google communities in the classrOom
Google Communities is a great tool to use educationally. Communities can be created about anything, and numerous already exist full of useful resources. I like that is a separate platform from Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, which are often used for sharing personal photos and information. It is good for both teachers and students to be able to connect over social media without seeing personal details that shouldn't be shared. Google Communities can be made public or private, which is good when working with students, or asking them to post. The biggest reason I think communities are useful in the classroom is for collaboration. Students can simultaneously work on a Google document or slide presentation from their mobile device anywhere. Finally, Google Communities can be used as a question and answer forum for a certain class. A student could ask a question, and either the teacher or a classmate can answer it quickly.
I recently joined Google Communities myself and found educators to follow as well as groups specifically for integrating technology into the classroom. It is easy to connect with thousands of others in the education world and share tips and new ideas.
I recently joined Google Communities myself and found educators to follow as well as groups specifically for integrating technology into the classroom. It is easy to connect with thousands of others in the education world and share tips and new ideas.
I am a member of a Google community called Teachers Helping Teachers. I have learned a lot, and found great resources in the Technology Discussion. I have become an expert on Google Slides from this Community. There was a great tutorial from David Lee EdTech on everything you can do in Google Slides posted here. I learned the basic features of the program, but I also was intrigued to find that you can easily convert a PowerPoint or Keynote presentation into Google Slides. I also learned how to integrate a clip of a YouTube video into a Slides presentation. googleappsaction.com/?p=484
Another Community I joined was Mathematics Education (K-12). Specifically in the Technology Discussion, I found ways of integrating technology into teaching math, which I find difficult sometimes. I found three great math technology applications. First, GraphLock is a easy to use application that turns any device into a graphing calculator. It is useful when a student doesn't have a graphing calculator, even for exams because it can lockdown the device to only function as a calculator. Second, Equatio is a Chrome extension tool that allows math symbols and equations to be placed into Google Docs and Slides without strange formatting. Finally, Mathcha is an online mathematics editor that could be used to teach a lesson or for students as they work on homework.
play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ionicframework.graphlock548865&hl=en
www.controlaltachieve.com/2017/03/equatio.html
www.mathcha.io/
play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ionicframework.graphlock548865&hl=en
www.controlaltachieve.com/2017/03/equatio.html
www.mathcha.io/