Advanced spreadsheet tips & tricks BECAUSE DATA IS COOL Make some Data! Go to goo.gl/1D6YhV

Caveat: This is not just Excel tips and tricks; Google sheets are pretty awesome, too. Excel is the most powerful spreadsheet software I’ve used, but not the only tool. Google Sheets can do things Excel can’t.

90 minutes from now… I will be able to use at least three formulas in a spreadsheet. I will be able to combine data from multiple sheets. I will be able to use an add-on in google sheets.

How I Got Good at Excel Need to do something with numbers. Google how to do it. Do it. I had to learn somewhere. Necessity is the mother of invention.

How I Got Good at Excel Baseball stat book

FILTERING AND FORMATTING (ftw) Some basic ways to look at data quickly.

Filters Filter: Filter text, numbers, dates, times, above/below average, blanks, color Sort: use filters to sort a full range First sort by first name, then last name, then period Filters can filter out and sort a range of information.

How to filter Select the range you want to analyze. Go to “Sort & Filter,” then click “Filter.” Use the dropdown arrows to filter data based on specific columns.

Here I can filter out all of the players who had an above-average number of hits, and only show those players.

Sort data according to a particular column. Here, I’m going to sort by the players’ batting average.

Conditional Formatting Automatically formats a range of cells in pre- determined patterns Sparklines Color codes Charts Pivot tables Conditional formatting is all about visualizing your data quickly and efficiently

The main way to access conditional formatting is in the Home tab of the ribbon. Data bars are a simple way of visualizing a data set.

Color coding is another way of visualizing a particular data set.

You can also access conditional formatting and other features (like charts and sparklines) through the small icon at the bottom right of a selected range.

Using formulas Formulas are the workhorse of spreadsheets. They are what make spreadsheets so powerful and versatile. If you have numbers involved, formulas will help you analyze and use those numbers.

How to Use Basic Formulas Type an equal sign. This tells the cell that you’re going to use a formula. To reference a cell, either click on that cell or type in the letter/number (A2).

Basic Formulas Simple mathematical equations Addition (+) Subtraction (-) Multiplication (*) Division (/) Exponents (^)

Basic functions Functions Simplify more complex computations Sum – add up a group of numbers Average – average a group of numbers Median – find the median of a group of numbers Count – count how many cells have a number in them CountA – count how many cells have something in them

Copying formulas You can copy formulas, with conditions Ranges change when copied Copy cell a5, which contains =sum(a1:a4), to cell b5. It will change to =sum(b1:b4) Add a $ in front of row number and column letter to make it absolute when copied & pasted =sum($a$1:$a$4) Be careful about copying formulas. If you forget to make a range reference absolute ($), your data will go haywire.

Advanced functions: If WHAT IT DOES: make logical comparisons between a value and what you expect. In its simplest form, the IF function says: IF(Something is True, then do something, otherwise do something else) Example: =if(C20>0,C20,“”) When I use it: indicate whether a student has met a specific criteria (yes/no) or a series of criteria (using “nested” if functions)

Simple “If” function – a pass/fail grade

Nested If function – Letter grades

Simple If function – “leave it blank” reference

Simple “If” function – Yes/No

Nested If function – if their 3 lifts add up to a certain number, give them points

Advanced functions: CountIf WHAT IT DOES: count the number of cells that meet a criterion; for example, to count the number of times a particular title appears in a list of student book selections. Example: =countif(A:A,“hunger games”) When I use it: Analyzing student assessment data, baseball statistics, or assignment scores

Basic countif function – count how many students earned a particular letter grade

Advanced functions: Countifs WHAT IT DOES: applies criteria to cells across multiple ranges and counts the number of times all criteria are met Example: =COUNTIFS(D5:D19,"<20",L5:L19,">=.300") When I use it: analyzing assessment scores (l2 or l1 in multiple categories)

Complex Countifs function – count how many students scored either a 2 or 3 in all three categories

Advanced functions: Concatenate WHAT IT DOES: Use to join two or more text strings (cells) into one string (cell). Example: =concatenate(a2,“ ”,a3) When I use it: TO COMBINE STUDENT NAMES INTO ONE CELL, TO SET UP A VLOOKUP FORMULA

Simple concatenate function – combine first name and last name

Advanced functions: VLookup WHAT IT DOES: Use when you need to find things in a table or a range by row. For example, look up a student’s book title by their email address. Example: =vlookup(A7,'ORR 1'!$A$1:$G$155,6,false) when I use it: outside reading tracking, baseball stat book, football wristbands, football letter tracking, any time I want to reference another sheet for data My favorite formula! So versatile and powerful!

Simple Vlookup – pull scores from different tabs

Simple Vlookup formula – pull player responsibility from another tab based on the play name

Simple Vlookup – pull totals from other tabs

Simple Vlookup formula – pull book titles based on student email address

Basic vlookup formula automates commenting on notebooks

ADDING AWESOMENESS TO YOUR GOOGLE SHEETS USING ADD-ONS ADDING AWESOMENESS TO YOUR GOOGLE SHEETS Time to do things beyond Excel

What is an Add-On? Google Docs is great, but not perfect. Add-Ons Add capabilities On to Google Docs Like toppings on a sundae – they add deliciousness to an already good product

How do I get Add-Ons? Open Google Docs Open the “Add-Ons” menu Click “Get Add-Ons” Find the Add-On you want Click the blue “Free” button Approve the Add-On

Add-On: CopyDown WHAT IT DOES: Copies formulas to new rows when Forms are submitted HOW I USE IT: adding a column for “full name”, adding up numbers from a form, averaging scores from a rubric form Example: Pretest spreadsheet

Add-On: FormMule WHAT IT DOES: Mail merges spreadsheet info to email recipients HOW I USE IT: Score presentations and email scores to students, email starbucks balance to department members Example: Pretest spreadsheet Check your email!

We track contributions to our department Starbucks card We track contributions to our department Starbucks card. FormMule sends an email to people with a balance <$7.00 to let them know they are running low.

FormMule uses the data in this spreadsheet to send students an email with their performance scores and comments.

This is an example of the performance rubric email students receive

On this spreadsheet, FormMule uses different email templates based on the student’s Role

Add-On: Autocrat WHAT IT DOES: mail merges spreadsheet info into documents HOW I USE IT: send students a pre-filled outside reading paper, send students a record of their outside reading books

This spreadsheet uses several Vlookup formulas to collect book titles, then AutoCrat compiles those into a document.

That document is shared and emailed to the student at the end of the school year.

Post-test goo.gl/N3Tb8B