Google Sheets & Docs You Can Do

I am on an epic learning adventure this summer! To make a long story short, I did a short appearance on the GEG Ohio meeting in April and now I've got quite a few virtual sessions lined up. I'm super excited! To check out what I will be presenting & the registration information, please check out the "My Presentations" page.

The first BIG learning adventure I am embarking on is what I want to share today. Together with my #NYC19 Google Innovator coach, Dr. Desiree Alexander, I will be doing an intro class for the Google Apps. Two have already happened, and if you weren't able to tune in, no worries! Desiree shares them on her YouTube Channel. I wanted to also share them here, too, along with the resources.

I do my best to make any presentation I do worthwhile, so I format it to make it a "play along". The first session was about Google Sheets and the second session was on Google Docs. Google Slides is coming up on Tuesday and Forms on Thursday. 

There's still time to join in! Check out the registration doc here, Tech You Can Do: An Intro to Google Apps. And if you can't make the day/time, I highly recommend you register anyway ... Desiree will send the recording out afterwards. 

Google Sheets You Can Do

Google Sheets can be intimidating, but they don't have to be. I even formatted my presentation IN a Google Sheet so you can see that it is far more than a spreadsheet. (It IS a pretty amazing spreadsheet, too.)

I have 2 versions of the resource:

1. This link is what it looked like prior to the recording. (If you want to "play along", make a copy of this one so you can do it authentically on your own.)

2. This link is the after version with all the changes made during the presentation. (Feel free to view/make a copy of what mine looked like afterwards.)

Here is the video:

Google Docs You Can Do

Google Docs is probably the first & easiest of the Google Apps to get going with. It is a word processor, but like ALL of the Google Apps, don't limit them to "only" being their basic format. Docs is much MORE than word processor, as we will see when we dig in.

Here is a link to Google Docs You Can Do. I shared two pretty powerful tools with Docs: one is voice typing. This is awesome for your students with specific learning needs, but ALSO for everyone - yourself included! Another powerful tools is "version history". PLEASE put this in your "teacher bag of tricks" and use it ... not just with your rascals, but also to help all when things gets deleted. It can be a huge help.

Here is the video:

I hope these two encourage you to look at Sheets & Docs in a different light. They are both incredible tools for you and your students. Do you need additional help? Do you have other questions? Feel free to reach out in the comments below ... or email me: sarah@techyoucando.com ... or reach out on Twitter - @kiefersj.

I hope to connect with you soon!

Google Photos for Space & Savings You Can Do

I'd hoped to have this out last week, but I've been busy trying to get a few home projects done and spending time outside with my husband and girls. I'm hoping you enjoy this - it's an easy one ... and one that will pay off long term!

Today's share is directed to you as a person, more than you as a teacher. During the school year, I focus far more on academic shares, so today is meant to help you in your life outside of school.

Have you ever received the message on your phone you are out of storage and you need to:

• purchase more?
• delete things?

It's quite the bummer! An alternative is purchase a new phone with additional memory ... but really?

No need! It's easier than any of these. All you need is a Google account & one specific app - Google Photos. It's free and has massive storage.

I learned this several years ago when I needed to create space on my phone, but still wanted to be able to see my photos. I learned about Google Photos ... and then I found out I could set it up to AUTOMATICALLY back up all my photos! Mind-blown! Now, I never worry about losing my photos and I can go all the way back to 2006 when I took my first digital photos and enjoy the walk down memory lane.

I've posted some Slides below to help you navigate through setting it up -it's super easy, I promise. I have an iPhone, so Android users, I apologize ... your screen might look slightly different, but I do not think it will be too far off.

As always, feel free to share & reach out if you have any questions!

*** And a side note before you jump in ... I will be doing a series of 8 FREE webinars soon where each one focuses on an introduction to a single Google app. 

I've also been asked to make a second appearance with the GEG Louisiana in July (yay!). 

To help share these, I've added the page "My Presentations" to the header row in my blog and I've embedded a calendar for quick access to these presentations & their registration links.

I'd love to "see" you there! Feel free to reach out if you have any questions! ***

 

Please don't hesitate to reach out if you have questions, or you'd like help with this - or any of the items I share. You can comment below, reach out on Twitter (@kiefersj), or email me (Sarah@techyoucando.com).

Starting Google Classroom You Can Do

Some of us are wrapping up the 2019-2020 school year ... some are still in school. Regardless, if you use Google Classroom, you might be thinking about how to use it "better". In my district, we just finished the year, so I used this opportunity to have conversations around what we can modify or improve in our use of Google Classroom. 

I boiled it down to 8 "big ideas". While they are specific to Google Classroom, if you use another platform, you can still use these ideas and adjust the specifics to yours. I have this set up as more of a reflection activity - 8 topics, each linked to a slide with some info, and a reflection slide following. Feel free to make your own copy (use the "Template" link) or just write out your reflections on paper. This can be helpful for you to sketch out ideas or plans or thoughts rather than digitally. I challenge you to share this with your team of teachers - those you work closest with and have them do the same. The conversations that follow might help all of you form an even better plan as to how to use Classroom.

On a related note, the closure we all just experienced has reaffirmed my belief that we cannot operate as silos. It has also led me to believe we need each other more than ever. And we can't go wrong as long as we are working to improve ourselves.

The Slides below are a modified version of Slidesmania's Challenge Board (this girl is a genius!).

I'd like my own copy, please! Use this TEMPLATE link.

I'd like to just view the entire Slide deck. No problem, use this VIEW ONLY link.

I had the honor of presenting for Dr. Desiree Alexander this past Friday. I share 3 different ways to build an app for your classroom. I loved every minute! Desiree is my #NYC19 Innovator coach from Google's Certified Innovator Academy. She puts on many FREE webinars regularly. If you are interested in learning more & attending them, please go to her website: edalex.net/events .

I will be presenting on "6 Steps to Organize Google Drive" on June 2 at 1 pm EST (12 pm CST) for the GEG Louisiana. The leader is fellow #NYC19 Google Innovator, Wiley Brazier! You can sign up on the GEG Louisiana website.

I will be co-presenting on Sat, Sept 12, 2020, with Beth Kingsley all about our Templates for Teachers website. This will be hosted by Dr. Desiree Alexander and is FREE! You can register now and reminders will come to you when it gets closer.  edalex.net/events 

Please don't hesitate to reach out if you have questions, or you'd like help with this - or any of the items I share. You can comment below, reach out on Twitter (@kiefersj), or email me (Sarah@techyoucando.com).

Distance Learning Tracker App You Can Do

Several weeks ago, one of my teachers came to me and we talked through an issue. Distance learning had thrown a curveball in the way parents, students, and teachers could track the work that has been done and still had yet to be done. Relying, in part, on a major piece to my Google Innovator Project, we talked through a "needs assessment". I connected her needs with an idea I had been working on for the upcoming DC trip - a personalized "To Do" list. There are 2 pieces needed to make this idea work - a Google Sheet & Glide Apps.

I took my "To Do" list and modified it somewhat to work so this teacher (and any others) can take the template sheet, connect it to Glide Apps, and have a viable app to share with parents as a way to keep them informed about student work. (I also suppose you can set it up to include a narrative column as well.) And so the "Distance Learning Assignment Tracker App" sprang to life!

I shared it out on last month's GEG Ohio meeting where I shared this out with a quickly written workflow. [You can catch it here on YouTube, April 2020 GEG Ohio Meeting. I start about an hour in to the meeting.] I wanted to polish it up and include a more friendly layout, so I've pasted it below.

I also am very excited to share I will be presenting on this (& my other apps I've built & shared for school use) THIS coming Saturday, May 30, 2020, at 12 pm EST. My Innovator coach, Dr. Desiree Alexander, hosts FREE webinars and I am honored to be one of the presenters. You can register here -> Build an App for Your Classroom <- I'd love to see you there!

I will also be presenting on "6 Steps to Organize Google Drive" on June 2 at 1 pm EST (12 pm CST) for the GEG Louisiana. The leader is fellow #NYC19 Google Innovator, Wiley Brazier! You can sign up on the GEG Louisiana website. 

Please don't hesitate to reach out if you have questions, or you'd like help with this - or any of the items I share. You can comment below, reach out on Twitter (@kiefersj), or email me (Sarah@techyoucando.com).

Templates You Can Do ... like Alyssa!

I am thrilled to share this today! It's a bright spot in all of the strange and difficult times we've been through the past couple of months. To start, you might know I have a co-created website - Templates for Teachers - with Beth Kingsley. We shared it nearly two years ago and have worked to add to it. About a month ago, we shifted it over to a new site and have enjoyed it even more! I can't believe it's been a month since we shared out the new site. We've published a handful more templates as we continue to move them over & we'd love for you to check them out.

Beth's and my goal with Templates for Teachers is that we create for our classes and we share the templates on our site for anyone to take. You are welcome to use them as they are, or modify them to your own needs. Our previous site only allowed us to actually share the templates. Our new site allows us to also share ideas on how to use them with younger or older students. You can also use the filtering to help you view similar templates or types of templates.

I received an email from a good friend of mine, Alyssa, on April 29. She shared a Google Slide with me and included a note telling me she'd found a template on our site & modified it to fit her class. It's stories like this that are bright spots in the midst of these strange times. 

Here is Alyssa's story - Beth created the "Mother's Day Gazette" for her 3rd graders as a project for Mother's Day last year. (This is an amazing template and they turned out super awesome!) Alyssa was browsing our site and saw it. Alyssa is a 7th & 8th grade Social Studies teacher, mind you. When she saw the gazette, she saw it as a way for her 7th grade students to demonstrate their learning of the Renaissance with a scrapbook. 

Whaaaaaaat??? Do you see a Renaissance scrapbook from the Mother's Day Gazette? I didn't, but Alyssa did! And she is graciously allowing me to share it on our Templates for Teachers website - to quickly find it, click on the label "Alyssa Bruck" on the far right side of the site! You have to check it out - BOTH are amazing! And it's truly a dream come true for me to see a colleague (& friend!) to take one of our templates and modify it to fit her needs in such a creative way!

Alyssa has since followed up the scrapbook with THREE more Renaissance themed templates! (These are also featured on our Templates site) And then this week - just when I was struggling with focus on school work, yet ANOTHER email from Alyssa appeared. I opened it to find a Civil War Choice Board she created & is using with her students during these last weeks of remote learning. Kudos to you, Alyssa! I was blown away! Truly! And to think ... all of this happening during our time of remote learning!?!

This just goes to demonstrate we all have room to grow and we all have our struggles. But when we pull together, we can do more than we thought possible. I count myself lucky to work with both Beth & Alyssa, and I count myself lucky to be able to share it with you. 

Do you have questions or comments? I'd love to hear from you! Please comment below - connect on Twitter (@kiefersj) - or email me directly (sarah@techyoucando.com).

Finally, I have a few exciting things to share:

* I was honored to be a guest on the GEG Ohio April meeting. I shared about the apps I've created with Slides & Glide Apps. You can check out the recording here (April meeting YouTube link) - be sure to fill out the fill out the form to earn PD credit!

* I am going to present a more detailed session about building apps with my #NYC19 Google Innovator Coach, Dr. Desiree Alexander, on her FREE webinar series. This will be Sat, May 30 @ 12 pm EST (11 am CST). You can find more info & the sign up link at edalex.net/appbuild .

* I will also be presenting "6 Steps to Organize Your Google Drive" on June 2 at 1 pm EST (12 pm CST) for the GEG Louisiana. The leader is fellow #NYC19 Google Innovator, Wiley Brazier! You can sign up on the GEG Louisiana website.