  Google Classroom is by far one of the most used LMS platforms for creating digital classrooms. A few years back, a technology group I was part of created tutorial videos for teachers about how to use Google Classroom. A big shout-out to Morgan for letting me post her video along with mine. Google Classroom 101 Video [20 min]: https://www.loom.com/share/dfb2141f170b4714947df691c3cebf53 Google Classroom 201 Video [25 min]: https://www.loom.com/share/642627eddde74ce5924820d84301f738
 Using a few small details can really help with organizing your digital learning space. We think long and hard about how to organize the physical classrooms, but sometimes we don't pause to give the same consideration to our digital spaces. These tips make it a lot easier for both you and your students to find what you need quickly. Using Emojis Emojis are a simple way for students (especially ones that struggle with reading) to find what they need. I have used different kinds of emojis for different purposes, from simply colored dots to color code subjects, to different symbols to represent different types of assignments or even using a single emoji for an entire Unit. Emojis are a simple way to help students find what they need, they can simply scroll until they see the correct picture. (I think this is a perfect opportunity to mention something that Tammy always reminds me of, and that is that visual is the only part of the brain not impacted by Autism. This means that those pictures can be a huge huge helper for students with disabilities.) Using Topics I think most teachers utilize topics in their digital classrooms. But here's what I'm really going to emphasize here...... editing those topics. I've done this in a few ways in the past, but it is always fitting into what works best for my classes. Whether I am starting with a daily topic and after a week moving those days into a weekly topic together, or posting individual daily assignments and then grouping them by topic or unit after the due date, I never have static topics in my Google Classroom. By editing the topics as I go, it helps to emphasize certain assignments (like the ones for this week, this unit, or just for today) while taking the attention off of the big list of every assignment the students have had since September. Naming Conventions This is something I see the biggest struggle with. And I'll admit that I'm not perfect with this still, I messed it up even in the past few weeks. Let's look at how I messed up to see an example of what NOT to do. At the beginning of every class, I have students complete a quick Warm Up, but I decided to call it a Check In. That was mistake number 1. I have been constantly messing up calling it a Warm Up and the students have no idea what I mean since they don't see anything called Warm Up in their Google Classroom. The second mistake I made was that these were the names I used in the past 4 weeks:
This gets very confusing to the students since the naming conventions change weekly. Now, the constant use of the same emoji does help them to know that this was what they were looking for, but it is important to choose a naming convention and stick with it for all assignments. In the past, I've done this by using the Unit Title - Assignment Name, or by using the Unit: Lesson Name. What's important is that you be consistent and try to keep things easy for students.  When using Google Chrome, you can add extensions to your browser to make your life a little bit easier by integrating those extension services into your internet browsing experience. These are the extensions that I find to be most useful in my Google Classroom. Bitmoji This extension allows you to search, copy, and paste your bitmoji on your computer so easily. I find that my bitmoji is a great way to make students feel more connected between my digital classroom and myself. Especially when they have multiple teachers, this helps them to associate the two things together. https://chrome.google.com/.../bfgdeiadkckfbkeigkoncpdieii... Emoji Keyboard by JoyPixels If you plan to use Emojis in your digital classroom to help organize assignments or topics, I strongly suggest you add this so that you can easily add the emojis. You can search for emojis or go through them the same way they are divided on your phone. Clicking on an emoji copies it to your clipboard so that you can paste it in wherever you need it! https://chrome.google.com/.../ipdjnhgkpapgippgcgkfcbpdpcg... Google Sheets Row Highlighter This is one that I love when I'm using Google Sheets for grades. If you use Google Forms for quizzes or assignments, then the spreadsheet that autogenerates with grades can be a huge time saver. I love this extension because it allows me to more easily see the row or column that I want to keep track of by coloring it in. You can adjust the extension to include rows or columns, and customize the color and darkness. https://chrome.google.com/.../cejijldbedfmdehondfmoadlkhg... iorad This extension is awesome for building tutorials for students. I find this to be especially useful:
https://chrome.google.com/.../kjfmedbganalpkohkeghhpppico... Mote If you have students who struggle with reading, Mote is a must-have extension. Mote allows you to put in voice notes on Google Docs, Drive, Slides, Sheets, Forms, and Classroom. I have used it for reading the directions on a slide to students and all they have to do is click the Mote icon to get it to play. For our older students, teachers can also use Mote to leave voice feedback instead of typing feedback on assignments. I have heard of teachers who, instead of needing class time to conference 1-on-1 with every student, simply turn on Mote Recording and read the student's essay out loud. They stop and give feedback as needed throughout the reading, and then give the feedback to the students to review. This allows the teacher to "conference" on their plan period and students can review their feedback individually and then use class time to ask questions and get further help from the teacher who is now available. https://chrome.google.com/.../ajphlblkfpppdpkgokiejbjfohf... SmallPDF SmallPDF is a website and extension that really just allows you to do anything and everything you could possibly need to with PDFs. From combining multiple PDFs into one document, to splitting up PDF documents into individual pages to post so that students aren't getting everything at once, even converting your PDF documents into different file types. I have used SmallPDF for years and truly believe that if your district doesn't pay for Adobe Acrobat Pro, it is well worth using. I even had a premium membership for quite some time to get around the 2 documents per day limit. https://chrome.google.com/.../ohfgljdgelakfkefopgklcohade... AdBlock If you are tired of having ads play when you're trying to show a YouTube video, then I highly suggest AdBlock. There are some websites that will make you turn your AdBlocker off to see everything (especially newspaper-type websites), but the idea of an ad for bras popping up while I'm sharing my screen with students was enough to make me install this extension. (I actually have 3 different ad blockers installed, and truthfully, I basically never see ads anymore. It is pretty wonderful!) https://chrome.google.com/.../gighmmpiobklfepjocnamgkkbig... Grammarly I'm going to assume most people know what Grammarly is by this point since they advertise to teachers and schools like crazy. Basically, it is a pro-level editor right in your browser to look over your writing and give feedback not only on spelling and grammar, but tone, voice, and can even check for plagiarism! https://chrome.google.com/.../kbfnbcaeplbcioakkpcpgfkobkg... Read & Write for Google Chrome This is an extension I recommend having your district install on student chromebook accounts. It allows students to have basically anything read out loud to them. It allows them to highlight and annotate any page on the internet. It really is a wonderful extension that is worth playing around with. There are premium-level features that require a paid subscription, but the free features are great. https://chrome.google.com/.../inoeonmfapjbbkmdafoankkfajk... WriQ This is another one that I can't suggest playing around with enough. I loved WriQ when I taught writing because it shows students how much of their time is on task for their writing assignment in Google Docs. Teachers get that information and it is easy to know which students are using their writing time wisely and making progress and who might need extra pushes. WriQ also allows for students to track their progress on graded writing to see if they are improving. This one requires a little bit of playing around with between getting it installed on the teacher's end and creating an account and installing it on the student side as well. https://chrome.google.com/.../kfkohpkagbjoncihbogfnjnddim...  This is something I literally learned THIS WEEK! It only works in the Google Classroom App, so make sure you have that installed on your phone because this is a game-changer! In the app, on the "People" page of your classroom, there is a new icon at the top. Click it and voila! you have a set of digital popsicle sticks! You can filter through the students randomly, mark a student as absent right in the popsicle stick set, or even mark them as "Call Later". As a special's teacher, I have 34 classes. There was no way I was making that many sets of popsicle sticks. But now I don't have to! Just open my phone to the correct class and use the digital sticks!
 This might be the biggest thing I've learned: not all organization methods work for every class; you have to find what works for you and your students. That means, that you may work hard to set up daily topics, only to find out that the students really need things divided out by subject. Maybe you set up individual classrooms for each subject, and now you realize that students would be better off with just one classroom but with topics or color-coded emojis that separate the subjects. I've been there. It can seem overwhelming, but your students will appreciate that you adjusted based on their needs. I will also add this scary little tidbit: I used to create an entirely new Google Classroom each quarter. Yes, this is a lot of work, but it means I can Archive the previous Quarter's class and students will no longer see the assignments popping up under "Missing". Since the quarter is over and the grades have been submitted, I don't want students to misunderstand what they can and can't do to improve their grades, and this was one of my best decisions ever.  Here's a bonus extension that will really make you the cool teacher! Add GIPHY to your extensions so that you can easily post GIFs in your Announcements. With the new ability to "Display Image", the students will see the attached image or GIF full size right in their Stream! This is an awesome multimedia way to engage students in conversation or grab their attention! https://chrome.google.com/.../jlleokkdhkflpmgh.../related...  If you are looking for more tips and tutorials about using Google Classroom. My personal recommendation is Shake Up Learning. She has a HUGE collection of resources for teachers and students, and answers just about every question you could ever have. I've learned a ton from her! https://shakeuplearning.com/.../google/google-classroom/
 One thing that I absolutely love about Google Classroom is the fact that it will make a copy of the assignment for each student and they can do their work right on that document to submit to you! If you create the template, that means that you will be able to see the student's work in real-time as they are going. I think it is an awesome feature for teachers to be able to provide templates whether it be a worksheet, a starter document, or even a PDF document that students will annotate in a program like Kami. I have found that if I don't give a template, students have a lot harder time getting started. Basically, I am just giving them the worksheet that I would have printed out and made copies of if I was doing paper copies. If you don't attach a template, it is important to know the difference between Add and Create on the student end of Google Classroom. Under "Your Work" Students will have the option to "Add/Create". If the students choose to "Add", that means that they are essentially attaching something they have already started, or they are uploading something that is saved to their device. "Create" gives the option of a few different types of Google products. This means that the students are creating a new slides, docs, sheets, forms, etc. that will AUTOMATICALLY be shared with you as their teacher. If I am having students do something without a template, I always push them to do the "Create" option because it will automatically put their name in the title of the document/slides/sheets/etc. and I will be able to see their work as they go. If students don't attach a document until they are done with it, you will not be able to progress check their work until they attach it on the Google Classroom assignment.  |
