Google Sites = Online Student Portfolios

Google Sites = Online Portfolio

The newest idea I have my class playing with is digital portfolios.  I'm thinking that using the portfolio as a way for students to showcase their learning will help them take more ownership of their learning (and I'm sure there is research or there proving this, so if you have it, feel free to link it in true comments).  After all, many kids crave attention and what better way to get attention then to say “Hey, come check out what I've done!”.

Let us not forget the skills students will acquire from the process of personalizing this site.  Right now, they are building a portfolio so show their academic successes, but tomorrow they might build their own personal site from the ground up for other reasons: sports, hobbies, family.

Google Sites: The Good

As an adopter of Google Apps for Education (GAFE), what better platform for a portfolio is there than Google Sites?  So, yes, that is what I've used.  Why?  Here are a few reasons:

• I was able to set up a template portfolio and then share it out to students through the Sheets add-on called Sitemaestro.
• I could be the owner of all the sites, which ultimately gives me control of a student site…just in case.
• The ability to control who else has access to view the sites.
• The ability for students to keep their site simple or become advanced users and take their site to a new level.
• Easy integration of Google Drive, which eases the task of adding artifacts as evidence of learning.

Google Sites: The Bad

The minds at Google headquarters have done an amazing job of constantly improving GAFE and making it incredibly user friendly and a breeze to work with.  Unfortunately, as they continually improve everything else, they seem to forget to do the same with sites.  This product just isn't as intuitive as it should be.

Two crucial tools, ‘Add Page’ and ‘Edit Page’ are right there in front of the user, but maybe I want a new page to be a drop down on another page's tab.  Do I go to ‘Edit Site’, Edit Site Layout, Page Settings, or manage site?  Perhaps I just have a mental block when it comes to this, but I tend to need to cycle through them all in random order till I find the correct option.

I will say that I overhear students reminding each other of where to go for options just like the one I mentioned, so don't let this lack of intuitiveness deter you from using sites.  Truth be told,I just might not be smarter than a 4th grader.

Google Apps and Chromebooks for Special Education and Special Needs

The following link has a plethora of resources for using Google to help accommodate students.

Google for Special Education and Special Needs

Neat use of Read & Write for Google

As my students are claiming to be finished editing and revising their writing, I realized that they sure are missing some very clear errors that I can't believe they aren't seeing.  After all, as I read these drafts I am hearing egregious mistakes that have me baffled.  Then it hit me that they aren't "hearing" their errors.  Therefore, today I had my students use Read & Write for Google to help students "hear" their errors.  This little application available in the Chrome Web Store works wonderfully by highlighting some text and hitting the play button.  While the reading voice is a tad robotic, it works well enough to allow students those "What did that just say?!" moments that equate to significant improvements in the writing.

Once you’ve added the extension in the chrome web store, just click on the Read and Write puzzle piece:  

The toolbar will drop down:

Highlight some text in your document, click on the play button,

and the text will be read to you.

Yes, the Chromebook can do most of what the iPad can do

As an educator piloting Chromebooks in a school district previously dominated by Apple products, I keep hearing over and over again how the Chromebook can’t do this, that, AND the next thing that are all possible on the iPad.  While there absolutely are iPad apps that are not available for the Chromebook, in most cases, there are alternative applications available in the Chrome Web Store.  No, they may not work the same way or produce the same exact product, but if they can transform learning for students, then does it matter if it is a different app????

Fortunately, I’m here to share ideas for making the most of your Chromebook(s) and I’m going to focus this post on the greatest Chromebook myths of all...“Students can’t create with Chromebooks.”  Hmmm...ok, time for

• Video editing - Do you like iMovie?  If so, let me introduce you to
• Not only can you perform simple edits of recorded video, but you can enhance videos with advanced features like green screen, voiceover, and music.
• Screencasting - Record what is happening on your device’s screen, which is perfect for how-to videos.
• Collaboration - Guess what, it gets even better!  Since Wevideo is a cloud based service, it allows multiple users to collaborate and work on the same video project from different locations.  Yes...you and your friend can work together while you each sit on your own couch at home.
• Explain Everything - How about using .  Say whaaaat???  Yeah, that’s right, it is available in the Chrome Web Store.
• QR Codes - How about (Pssst...the little square is for QR Code Generator, which is available in the Chrome Web Store)  Create or scan QR codes.
• Tellagami - Ok, so I don’t have a great substitution for this one that performs the same way (Hey, Tellagami Labs, are you listening here?!).  However, will allow your students a simple way to create fun, animated presentations.
• Creative Book Builder - The best alternative is , which is a free service to use.  However, pictures will NOT transfer to the ebook.

What other creative apps or ideas are you using with Chromebooks?  Feel free to post a response and share.

Get the most out of your Google Drive!

If you and your students have access to the Google ecosystem and you aren't using Google Drive consistently, you need to start NOW!  The basic features in Google Drive can and will take your classroom's efficiency and collaboration to a new level.  If you are ready to go beyond the basics, check out this article for some additional features to take advantage of.

5 cool Google Drive features you probably aren't using...yet

Online Math Practice with Simple Differentiation

When thinking about online math activities for students to take advantage of, one of the obvious choices is Khan Academy.  After all, it includes excellent short videos for teaching necessary math concepts.  

While online math practice can be considered a substitution activity, as you are substituting a worksheet for an device screen, I believe it has value in a student’s learning due to its ease of use and differentiation for students .  There are two particular online math tools that I’ve found to be especially useful in promoting with students and their families.  They are Xtramath and Front Row Math.

It is amazing how something so simple can be devastatingly troublesome for young math learners.  However, I see this all too often in math education with basic math facts, which has brought me to the realization that mastery is a necessity for consistent success in math education.  Enter Xtramath.

Xtramath is truly a substitution activity, where students are practicing their basic math facts in short and simple sessions.  This web application has no glitz and no glamour, which is perfectly fitting for a skill that has no glitz and no glamour.  Xtramath simply provides that quick and easy platform that is necessary for practicing math facts without adding unnecessary and unrewarding work for the student or the teacher.  

Once a teacher has loaded their class into xtramath.org and provided students with their unique pin numbers, students can begin.  There is an initial diagnostic test to determine which facts the student needs practice with before setting him/her free to practice routinely.  These practices only require 3 or 4 minutes a day and students see their progress with a simple color coded chart indicating student progress with each fact.

There are reporting options for teachers and parents as well, so everyone involved can easily stay current with progress.  Teachers can easily differentiate by changing the operation and/or the amount of time given for each fact in a session, in order to provide each student with the most meaningful basic fact learning experience.

Basic math fact mastery is an important skill to gain, but let’s be honest, it is a skill that can only take a student so far and won’t be continuously pushing a student’s math knowledge and abilities.  However, if you are looking for an online application that might push your student’s math abilities, I suggest Front Row Math.

Front Row Math provides a platform for adaptive math practice, meaning that the math a student practices will become more challenging or more simple depending on the student’s results.  After taking an initial diagnostic test for an area of math, which determines the student starting point, students can practice independently at their appropriate level.  Therefore, the differentiation is automatically built in!

A teacher simply needs to sign up, enter their class roster, then share student sign-in and class code with each student.  As students practice on Front Row, teachers have access to reports that identify standards that students are strong or weak in.

Added benefits are a whiteboard for showing work, videos to assist students with understanding concepts when stuck on a problem, and an electronic currency that accumulates for the student as they improve (not real money, just a fake currency that can be used to outfit a character on Front Row).

Online Assessment Applications That Teachers Should Be Using

Assessments are most ideal when they can provide quick results that allow a teacher to then do something productive with the data.  Two free web applications that I feel do an excellent job of achieving this goal are www.socrative.com and www.goformative.com.  Keep in mind that there are some differences between the two that may cause one to be more effective depending on the task at hand.

Socrative is almost the definition of immediate assessment results.  Once you provide students with a class code, you need to decide if you want it to be True/False, Multiple Choice, or Short Answer.  Next, you can pose a question to students verbally or in written form and they can enter their response using their device.   As soon as students submit their response, it will populate on the teacher’s device.

You can also create quizzes, find and share quizzes in the Socrative Shared Quiz List, or have students compete on quizzes with the Space Race option.

Goformative is the next assessment tool that teachers should be taking advantage of.  While this web application has features similar to other online assessment tools, there are two distinct features that set Goformative apart.  

The “Upload/Transform” feature allows you to upload a document, such as a PDF or Word document, and then customize it with interactive content.  The interactive content can be images, text, youtube videos, and more!  I particularly like that you can add interactive answer choices.  For example, if you have a multiple choice question, you can add a button next to the question.  

When students click on the button, the answer letters appear for them to choose.  If you mark the correct answers when setting up the questions, then Goformative will do the grading for you.  Plus, with live results, you can see the answers and scores populate as students are working on the assignment.

The second feature I am going to mention is Whiteboard Content.  This allows your students to create a drawing or insert an image to complete a task.  Again, with the Live Results ability, you can see all of your students’ entries as they are submitted.

The video tutorials for this website are fantastic, so check www.goformative.com out for more detail!