Tech Tip Tuesday #3

This week is all about Google Docs. They are awesome! In fact, last week was the first time I needed to use Microsoft Word in over a year. 

Perks to Google Docs:

- Easily accessible from any device, anywhere

- Easily share your Docs and collaborate with others

- Auto-save, losing work is nearly impossible

- Revision history, easily see your changes or changes made by collaborators

- It's free! (This is the reason I switched to Google Docs for my personal life too, I didn't want to pay for Microsoft Word on my new laptop when there was a great free option available.)

Google Docs for Beginners:

See the attached GoogleDocsCheatSheet.pdf from Shake Up Learning.

Consider sharing this resource with your students. It is a couple of years old so it's missing newer features like columns, but it's still really good information.

If you're already comfortable with Google Docs:

Click here for 40+ Google Docs Tips to Become a Power User. 

Tips #2, 5, 17, 28, 29, and 42 would be great to share with students.

I didn't know about #18 until today, absolutely share this one with students. I also just learned Tip #10 this summer and it has changed how I collaborate.

More Resources for All Levels:

Did you know that Google has a TON of resources available? Click here for information on Google Docs from the G Suite Learning Center.

What are your favorite Google Docs tips? What are your favorite ways to use Google Docs? 

Tech Tip Tuesday #2

For this week's Tech Tip Tuesday, I have a Schoology tip. (Although you could apply this same concept to other uses of technology.)

I have been adding content to my courses and it has felt like quite a bit of clicking. To keep from going crazy, I created a workflow cheat sheet and pinned it by my desk. You are welcome to use mine or create your own. If you aren't sure how to add something, let me know and I will write out the steps for you.

BONUS TECH TIPS

Allow students to submit late assignments:

If you want students to be able to submit late work, click the lock button () on the bottom of the create assignment page once to keep it unlocked. The default seems to be locked at the due date time. You can also choose to assign a time to lock the assignment or lock the assignment by clicking "Lock Now."

Reorder your courses:

Click on the arrows at the bottom of the "Courses" drop-down menu.

Now use the arrows to move the courses where you want and click "Save Changes."

Change the order of Gradebook entries:

In Gradebook, click on the third drop-down menu to sort Gradebook entries.

Tech Tip Tuesday #1

For this week's Tech Tip Tuesday, I have a Schoology tip.

In Schoology, we cannot change the course names or section numbers. (If you do, it will just change back the next day after the overnight import from Synergy.) This makes it confusing for both teachers and students to know what course is what. A way to work around this is to include the desired information in your course picture. This could be as simple as an hour number or textbook or as "advanced" (it's really not too hard) as creating your own picture.

Here is a tutorial (from this teacher blog) for creating your own picture: 

Schoology Course Pictures Hack

I've had a few people ask me if it is possible to change the section name of each Schoology course so it is easier to figure out which hour it corresponds to. Unfortunately, you are unable to change that because it will revert back to the original every time it syncs with Skyward. The work around for that is to change the Schoology course picture for each class to include the hour which you teach that class. See the example below.

Follow these steps to make that happen:

1. Create a new Google Drawing in your Drive by click New then More and Google Drawing.

2. To resize the drawing to a profile picture size click File --> Page Setup and then select Custom. Enter the dimensions 170 x 170 pixels.

3. Add a picture by using the Insert menu and then clicking Image. You can upload an image that you already have or search for one. 

4. Crop the picture to fit in the square

5. To add the number to your picture click Insert and then Word Art. Type the number that you want on the picture and then hit enter. Change the font, size and color settings to your liking.

6. After it looks good, click File --> Download As and then select JPEG image. Choose the location where the file will download to your computer. 

7. Open Schoology and navigate to the course that you wish to change the picture for. 

8. Hover your mouse over the current course picture and you will see the Edit Picture button pop up in the top right corner of the square. Click that.

9. Select Attach File and then find the picture that you just downloaded. 

10. Repeat for any course that you wish to change. 

Here are some course picture examples from the East Central Tech Team: