💥 Tech items - More tech tips and tools from our Covid lockdown days.

More Zoom changes - meeting passwords are required. 

As noted in my last tech email, Zoom is battling a lot of security and privacy holes.  They are now requiring passwords on all meetings.  (Many of you have already navigated these waters before you receive this email.) I think the HS has all come to a consensus of using the same password on all of their meetings to make it easier for their HS students. 

If you have already scheduled meetings on your calendar you can set the password for them: 

Go to the settings for each meeting; then go to edit the meeting at the bottom; then change the password to what you want,

If you do a quick ad-hoc meeting, Zoom assignes hyour meeting password.  If you add a meeting on the calendar

This article by zoom is helpful.  - Best Practices for Securing Your Virtual Classroom  (I would not require registered users, since we do not require students to have Zoom accounts.) 

Automagical Forms Add On - Take a PDF document or worksheet and automatically turn it into a Google Form or quiz.  - Short 2-minute how-to video here.   More info here.  (You can create 30 questions per week for free. 

Misc. tech tips and resources:

Thanks to Kellen Korinek for sharing this one: 11 Little Tips for Better Video Chat (For Teachers...and Everybody Else), 4 min. video with some nice tips. 

A Random Name and Image Picker - This one is a little different it allows you to upload pictures too. Check it out. 

How to Create Simple Videos on a Chromebook - No Apps or Extensions Needed - Simple video on using your built-in webcam to make these videos. 

Now You Can Use Flipgrid to Make Screencast Videos - I know I mentioned this last week, but wanted to highlight it again.  Here is a nice article on getting started. 

5 Google Classroom Tips for Teachers - Things You Might Have Overlooked or Forgotten -  Some great tips from one of my favorite "tipsters". 

Quizlet Live now has an Individual Mode so that a class can play together when physically apart!  - https://quizlet.com/blog/1297

Now there are 3 FREE Courses! Each less than one hour! Check them out if you have not tried these great resources. 

• Raising handsBook Creator
• Green heartFlipgrid
• Collision symbolAdobe Spark

One for the K-6 kids and families. TIME FOR KIDS DIGITAL LIBRARY FREE FOR THE REST OF THE SCHOOL YEAR

Schedule Individual Online Office Hours Meetings via Google Classroom - Checkout this simple way to make this happen. 

How to have 1-1 conversations with students in an E-Learning environment -GoGuardian to the rescue.  Thanks to Janelle for this tip. (I Know it was sent out to the HS and MS already.)  

This is something I miss from a regular classroom because you could just go over to a student during work time and have a quiet "private" conversation. However, in this new environment, I had a hard time doing that without calling them out in front of peers. The chat feature in zoom allows you to have a "private" conversation, but many students don't have that up or may not see it. Today, though, it dawned on me that I could use the chat feature in GoGuardian, and it would automatically show up on their screen. I knew this was there and have used it, but I don't use it much in the classroom because (a) I am not sitting on my computer, and (b) it is impersonal. However, given this new environment, it is the closest thing I can find to having a "private" conversation with a student. I still prefer in-person visits, but this is still better than nothing. 

Some great tips from Tony Vincent. -  (Thanks Tony for allowing me to use your graphics! )  (Follow him for more great tips!) 

You can use the Line tool in Google Slides to create mind maps and flowcharts.

The background color of your Google Doc doesn't have to be white. There are some good reasons teachers and students might change the background color.

Teleprompt.me is a free online teleprompter. Your text is presented in a large font on your screen. It uses your computer’s microphone to listen to you speak and scrolls as it recognizes the words you’re saying.