Unlock the Power of Google Forms for your Classroom!

Google Forms is one of my favorite, and most frequently used tools. I've blogged about it quite a few times over the past few years: 

• 10 Google Form Tricks
• Restrict Answer Length in Google Forms
• My most epic spreadsheet ever
• Elementary book report machine

You have probably created a survey or quiz using Forms. That's great! I would love to help you unlock the full potential of Google Forms in your classroom. 

Google Forms can help you organize, streamline, and automate classroom tasks so that you can spend your time and energy connecting with your students. If you are sick of pushing paper around and spending time on procedural work like checking in homework assignments, scheduling parent teacher conferences, or collecting data for IEPs, Forms can help! 

Starting April 15, 2018 I will be leading a 5 week master course on Google Forms through Google Classroom. 

If you've tinkered with forms in the past, this course is for you! I will take you from tinker to expert in 5 weeks! 

Here's what I have planned: 

Week 1: Form Building Blocks

During our first week we are going to explore the "building blocks" of forms - question types, data validation, add-ons, summary page, multimedia options, sharing and notification settings. 

During week 1 you will also identify areas of your classroom that could be improved through Forms so that we can build them later in the course. 

Week 2: Forms for Assessment

Google Forms is a great tool for assessment. In week 2 you will learn about using Forms for assessment and build a quiz for your classroom. We will go beyond multiple choice questions and look at multimedia questions, free response, reading prompts, matching, and more.  

Week 3: Forms for Record Keeping

Week 2 is devoted to helping your organize classroom record keeping. You will build a form to track lunch counts, attendance, on/off task behavior, hall passes, or whatever you want! We will also spend some time looking at the Forms summary of responses to organize and analyze data. 

Week 4: Forms for Automation

Google Forms + Sheets is a powerful combination that can be used to create automated sequences. During week 4 you will learn how to use Forms + Autocrat to create certificates, book reports, research projects, meeting agendas, or other similar documents. 

Week 5: Data Week

Collecting information is easy; understanding what that information means and using it to take action is hard! During week we will analyze the data collected in our forms using charts, graphs, and filters.

I will work with you throughout the course and will answer questions and provide personal feedback on a weekly basis. My goal for this course is to help you SAVE TIME by eliminating time-consuming processes. By streamlining and automating common, repetitive tasks you will have MORE time to connect with your students. 

The cost for this 5 week course is $99. 

Interested? You can register here! 

4 Online Courses to help you become a better teacher

Sometimes it takes a coach to encourage you and push you to the next level. I would love to be your coach for 5 weeks this winter!

Starting at the end of January I am offering 4 unique online courses that will help you use technology more effectively and confidently in your classroom.

Each course is 5 weeks long and will be facilitated through Google Classroom.

These aren't automated courses. I will work directly with you providing suggestions, encouragement, ideas, and instruction. You will also interact with other educators in the course who will be sharing their classroom ideas.

Continuing education credit is available in most states.

Each course is $99, however I am offering a 25% discount if you register in the next few weeks!

Click the links below to view the course description, outline, FAQ, and more!

Winter Courses

Starting January 22, 2018

• Teaching with Chromebooks
• Using Chromebooks with Elementary Students

 

Starting February 19, 2018

• Designing Multimedia Projects
• Creating Google Proof Lessons

 

Not Sure? This is what other educators have said about my online courses:

"This course has shown me so many new ways that I can use our Chromebooks! It also showed me a lot about apps that I have used, but in new and different ways! I would definitely recommend this course to others who are new or not that familiar with Chromebooks. It has definitely changed my mind on what they are capable of providing for myself and my students." Rose Marie Warrell, Oakley, ID

"One of the most focused and practical courses I have ever done. Every aspect was expertly taught with amazing tips from someone who is clearly a very experienced educator." Michael Drucker, London England

"I have taken other courses that were just too technical and moved way to fast. Your class was perfect. I am not a "newbie" OR a "techy" but somewhere in the middle hoping to learn more every day. Your class was perfect as it was challenging enough but not overwhelming. Thank you." Mary Ann Keiser, East Hanover, NJ

Interested in future courses, but can't join this time? Add your name to the course wait list!

 

New on iTunesU: Google in the Classroom

iTunes has long been the go-to source for interesting, entertaining, and informative podcasts. A recent update to iTunes included an overhaul of iTunesU, the educational division of Apple's web store. iTunesU contains content from of the world's leading universities as well as offerings from K-12 districts around the country.

I have been heavily involved in developing content for both teachers and students which have been added to the MI Learning channel of iTunesU. This month I have been working to publish one of the first online "courses" available in the K-12 space on iTunesU.

The title of the course is "Google in the Classroom" and is designed to introduce new users to the collaborative tools that Google has developed which have great application for the classroom:

The use of technology in education provides powerful opportunities to engage students in authentic learning. Google has developed a suite of tools that can easily be integrated into K-12 classrooms to encourage collaboration and creativity. This course will provide educators with a basic understanding of various Google products and suggest ways to integrate those products into the classroom. 

The course features seven units including lessons on Google Docs, Calendar, Sites, and Gmail. Instructional videos provide an overview of various aspects of each tool and suggest potential applications for the classroom. Also included in the course are links to innovative teachers who have used Google products with their students in interesting ways.

This course is entirely free an can be downloaded to your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. You will need to install the brand new iTunesU app (free) which can be accessed here. This will allow you to browse the iTunesU course library and find the "Google in the Classroom" course.

The process of creating this course was an interesting journey. I am working on several posts which outline the process of creating and posting a course via iTunesU. Please consider subscribing to the RSS feed for this blog, or following me on Twitter for future updates.

This Week: Google Spreadsheets for Beginners

This week I am joining forces with Derrick Wlodarz as we lead a session on Google Spreadsheets for Beginners, part of the Google Apps for Education PD Series. The webinar will begin at 8pm EST. To register for the webinar, click here.

Here's a quick outline of what we will be covering:

Spreadsheet/Form Overview of basic menu options

• Create a new spreadsheet (Derrick)
• Freezing panes
• Sorting data
• Adding new rows/columns
• Creating multiple workbooks (Derrick)

Printing and exporting and sharing spreadsheets (Derrick) 5-10 minutes

• Permissions: View/edit/owner
• Publish to web
• Revision history
• live demo

Using Data:

• Creating and Using Forms
• Creating Charts
• Using Widgets
• Using Functions
• Template Gallery

Resources for further learning

To register for the webinar, click here. 

Free Google Apps Training Resources

Google Apps for Education is quickly becoming a significant force in education. Google recently announced that over 10 million students have gone Google. Google is an engineering company that has created some unbelievably useful products. Computer engineering is what they do and they do a great job at it. Training, support, and marketing are not their strongest suites.

Because of an obvious void in the area of training and support Google created the Apps marketplace where third party vendors can offer technical services, training, and add-ons to the Google Apps suite. As a Google Certified Trainer I am listed in the marketplace as are several other educators. We each offer custom training and support for school interested in migrating to Google Apps or wanting to help their students and staff get the most out of Google Apps through professional development opportunities.

If you are looking for custom, hands on, personalized training for your school or business, reach out to one of the certified trainers listed in the Apps Marketplace. I know most of them personally and know that they would all do a great job. We are scattered around the US so it's likely that someone will be close to you!

Because the services of the certified trainers are personal and custom, they are a paid service. However perhaps you are just a teacher looking for some help in leveraging Google Apps more effectively in your classroom. Perhaps your school hasn't Gone Google yet so you are trying out the standard version of Google's Tools. Maybe you are a tech coordinator and are looking to build a list of on-demand resources that you can offer to your staff. There are lots of free resources available, but they have not been well cataloged. So here's my list of free training and support resources for Google Apps for Education:

Getting Started

• Google Apps for Education FAQ (This is a great place to begin learning about Apps for Education. Answers a lot of common misconceptions about Apps.)
• Google in the Classroom iTunesU Course (a free online course I developed featuring short video tutorials and suggestions on integrating Google Apps into your classroom. Full description here). 

On  Demand Video: 

• Google, More than Search [itunes link] (a podcast series on iTunes that I created featuring screencast tutorials on many of Google's products. These videos are also posted on YouTube.)
• Official Google Apps YouTube channel (features tutorials, case studies and product overviews)

Live Webinars:

• Overview of the Google Apps suite (Sponsored and run by Google. Events are scheduled regularly throughout the year.)
• Google Certified Trainer Webinar Series (Sponsored by Google, led by certified trainers around the country, including myself! Many of the trainers are/were classroom teachers and will focus on classroom applications of Google tools)

Support:

• Google Apps Deployment Guide (provides suggestions on the rollout of Apps to an organization)
• Tech Support Forum (not really a forum. Searchable database of instructions and information.)
• Community Forum (forum where users post and answer questions. Most contributions are from end-users with occasional interjection by Google Employees)
• Accessibility information for Google Products.

Interaction and Ideasharing:

• If you are a twitter user, follow the hashtag #gct. This is an ongoing discussion between the Google Certified Teachers. Throw out a question to us and we'll be happy to help!
• Become a Google Certified Teacher by attending the Google Teacher Academy. Held twice annually around the globe. Check out the GTA website and watch for the next application deadline. 
• Google Educators Discussion Group (a place for posting questions, ideas, and sharing resources. This is a very active community!)
• Directory of official Google Twitter accounts (Follow for lots of tips and news on new features)

Lesson Plans:

• Check out this list of lesson plans sortable by grade, subject, and Google Tool. 

Blogs to Follow:

• Directory of official Google blogs. (Add these in your RSS feed to stay up to date on new features and news related to Docs, Blogger, YouTube, etc)
• Google resources blog bundle: I created a "bundle" of blogs that I would recommend. Most of these blogs are maintained by Google Certified Teachers. 

There are undoubtedly other excellent resources that I haven't found. Please contribute to this list by posting relevant resources in a comment. I will periodically add them to the master list for others to use and benefit from. 

Wikis: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

On Tuesday, October 6th, I will be leading a professional development workshop at my school on Wikis. One of the first things I will be doing with the teachers is having them view a 5-slide presentation on Good, Bad, and Ugly uses of wikis. I would appreciate feedback from those of you who are using wikis:

1. How have you seen wikis used effectively?
2. What are common but ineffective uses of wikis?
3. What are some downright bad uses of wikis?

New PodCast Series

Several of my previous posts have mentioned work that I have been doing in conjunction with MACUL and the MDE on podcasts that are being listed on the MI Learning channel (iTunes link) of iTunesU K-12. My first podcast project was a series of lab demonstrations that I call "labcasts." They are currently available for download on iTunes and to watch on youtube.

I recently submitted a proposal for another podcast series that I am calling "Google, more than search." The proposal was accepted and I am eager to beging putting together 20 or so screencasts illustrating classroom uses for some of the powerful tools that Google has put together.

Here is the introduction to the series. If you have ideas or suggestions, let me know!