Fake News Alert!

Spotting "fake news" can be just as difficult for adults as it is for kids. Learning how to think critically, fact check effectively, and evaluate websites quickly are skills that can start as early as elementary school. Below are some EASY TO USE, easy to post in Google Classroom resources for you and your students to learn important web research skills. Including but not limited to: Fact-Check the Web Like the Pros, Reverse Image Search, Search Effectively within Sites, and News Literacy 

Turn Students into Fact-Finding Web Detectives

5 Questions Kids Should Ask When Viewing Media

Click these documents for a quick glance:

Click the image below to check out the Common Sense Media "News & Media Literacy Educator Toolkit" 

Search Your Drive!

The search feature in Google Drive is a great way to quickly locate documents! You can search using filters such as owner, document type, and date. 

Watch the 2min. tutorial below for some quick tips! 

Google Documents: Email Collaborators

Use the "Email Collaborators" feature located in the "File" menu in Google Docs to make sure your collaborators (including students) see your comments. While you could use the "comment" feature, that requires your collaborators to locate the document to see the comment. Using "Email Collaborators" automatically includes a link to the document in your email for easy access by the recipient. (see GIF below)

"Share" in Google Docs/Sheets/Slides Explained

The "SHARE" feature in Google can be confusing unless you are using it regularly. First, it's important to understand that ALL DOCUMENTS IN GOOGLE DRIVE (including folders) HAVE THEIR OWN WEB ADDRESS that can be shared in many ways. I've tried narrowing the options down to 4 main concepts: 

1. Share with a few individuals
2. Share with a larger group
3. Download or Email as a different File Type
4. Force others to make a COPY before accessing the document

Here are a few quick resources to help you decide which option is right for the situation. 

VIDEO TUTORIAL: Google Share Settings Explained 

Google Forms Quiz for PD Hour Certificate

SHARE SETTINGS EXPLAINED POSTER

Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drawings SHARE Comparison Chart

TEAM DRIVE Options

PC Mag: 

How to Share Google Drive Files

Google Drive Help: 

Share files from Google Drive

Google Lit Trips: A Visual Exploration Through Literature (K-12)

Google Lit Trips are a great way to give your students another perspective on the events and locations in literature. Lit Trips uses Google Earth to plot out important event locations in a book through a pre-made, interactive path. Easy to save, easy to import and share with students in Google Classroom, you can instantly draw your students into deeper engagement and understanding in just a few steps. If you don't see a book in the list of pre-made Lit Trips, you can make your own! (more on that in another post) 

Click the video below to get started.

Click here for an alphabetical list of available titles. 

Turn off Desktop Notifications for Google Hangouts

To shut off the desktop notifications for Hangouts, simply open Hangouts, click the settings menu on the left (the three stacked lines) then uncheck the box that says "Show Desktop Notifications for New Messages" 

***You will still hear an alert sound for incoming messages, but a preview of the message will NOT pop up on your computer. This is handy if you are signed into your Google account on your Smartboard computer. It will keep students from seeing your messages. 

Google Classroom: Updates Explained

Google Classroom went through many updates over the summer. I sent out an email back in August, but here is the quick overview if you still feel unsure about the changes.

*The three tabs at the top are now:
-Stream- a place for quick announcements, a preview of classwork posts and discussions.
-Classwork- no longer listed in chronological order, rather listed by Topic. If you want to add things such as syllabus, materials, etc., create a post under the topic "Materials"
-People- see students enrolled and add guardians

*Settings Gear- adjust student comment abilities and guardian access
*Easier Grading- directly flip to the next document and grade directly in the document as well as use a comment bank to quickly add duplicate comments
*Copy Entire Class: the Stream will be erased as it's specific to each school year's needs and all Classwork will be saved as a "draft" so you can edit and assign as needed. All students will be removed from the prior year
Idea!- a master course could be created and copied for teachers to use around the district.

Watch this short 7min. overview for details. 

Click the links below for 
additional help:

Time for a refresh: Meet the new Google Classroom

Elementary Tech Training Sign Up

MS/HS Tech Training Sign Up

***NOTE: Use the "To-Do" option to quickly access assignments that need to be graded rather than searching for items individually  .