Noel Erskine, Technology Coordinator Norris Schools

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💥 Tech tools - Windows 10 is here, new Google Classroom rubrics, GoGuardian new featuires, SeeSaw, New Google tips and more in this weeks tech email!

Tuesday, July 30, 2019


Google Classroom now has rubrics- and we are a part of the Beta.

We recently joined the Google Classroom Rubrics beta. This is a unique opportunity for you to pilot a new unreleased feature in this product and help shape the development of rubrics in Classroom. Please review the beta details below:

Rubrics in Google Classroom
Through this beta, you will have the ability to create, view, and grade rubrics for individual assignments. Students will also start to see a new version of their assignment details page for your classes. This new version was designed to incorporate rubrics and make the page more useful overall. 

Getting Started and FAQs to help you use rubrics:

Feedback
Your feedback is very important to Google. Remember you can send them feedback directly via the “Send feedback” button in Classroom. When submitting feedback, remember to include a screenshot and start the report with “Rubrics Pilot”. 

I look forward to hearing how this beta works for you and your students.

Misc Tech Tools:   

Enter a YouTube URL into gnotes.io  Play the video and press M. Enter the number of seconds of transcript you want, and Gnotes generates a Google doc with a screenshot and the transcript snippet. Check out the short how-to video here. 

PDFescape is a free online PDF editor! - Check out this short 4-minute tutorial to get started. Jason is doing a session on Flipgrid at the tech boot camp! Check it out! 

Flipgrid makes it easy to create video QR codes. 

Thanks to Tony Vincent @tonyvincent for the graphic and great tip! 

If you're using Google Drawings for learning activities, these tips might come in handy...

Thanks to Tony Vincent @tonyvincent for the graphic and great tip!  

Three Good Ways to Create Virtual Tours - Check them out here

   Have you heard? Seesaw is better than ever on Chromebooks! 

Rebuilt Tools, Optimized for Chromebooks
New full-screen canvas, rebuilt video recording, touchscreen compatibility, keyboard shortcuts, and more.

Seesaw & Google Classroom are a Perfect Pair
Students add work from Google Drive to their Seesaw portfolio to take learning further. Free teachers import Google Classroom rosters to set up Seesaw classes.



Miscellaneous Google Tech Tools:   
New Google form update - Import questions from previously existing forms into a new Google form.  This is a great new feature set!  Especially for those of us doing quizzes with Google Forms.  In the past, you had to use an add on called Forms Recycler to accomplish this task. 

Great Google Sheet add-on for Google Classroom!  -  rosterSync - Teacher Edition   This allows teachers to sync a Google Classroom course roster -- including student email addresses -- directly with Google Sheets. Easily get a list of email addresses of your students, parents, etc... (Very handy to get info into a spreadsheet for other uses too.)  (I have added this one to our growing list of Google Classroom -Tips and Tricks document.) 

Google Keep Notes: 10 tips and tricks to become a master -   Google Keep Notes might be the most underrated of Google’s services. It’s more than just a place to jot down your thoughts—it’s also the missing link to bring Docs, Calendar, Photos, and the rest of Google’s services together. Check out the tips here! 

Great Chrome Extension - Reader View:  Distraction-Free Reading Mode made easy!  We have added this to our approved Chrome apps and extensions for students list. (There are a couple of others in this same category that are pretty good for student too. -Announcify and Mercury Reader are worth looking at too.

How to Back up Your Google Photos Library Now That Google Drive Auto-sync Has Shut Down Some tips in this article.  (Personally, I just use the Google Photos App and the Shutterfly app on my phone to back up my pictures to two locations.) 

10 Can't-Miss Gmail Tips and Tricks That Will Change the Way You Email -  Some great tips in this article. 

Misc Tech Tips:  




Quick 1 Minute video for your students on how to organize their Google Drive. 

Updates to GoGuardian Teacher Interface Coming Soon
Get a sneak peek here!   It's coming this week! (Week of July 22nd. 2019) 
Here are some of the improvements
  • Ability to run commands directly from a student’s tile in screens view and from enlarged student screens
  • Better visibility of commands (ex: Snapshot button is static, no hovering required)
  • All live classrooms will appear in the main navigation
  • Ability to scroll through timeline view with computer trackpad


As always - avoid the reply all to emails when it's not necessary. ðŸ˜€





Specific to Norris Staff: 
Hey - my desktop computer is now Windows 10. Where's my stuff? Where is my printer?
As noted this spring. Windows 7 is gone and we now have WIndows 10.  Hopefully, you saved your Z drive files (and your desktop is a part of the Z drive.) as noted in our tech emails and warnings sent this spring. Remember any programs installed and local data were lost as well.
Here is a quick overview of signing into Windows 10. It also includes links to setting up printers if you use something other than the follow-me print queues.  If you have a computer program that needs installed you will need to submit a helpdesk request. 

Wow - Are you coming to the tech Bootcamp on August 6&7?  Jason has lined up some great sessions!  Thanks to many of you!  We have an amazing staff that is always willing to share- Thanks!  Watch for more info coming to your inbox. 

KnowBe4 training - Did you complete it, but it says you did not? -If so, let us know. We had several users that completed the training and are getting reminder emails they need to still do it. If that is the case, let us know.  Jason has an open ticket with them looking into several accounts that seem to have this issue. (Drop Jason an email.- jason.gault@nsdtitans.org) -Sorry for the problems!

Hope everyone has had a great summer and enjoys the remaining days!

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