Objective:

 --The objective of this project is to create a digital classroom, thus creating ubiquitous learning feasible within a K-12 physical classroom. We believe most districts are turning towards applications, such as Google Classroom, in order to aid teachers in the task of blended learning (bridging the physical classroom with the digital one).

 Please complete the following:

• Make sure you are signed into your google account. (In the past, you had to have a school Gmail account in order to have rights to a Google Classroom; Google recently opened it up to anyone with a Gmail account.)
• Near the upper right-hand corner of your screen, you will see a 3 x 3 grid, click that button, select "Docs", and "blank". 
• Change the title of the Doc (upper left-hand side of the screen) from "Untitled Document" to "GC Notes".
• On this screen, please answer these questions:

What are you most looking forward to learning during this module? What are you hoping to gain?

 While watching the video below, add to your notes:

Think about the items you brought in today, that you were planning on adding to your Google Classroom. Do you know which ones you'd automatically see benefits from with using Google Classroom instead of traditional turn in methods? WRite down your thoughts on the same Google Doc; then share, with a colleague, one positive outcome you can foresee with adding Google Classroom to your physical one.

Ready to set one up of your own?

Follow along with the video below. Pause and rewind as often as you need. 

Hacks on how to Display your Class Code:

Drive--A storage cloud of all your work (from docs, forms, quizzes, slides, etc.) which synchronizes across all devices. (Genius!)
Docs--Similar to "Word Documents"
Forms-- These are really "quizzes". You can ask multiple choice, true/false, fill in the blank, etc. Forms will also create a Google Spreadsheet with all participates answers! (You can grade any form with ease. More information on this in Section 5 of the module.)
Sheets--self-explanatory
Slides-- Similar to PowerPoint

For an exhaustive list of all things "Google", please head to this link.

Quick Tips:

• Google Classroom (GC) and Google Drive work seamlessly together.
• All Google products are designed to be embedded within GC.
• As you work on ANY Google Doc, Form, Slide, etc. your work automatically saves. (No more panicking when you have to call a sub last minute and you have no way of getting him/her your sub plans. No more "save buttons" (for YOU or your STUDENTS). Auto-saving is a wonderful tool.)
• GC is similar to your Facebook stream, in regard that everything you post on GC will continuously grow in length. (Remember, everything saves.) However; there is a way to organize your thoughts on GC called "Topics". We will discuss how to organize your GC material in Section 4 "Organization" of this module.

Update:

1.  Please share your classroom code with a colleague, AND James and Amy (our emails are provided below).
2.  On the same Google Doc from today's notes, add two "things" you learned from today's lesson. 

Congratulations! You have a Google Classroom. Now what?

Google Classroom offers four different types of postings to students:

1. Announcement

2. Assignment

3. Question

4. Re-post

For this module, we will focus on the first two, because those are the most commonly used features for beginners to Google Classroom.

How to: Create an Announcement

• The purpose of the ANNOUNCEMENT is to give information to the whole class that isn't for a grade. (That would be "assignment", which we will address in Section 3.)
• I use ANNOUNCEMENTS mostly for my daily agendas.

As stated in the video, announcements can go live the moment you hit "assign", or you can "save draft" which will allow you to post whenever you wish. 

--You can assign the same post for multiple classes, as shown in the video. OR You can assign a post for a single class. If you choose to assign the post for ONE class, you can set the post to go live on a certain day and time. If you choose to assign the post for MULTIPLE classes, this feature (of an automated day and time release of the post) will go away.

Update: 

1. Add an ANNOUNCEMENT to your Google Classroom. (This is your first posting! Hooray!!) Add multiple classes to the post. Hit "assign" to make it go live.
2. Add an ANNOUNCEMENT in which you set a specific day and time for it to be posted.

How to: Create an Assignment

--The reasons you would want to add assignments to your Google Classroom becomes apparent quickly.

1. Google grades most items for you!
2. GC also organizes your assignments, so everything is kept in ONE electronic location. (No more "that must have gotten lost, Mrs. Allen".)
3. Everything is time stamped. (No more "I turned that in, Mrs. Allen".)

The video below showcases not only the "how to create an assignment" in Google Classroom; it also does an excellent job walking viewers through how to grade, adjust "rights" to the work, and how assigning Google Docs syncs to student accounts. Feel free to pause and go back as often as needed. (You will receive further training on this during Section 5 of the module.)

Please get out your "GC Notes" (Google Docs) and write down one feature you will use from the video.

 Update: Looking at your notes from this section, choose one assignment from your coursework/curriculum. The assignment will be posted to your GC and must include:

1. A Google document
2. Hyperlink to a web address
3. YouTube video

It's time to organize!

If you’re like me, then you don’t like seeing just a long stream of consciousness all uploaded on your Google Classroom. I much prefer color-coded folders, assignments clearly labeled, easy functions, and definitely no clutter.

With Google Classroom’s latest update, it offers users a way to gently organize material. Although it’s not as specific as I would enjoy, it does make your page more aesthetically pleasing than the daunting, never-ending stream of consciousness.

TOPICS!!

You will find “topics” on the left-hand side of your GC. You can create as many as you wish, and they serve as “tags” in your original posting.

For example:

--Each time you post material to your GC, you can assign a topic to it. For my agenda (that I write in as “ANNOUNCEMENTS”), I add the topic “Agenda”. Then on the left-hand side of my GC I can see “Agendas”. When I have a student who is absent or what’s to find my agendas quickly, he/she can click on “Agendas” and GC will only display the posts that were tagged with “Agendas”.

Check out the video below in order to get a visual of what I described above:

Update: Think about what "topics" would be useful for you in your classroom.

1. Create TWO "topics" you will utilize within Google Classroom. Examples: agenda, homework, quizzes, announcements, etc.
2. Locate your homework assignment from the previous section in Google Classroom. Edit (click on the three dots in the upper right-hand corner of the post) that post by adding a "topic".

Here's what you've covered so far in the the modules:

• Creating a Classroom
• Announcements
• Assignments
• Organizing your Classroom

Google Classroom allows for the teacher to also grade within classroom through assignments, along with assignments here is a list of other addons, extensions, and G-Suite products that can be used within classroom to grade.

Grading in Google Classroom

•  Google Classroom has a built in grading feature for assignments sent out to students.
• Here's a brief "how to" grade assignments that have been turned in by students.

1. Go to Google Classroom.
2. Click the class and then click the assignment.
3. Click the thumbnail to open and review any file that the student attached.
4. The default point value is set to 100. You can change it by clicking on it, and entering a different value or even select ungraded.
5. Next to the student's name, click Add grade and enter the grade.
6. You can also add a private comment, click the student's name and Add private comment and then click Post.
7. Grades are automatically saved. Students won't get their grades until you return their assignment and any private comments you made won't be delivered unless you return the assignment during the grading.

Check out this video tutorial on how to grade in Google Classroom.

Google Forms (Quizzes)

• Google forms can be inserted into a classroom in Google Classroom by either creating an assignment, question, or annoucment.
• Here's a brief "how to" on creating a quiz using Google Forms.

1. Go to your Google Drive.
2. Go to "New" then "more".
3. Click on either "blank" or "template".
4. You have a variety of types of questions you can make from:

• short answer
• paragraph
• mutliple choice
• checkboxes
• dropdown
• linear scale
• multiple choice grid
• and checkbox grid.

1. Select the type of question, fill in the question, then the answers, pick your correct answer, and assign it points.
2. Once finished you can click the "send" button to send to your class.
3. The quiz is self grading, as the students click submit once they're finished it grades the quiz automatically for them.

Check out this video tutorial on how to self-grade in a Google Form.

Update: Now it's your turn, you've seen two ways to grade in Google Classroom. Pick an assessment you'd have your students take and either turn it into a Google Form Quiz or create an Assignment that you'd like your students to complete and turn in.

• Google Form Quizzes should be auto-graded, but look at the graphics afterwards to assess where reteaching could be utilized. Example: The majority of the students scored low on a specific question.
• Assignment should be graded after student clicks "turn in", go in and grade students finished work.
• Provide feedback to the instructor on the ease of use grading in this method as compared to former methods.

Here's a short article on "10 Ways to Save Time Grading With Google" written by Lynn Erickson, please check it out for some helpful hints.

Here's what you've covered so far in the the modules:

• Creating a Classroom
• Announcements
• Assignments
• Organizing your Classroom
• Grading

This last section will give you the practice you need in providing feedback to students, this can be done in as a few as three different formats or ways.

• Providing feedback to a student while they're working on an assignment most often in the form of a Google Document, but not limited to that.
• Feedback can be done one of two ways in a Google Document either by: 
• Commenting in a document, and the shortcut needed for it.

1. Media embedded October 2, 2017

• Suggesting in a document, so the owner can see directly what you would suggested and choose to apply it or not to their work.
• Media embedded October 2, 2017

• Another quick way to provide feedback to a student after they've taken a Google Form Quiz is to either create a Google Document and provide feedback in there or second them a message e-mail them directly through Google Classroom.

• Lastly, another way to provide feedback is direct replies to students comments/posts in Google Classroom, which will show underneath their original posts as they know the conversation is directed at them.

• Along with that is a private message that can be sent to the teacher when the assignment work is opened, rather than in the general classroom for all to see.

• Media embedded October 2, 2017

Update: Pick one of the three ways listed to provide feedback/comments to a student listed above and give feedback to that students. Please take a screenshot of this interaction or include a link to the work you've provided feedback on to showcase your understanding of this feature. 

Here's the sections you've covered this far in the module:

• Creating your classroom
• Announcements
• Assignments
• Organization
• Grading
• Feedback

This next section are some quick links to challenge you, in this section see if you can:

• Add additional teachers to your classroom and along with that, what to do if you leave a school district - to be able to collaborate or give ownership away.
• Post an assignment for a "later date" - to be created now but given later.
• Reorder your Google Classrooms - for better viewability of multiple classes.
• View a single student's work - to see all their completed/incomplete work.
• Archive a class - helps prevent student tampering.
• Use Google Calendar to see assignment due dates - for organization for you and the students.
• Display the Class Code for easy viewability for all students - rather than copying and pasting it into a document.

Create a Google Document and copy and paste the challenges into it, after you complete each challange, type a short response as to how you would go through it step by step.

• If you get stuck on any of the challenges, click the first hyperlinked word for it and read through the document and/or video that explains how to accomplish it.

Update: Explain the importance of what each of these challenges purpopse is and include in your Google Document, add your Google Document in your classroom in the "About" section for you and your students to easily access.

Now it's time to ensure you've tackled all things Google within this module. We've created this user-friendly checklist to double check your work.

Rubric Part 1

Rubric Part 2

Please click the following link, which will link you to a Google Doc.

When you see the Google Doc, please "Make a copy" of the doc by clicking File => Make a Copy, make sure your copy has your name at the end of it.

Once you've filled out your Google Classroom checklist, please submit it to either James or Amy by clicking the blue share button and typing in our e-mail address. (They can be copy and pasted from the rubric itself.)