE CLASSROOM: TEACHER’S VIEW You can see here how many students have turned in their assignment Once they’re in, you’re ready to grade!

GOOGLE CLASSROOM: GRADING Use the “Insert” and then “Comment” option to add comments to the project

GOOGLE CLASSROOM: RETURNING WORK When you are done adding comments and a grade, you can then return the work for the student to view: Here you can see any private comments they put in when turning it in. Put your grade in here Set the point value here Lastly, RETURN it when you are done grading it! You can return one at a time, or all at once.

GOOGLE CLASSROOM: STUDENT COLLABORATION If a student needs to share a classroom document to his/her peers, they will need to request permission from you to share:

GOOGLE CLASSROOM: STUDENT COLLABORATION You will get an from the student when they send the request: Open the sharing settings to allow all students access

GOOGLE CLASSROOM: STUDENT COLLABORATION Give the students permissions: Open the sharing settings to allow all students access and then “Send”

NO GOOGLE CLASSROOM: STUDENT SHARING First the student would still need to share their document with you: 1. They click Share 2. They enter your name (or partners’ names if sharing with peers for collaboration) 3. Click Send

NO GOOGLE CLASSROOM: STUDENT SHARING You will get an from the student with an invitation to share the document with them.

NO GOOGLE CLASSROOM: OPTION 1 = OUTLOOK Create a new folder in your Inbox called “Classwork” Once you receive an invitation, right-click on it, go down to Rules and then Create Rule.

NO GOOGLE CLASSROOM: OPTION 1 Choose the “Subject contains” option and erase everything except for “Invitation to edit” and the leave that. Choose the “Move the item to folder” option and then browse to find your newly created “Classwork” folder

NO GOOGLE CLASSROOM: OPTION 1 Lastly, right click on your Classwork folder to create subfolders for each of your classes. You may want to then create subfolders in those folders to manage specific assignments Drag and drop invitations as they arrive to the correct period folder and then assignment folder if using it

NO GOOGLE CLASSROOM: OPTION 2 In your “My Drive” create folders for each of your periods In your Google Drive, any files shared by students will show up in the “Shared with me” folder

NO GOOGLE CLASSROOM: OPTION 2 Right click on the file you want to move and click “Move to”

NO GOOGLE CLASSROOM: OPTION 2 Select “My Drive” Select the period folder and then Move

CHROMEBOOK COLLABORATION Multiple people can collaborate on a document at one time!

CHROMEBOOK COLLABORATION

Students can click on the revision iformation to open up a revision history page In this Revision history page, students can always restore a document back to a previous version if needed.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Get routines down first. Before diving into using all the cool tech equipment in your classroom, take time to get to know your class and get into a routine. Teacher Paula Barr doesn’t put technology in the hands of her students for the first few weeks of school until routines, procedures and consequences have been established. “I want to set up a positive classroom environment,” says the second grade teacher, who has a blended classroom at Quail Run Elementary School in Lawrence, Kansas.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Set tech rules together. Agree on rules about technology and collaborative group work as a class. Create a poster together and display the rules prominently in the room.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Teach kids how to search safely. Using the Internet for educational research is a lot different from playing games online at home. Bing in the Classroom is a great starting place for students to get an idea of the digital world they are about to enter with short videos on how search works, staying safe online and evaluating search results. You can also get lesson plans from the Microsoft Educator Community website that teach kids in grades K–8 how to search the Web.short videos lesson plans

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Allow some playtime. When young students first get a chance to use the technology, let them have some fun. For instance, Barr might begin by letting her students click on a website to draw SpongeBob. “If you get that play out of the way, they are much more apt to give me the serious work I want with the tech later,” she says.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Be prepared with a back-pocket plan. Before the lesson starts, check out all the websites to make sure students have access to the ones you need, and block others that are inappropriate. Have a back-pocket plan when you do encounter a technology glitch (It’s bound to happen at some point!), and be in the mind-set that you may need to shift gears, suggests Katie Owens, educational specialist with instructional technology for Henrico County Public Schools in Virginia.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Practice purposefulness. If you’re passing out laptops, have kids wait until everyone has one and you’ve given the OK before they power them up. You don’t want the first students who get the laptops to just dive in on their own and get distracted before you give clear directions, says Jon Wirsing, also an instructional technology specialist in Henrico.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Provide resources. When introducing new technology, spend time up front explaining to students where they can go for help, including Web resources. “You want them to be problem solvers, own their learning and adjust when they need to,” says Wirsing.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Give yourself a 360-degree view. Try setting up the computers in a circle with the screens facing inward. Then stand in the middle so you can have visual access to every student’s work, suggests Shane Donovan, physics and robotics teacher for grades 10–12 at E.L. Haynes Public Charter School in Washington, D.C. You can also use a central computer that allows you to tap into your students’ devices and monitor what they’re looking at in order to be certain they’re staying safe online.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Have students set daily goals. In his self-paced class, Donovan’s students are given a half-sheet of paper every day to fill out what they plan to accomplish. At the end of class, they turn in what they have completed. “You can’t just give kids a computer and say, ‘Go do this.’” he says. “If I see kids are routinely getting off the computers and not accomplishing anything, that means I need to be on them more often.”

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Celebrate success! Have a wall chart for the students to indicate with a sticker, stamp or checkmark when they’ve reached a goal or completed a task. Rather than being overly structured, Donovan suggests that older kids especially may need some flexibility to take initiative, monitor themselves and be recognized for working toward a goal.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Know your students and be consistent with consequences. Pick up on the physical cues that kids are doing something they shouldn’t, suggests Owens. It’s natural for students to test boundaries. If a student gets off-task, be consistent in your response.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Help kids troubleshoot. List several potential problems, such as “What do I do if I have my headphones on and I can’t hear,” along with solutions, in anchor charts posted throughout the classroom. “We need them to push forward by trying something before they come to me,” says Barr.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Have a protocol for getting help. When kids really need his help, Donovan has his high school students get up and write their names on the board to indicate they need his assistance. Then students need to be able to articulate what exactly they have tried and how they are stuck before they get help.

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Encourage collaboration. If students hit a roadblock, try the “ask three before me” approach, says Owens. Have the student tell you who the three students were that he or she asked. “You have to hold a tight line,” she says. “Pick a process and be consistent with it.”

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Create non-verbal cues for finished work. When students finish, have them close the laptop lid partially or turn in the computer to you. “Have a physical way of letting you know with the laptop that they are done, so then they aren’t going on to other games or websites,” says Owens. “Then you can focus on the instruction and quickly assess whether half the class is done or not.”

BEST PRACTICES 1/19/how-i-keep-25-kids-from-getting-distracted- with-their-computers Teach respect for devices. Set a tone of respect for the devices in your classroom. Have a student responsible for handing them out each day, have a student assigned to visually inspecting the devices as they come in to make sure they are not damaged, and have a student assigned to placing them in the cart and plugging them in at the end of the day.