Making the Most of Google Keep – from Avra Robinson 

This post first appeared on Free Technology for Teachers. Google Keep is a program that allows users to quickly and easily create, access and organize information such as notes and lists.  Before discovering Keep, I’d been using a different note-making app on my Android phone.  I made lists, checked items off lists, and colored my notes for easy sorting, but I was so accustomed to the world of sharing!  I really wanted a way to share my notes. I wanted a way to share a to-do list with my team teacher and help students create assignment to-do lists. I was thrilled to…

Using Microsoft Word Online – from Jennifer Carey 

This post first appeared on Daily Genius. Special thanks goes out to Jonathan Wylie for his professional contributions. Chromebooks are a popular medium in schools for a variety of reasons: price, easy management, quick startup times, robust builds, and ready deployment of Google Apps for Education. However, if you’re a powerhouse Microsoft Word user (or know someone who refuses to give it up), then know that you can easily create, edit, and collaborate on Word documents using the new Office Online or Office 365, even on a Chromebook! In fact, you can even install the Word Online Chrome app. It’s…

Use Sketch Toy to Create Quick Animated Images – from Beth Holland 

This post first appeared on Free Technology for Teachers. Recently, I stumbled upon Sketch Toy – a web-based drawing tool and Chrome App that allows you to quickly create and share drawings from any browser. What makes Sketch Toy different from other tools is the ability to not only draw, but also automatically convert your drawings into step-by-step animations that can be shared with a link. Additionally, anyone who accesses your drawing can then add on to it and generate a new link to share, allowing students to quickly iterate on each others’ drawings WITHOUT needing an account! Sketch Toy also lets…

Use Google Scholar to Support Research – From Jennifer Carey 

This post first appeared on Free Technology for Teachers. If you have asked your students to engage in research, then undoubtedly they have returned with a fresh list of results from a Google search. It can be a challenge in this era of search engine algorithms to teach students to engage with more traditional research methods and tools. Google Scholar is a great way to introduce them to this work while simultaneously working in a mode that is more familiar to them. Google Scholar is a Google search engine that allows you to look specifically for academic articles, theses, books,…

Five Chrome Apps and Extensions to Make Thinking More Visible – from Tom Daccord & Avra Robinson 

This post, co-authored by Tom Daccord and Avra Robinson, first appeared on Daily Genius. One of the biggest benefits of using technology in the classroom is that it can help us reach all learners. The more we understand how students think, the more effective we can be as educators. Technology creates a wide range of opportunities for students to reveal what they are thinking — from recording and presentation tools to interactive note-taking applications. In working with teachers, one of the strategies we use at EdTechTeacher is to find ways of unveiling a students’ critical thinking process. There are an array…

Office 365 on the Web & on your Chromebook! – From Jennifer Carey 

This post first appeared on Daily Genius. Many thanks to Jonathan Wylie for his professional input. Chromebooks have quickly become an incredibly popular tool in schools. However, this has previously limited users to only Google’s productivity tools. One of the most common complaints that I hear about Google Apps for Education tools (Gmail, Docs, Slides, etc), is that they are not as robust as those you find in the Microsoft Office Suite. Now, with the recent upgrades to Office Online and Office 365, it is possible navigate to the full Office suite using a Chromebook – or any other device!…