Latest Google Classroom Classwork Changes

Classroom Classwork Changes

Latest changes to Google Classroom Classwork Area

Created by Scott Aten, April 23, 2019

Google Classroom seems to be the Google tool that has been getting the most changes lately. These latest changes are involved with the "Classwork" area. This article will highlight these changes that are now available in your Google Classroom Classwork area:

• Filter topics on Classwork - If you are in the habit of using topics on your Classwork page, your students will now be able to filter by these topics from a list in the left side of the Classwork page. Clicking on any topic will filter the topics and only show posts with that topic. The purpose of this addition is to make it easier for students to find what they are looking for faster.
• Post to the top of Classwork - In the past new posts to the Classwork area go to the bottom of the list. Moving forward new items will automatically be posted at the top of the list.
• New attached material view - Another update is a new attached material view. The change will include more space for the title, and the ability to see the entire title by hovering over it. A thumbnail preview for the attachment will also be available.

Stay tuned, I anticipate Google to continue to make changes to Google Classroom. If you remember we saw a significant change right before the start of school this year. Once addition I know for a fact will begin to show up soon is the "Grades" area showing up. Here is a preview of what this new addition will look like.

This feature creates a grade book grid similar to what we are used to in ProgressBook. I also have it on good authority that ProgressBook will begin to accept grades directly from Google Classroom beginning next year! A lot of great things coming soon!

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

G Suite Accessibility Features

Make learning accessible to all your students.

Created by Scott Aten, April 2, 2019

Research shows that nearly 14% of students live with some sort of disability. Many of these students and their parents rely on some form of visual or audio accommodation to accompany their learning. In truth many of these accommodations benefit all students. This article will
provide information on some of the built in features of G Suite that can help make learning accessible to all students.

• Closed Captions in Google Slides
• Alternative text (Alt text) on images
• Voice typing, editing and formatting
• Braille
• Screen reader and Magnifier
• Chromebook accessibility features

Learn more about these features and more on the Google Accessibility page. This site provides a complete list of all the accessibility features available in each Google app.

Google has put together this document to help illustrate all the accessibility features including features available on Chromebooks themselves. We are always available to help. Schedule a time with me using the link below.

[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

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

Avoid and report phishing emails

A phishing attack happens when someone tries to trick you into sharing personal information online.

What phishing is

Phishing is usually done through email, ads, or by sites that look similar to sites you already use. For example, someone who is phishing might send you an email that looks like it's from your bank so that you'll give them information about your bank account.

Phishing emails or sites might ask for:

• Usernames and passwords, including password changes
• Social Security numbers
• Bank account numbers
• PINs (Personal Identification Numbers)
• Credit card numbers
• Your mother’s maiden name
• Your birthday

Important: Green Local Schools, Google, or Gmail will never ask you to provide this type of information in an email.

Report phishing emails

When we identify that an email may be phishing or suspicious, we might show a warning or move the email to Spam. If an email wasn't marked correctly, follow the steps below to mark or unmark it as phishing.

Note: When you manually move an email into your Spam folder, Google will receive a copy of the email and may analyze it to help protect our users from spam and abuse.

Report a phishing email - 

1. On a computer, go to Gmail.
2. Open the message.
3. Next to Reply , click More.
4. Click Report phishing.

An email was incorrectly marked as phishing

1. On a computer, go to Gmail.
2. Open the message.
3. Next to Reply , click More.
4. Click Report not phishing.
5. Avoid phishing attacks

Be careful anytime you get an email from a site asking for personal information. If you get this type of email:

1. Don’t click any links or provide personal information until you've confirmed the email is real.
2. If the sender has a Gmail address, report the Gmail abuse to Google.

Note: Green Local Schools won't ever ask you for personal information, like your password, over email.

When you get an email that looks suspicious, here are a few things to check for:

• Check that the email address and the sender name match.
• Check if the email is authenticated.
• Hover over any links before you click on them. If the URL of the link doesn't match the description of the link, it might be leading you to a phishing site.
• Check the message headers to make sure the "from" header isn't showing an incorrect name.

Important: If you think your school Gmail has been taken over, notify the technology department immediately.

Cool Stuff from OETC 2019 Part 3

Cool Stuff from OETC

Students Create Interactive Stories with Story Speaker

Created by Scott Aten, February 22, 2019

One of the big themes for this year's OETC was artificial intelligence. This cool idea fits in that category. "Story Speaker" is an add-on for Google Docs that lets you and your students make interactive, talking stories, with NO CODING required. If you are unfamiliar with add-ons, they are little programs that run from within Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, etc. They increase the capabilities of the app - in this case they allow you to create an interactive story.

Here is a [short video] describing "Story Speaker".

Here are [directions] on how to install the "Story Speaker" add-on

As you can see from the video, students are able to type in story segments that include various "forks" that create different paths where decisions have to be made by the person listening to the story. This opportunity will provide a lot of creative thinking, as well as critical thinking, when students have to plan out the various details and decision points of their story.

The finished story is read aloud through a Google Home Base OR Google Home Mini. The Google Home Mini is MUCH cheaper than the Home Base. I got mine during Black Friday for only $25. The main difference between the two is the Google Home Base has a better "base" sound than the Mini, so for our purposes here at school, that is no big deal.

By the way if you do happen to bring a Google Home into your classroom, there are a lot of other cool things you can do with it and your class.

• Set timers and alarms
• Play trivia games
• Play music
• Answer questions
• Read the news/weather

If you would like to schedule a time for me to come and help you setup one of these 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