Chromebook Tips

A big thanks to @rkiker for an awesome two days of google training at Google Bootcamp!  Here are some tips that might make your life a little easier as you try to navigate your Chromebook.

• To get the right-click menu, click down on the touchpad once with two fingers.
• The right-click menu will also appear if you click the ALT key and click the touchpad once.
• To scroll up and down on a website use two fingers sliding on the touchpad.
• To scroll between all open tabs move three fingers back and forth on the tabs.

If you use an app or website often you can pin it to your shelf which is the menu bar at the bottom of your screen.  Make sure the URL of the website you want to pin is in your Omnibox (address bar).  Go to the three vertical dots on the right side of the bookmark menu. Go to More Tools then Add to Shelf.  The icon for that site will appear on the shelf of your Chromebook.  

Another way to bookmark a site you use often is to Pin a Tab.  To do this, hover over the tab and right click.  From this menu select Pin Tab.  From now on when you open your Chrome browser on your Chromebook all pinned tabs will appear. 

I hope these tips and tricks help!  Send feedback my way!   

Video Recorder by 123Apps Makes Recording as Easy as 1, 2, 3!

Many teachers have asked me to help them find an easy way to video record a student using the webcam but not the contents of the screen such as what you find on a Screencastify.  The Screencastify extension is a terrific way to record video and show a screen especially if your goal is to give step by step directions or to show what is on your screen to others and explain certain features.  If the purpose is to simply record and edit using the webcam, then I suggest trying Video Recorder by 123APPS.  This app is brought to you by the same group that created the easy to use Audio Recorder App.  In Video Recorder you can make a video straight from your webcam.  It can then be saved to your Google Drive and shared with others.  If you need to edit the video, you can do this within the edit feature of the app.  If you want more advanced edits, you can download it to YouTube and edit within the YouTube Editor.  Within YouTube Editor, you can add words, music, transitions, and can clip and connect multiple videos.  Screencastify, Video Recorder, and YouTube Editor are three terrific tech tools that can enhance presentation and classroom instruction.

Google Cast for an Interactive Classroom

Google Cast for Education is a free Chrome app that allows students and teachers to share their screens wirelessly from anywhere in the classroom. It works seamlessly with Google Classroom! This app allows a student to have the ability to share what is on his or her screen to the teacher's Google Cast app. The teacher's computer is linked to the projector where it can be shown to the entire class to share an idea, present to a large group, or respond to a problem or discussion. If your classroom has linked presentation screens simply slide the Google Cast presentation tab from your desktop to one of your presentation screen so students have the option to show work in small groups as well as the whole class. Click HERE for a step by step guide on how to use Google Cast in your classroom.

Capture, Explain, and Send Screenshots

Of all of the extensions out there, Capture, Explain, and Send Screenshots is one I use multiple times every day.  This extension allows you to grab any portion of a document, website, or screen and then manipulate it with highlights, arrows, or text.  It is great when trying to explain something or to highlight a certain portion of text.

Go to your Chrome Web Store and search Capture, Explain and Send Screenshots.  Then add it to Chrome and accept permissions.

The extension will be on your toolbar when you sign into Chrome.

Google Drawing to Collaborate

Matt Talbot's 5th-grade class did a great interactive activity to get to know each other during the first week of school!  Students went into his Google Classroom and found a direction sheet assigned with a video tutorial on how to use Google Drawing.  After they watched the video they worked in pairs to make a Venn diagram through Google Drawing's share feature to write similarities and differences in each other.  What an awesome way for students to communicate, collaborate, and share ideas while learning how to use new technology!  

Google Drawing is a terrific tool to create posters, diagrams, graphic organizers, and infographics within our GAFE.  The video here will give you a general overview of how to get started with it in your classroom!