Google 2019 Year in Review

What were all the new additions to Google in 2019

Created by Scott Aten, December 20, 2019

With the end of 2019 at hand, I thought it would be a good idea to show all the new features that have been introduced in G Suite during this year. I have listed them by product.

Google Facts

• Chromebooks are the #1 selling device in the US K-12 schools
• 90 million students and teachers use G Suite for Education
• 30 million students worldwide use Chromebooks
• 40 million students and teachers use Google Classroom

Google Forms

• June - question import in Google forms (see image to the right)
• August - locked mode for quizzes finally arrives
• October - fresh new look to Google Forms

Google Slides

• April - Add audio files from Drive into Google Slides (they had a little trouble with this and I don't think it made the April deadline, but is there now)
• October - new accessibility options for closed captions

Google Docs

• April - comparison in Docs allows you to compare two Google Docs and review the differences as suggested edits.
• May - grammar suggestions added (underlined in blue)
• July - new grammar tools in Docs to help students with spelling and grammar
• September - you can now see the word count while you type
• September - new fonts introduced to improve reading speed (see Lexend)

Google Classroom

• February - move posts to the top added in Classroom's Stream
• April - topic filters on the Classwork page is added
• April - new items will post to the top of the Classwork page
• April - thumbnails for the way that attachments appear in assignments
• June - rubrics added in Google Classroom
• June - grades section added to get a holistic view of students grades over time
• June - ability to sync grades to ProgressBook (Biggest new add of the year!!)
• June - rubrics now embedded in the student view of Classroom
• June - teacher can now archive a Google Classroom on iOS devices
• August - originality reports introduced to reduce plagiarism
• September - classroom celebrated its fifth birthday
• September - rubrics on mobile devices (beta)

Google Drive

• April - you can now edit Office files from Docs, Slides, and sheets without converting file types.
• April - you can now edit the metadata in Drive to better organize and search by tagging files

Google Sheets

• April - connected sheets will let you collaborate on up to 10 billion rows of BigQuery data - FINALLY :-)

Gmail

• April - added the ability to schedule send email

Hangouts Chat an Meet

• April - classic Hangouts in Gmail is replaced with new Hangout Chat
• April - live captions now available in Hangouts Meet

I am sure we can expect more great features to come in 2020!

[Green Google Training Center]

[Click here to go to the YouTube Channel]

For more helpful information and the archive of previous posts, look for items in the menu to the left.

Green Local Schools

Tech Integration Team

Add Background Music to Slides

Finally Sound in Slides

Play music in the background of Google Slides

Created by Scott Aten, March 12, 2019

Getting music to play in the background of Google Slides has been something that has been difficult to do like we used to be able to do in PowerPoint. In the past I have recommended teachers and students use the "Audio Player for Slides" add-on. This add-on was a little clunky and did not really do what we wanted it to do, but was the best option. Recently Pam Mattiazzo discovered that the add-on was no longer being supported, BUT they had an extension that did replace it. I have taken a look at this extension and found it to be exactly what we have been wanting for Slides.

• You can play sound files (mp3) on one or more slides
• You can play sound files (mp3) as background music

The MP3 file needs to be already saved in your Google Drive, but other than that the extension runs really well.

Here is a video of me

Here is a [short video] demonstrating it in action.

If you would like to schedule a time for me to come and help you setup this extension or assist your class in getting started, please use my scheduler to pick a time.

[Schedule me to come and help]

For more helpful information and the archive of previous posts, look for items in the menu to the left.

Green Local Schools

Tech Integration Team

Roster to Slides

Quick way to provide a slide for each student in your class in the same Google Slides presentation.   Collaboration made easy!  

This is a great resource created by Alice Keeler!  This add-on will create a slide for each of your students allowing your class to work collaboratively on a single Google Slides document.  Simply follow the steps below and you will have a Slides presentation ready for your class to build  together on any topic you choose.

Roster to Slides

1. Make a copy of this Google Sheet - Click here to make a copy
2. From the add-on menu choose “Roster to Slides” - give them  a second to load
3. Choose setup
4. Authorize the script by clicking continue
5. Choose your Google account and click “Allow”
6. Paste or type your class roster into column A in the Sheets document
7. From the add-on men choose “Roster to Slides” and choose “create slides”
8. Script will run and create a Google Slides presentation in your Google Drive
9. Go to your Google Drive and open the new Google Sheet called “Roster to Slides”.  
10. You can rename this file by right clicking and choose rename if you would like.

This Google Slides document now has a slide with the student’s name followed by a blank slide for them to work on.  You can make the Google Slides available to your students through Google Classroom.  Simply make a new assignment and use this document, but be sure to NOT give each student a copy.  This will allow them to all work on the same presentation and add content to the slide you made for them. This is a great way to make a collaborative class assignment where each student is able to add their own specific piece to the overall project.

Pear Deck in Google Slides

A great way to increase student engagement in your Slides presentation  

It is a new year and perhaps you are looking for a way to increase student participation and engagement in some of your tired old presentations.  Pear Deck has been around for quite awhile, but just recently has been added as a free add-on to Google Slides.

What can Pear Deck do for me and my class?

• Add interactive content
• Multiple Choice questions within the presentation
• Short answer text directly on your slides
• Number response options
• Drawing with a sketch tool to illustrate their understanding
• Click and drag options to make engaging interaction
• Works on Google Slide presentations you have already made!

Still need to see more?

How do I get the Pear Deck Add-on?
To install the Pear Deck Add-on follow these simple steps.

• Login to your Google Account
• Open up an existing OR blank Google Slides presentation
• From the Add-on menu choose “Get add-ons…”
• Search for “Pear Deck”
• Click the “+Free”

Using the Pear Deck Add-on
Once you have added Pear Deck, you can begin using it by going to the Add-on menu and selecting “Open Pear Deck Sidebar”.  This will launch the sidebar with several templates for you to start using right away.  Just add the slides you want to use directly into one of your existing Slides presentations.  

Using the presentation with your students
When you are ready to start using the presentation with your students simply open your presentation, go to the add-on menu and choose Pear Deck and “Present with Pear Deck”.  The screen will display directions for your students to join and follow along with your presentation.

Be watching for an after school session on this Add-on and other Slides Add-ons coming in February!