If you have students in your classroom and are looking to improve your teaching, Google Classroom should be at the top of your list. As both a free and easy-to-use tool, Google Classroom makes it simple for teachers to organize coursework, communicate with students, give assignments, and evaluate student performance in the classroom. Some educators even use the tool as their main means of communication with parents and other teachers who are part of their child’s educational team. Google Classroom: The Secret Classroom Management Tool You Need to Know
What is Google Classroom
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Google Classroom is Google’s newest project which helps teachers and students collaborate in a digital space. This tool allows educators the ability to create a course, upload materials, assign work and receive feedback through the use of various educational apps such as Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and Forms. Not only can this tool help streamline the classroom management process but it also provides students with the ability to complete schoolwork outside of class time. Teachers are able to make their courses available on any device including smartphones or laptops.
Setting Up your Classroom
Setting up your Google Classroom is a breeze, and it has many benefits for both you and your students. Whether you are a teacher or a student, these five steps will have you set up in no time!
1. Log in to the Google account of your choice, then create a new folder under My Drive. Name this folder whatever you like. We recommend naming it after the subject that will be contained inside of it. For example, if this folder is going to hold math assignments, name it Math Assignments. 2. Click on the newly created folder and select all of its contents by pressing Ctrl+A on Windows or Cmd+A on Macs (or Command+A if using an older version of Mac OS). 3. After selecting everything, click on Edit>Copy. 4. Open a new tab and log into your Google Classroom with the same account as before. 5. After opening Google Classroom, open any existing class or make a new one by clicking New Class
Starting a New Course
Google Classroom is a free tool for teachers, administrators and students. It allows the user to create classes and upload materials that are then accessible by their students. If a class has been created, and a student joins the class, they will have access to all of the materials uploaded by the teacher. This makes it very easy for teachers as they no longer need to upload each individual document individually and can instead upload them all at once with just one click.
Organizing your Material
One of the most time-consuming parts of teaching is grading papers. It’s easy for teachers to feel overwhelmed, and when you’re feeling overwhelmed, it’s difficult to keep up with all that needs your attention. There’s no need to panic, though! There are a few tricks we’ve learned over the years that can help make grading paper so much easier. Here are some ways we’ve found that work for us – one might be just what you need!
1) Make sure students know what they should be doing – before they do it
2) Don’t grade while students are writing – give them a chance
3) Use Google Docs
4) Keep a running list on your desk of which assignments you need grades on and which ones you already graded
Collaboration in the Classroom – Share your work and Ask for Feedback
Collaboration is an important part of the classroom. It encourages students to communicate, cooperate and work with one another. It also helps students develop a sense of responsibility for their work and fosters respect for other opinions. To encourage collaboration, teachers can use Google Classroom’s Share feature which allows students to share their screens so that they can collaborate in real-time on projects, presentations or discussions. Teachers can also use the Ask for Feedback feature which allows students to ask questions about their work and receive feedback from the teacher and peers in real time.
Integrating Other Tools
Google Classroom is a free, easy-to-use classroom management tool that allows you to create classes, collect and grade assignments, and interact with students. All the work for your classes—assignments, grades, and student interactions—happens in one place.
In addition to managing your classes on Google Docs, there are other tools you can use with Google Classroom:
► Google Forms: Create quizzes or surveys using this interactive tool.
► Auto Drawings: This drawing app can be used in the classroom as a replacement for whiteboards or overhead projectors.
► Auto Translate: Easily translate text into more than 50 languages by just highlighting it.
Other Tips on How to Use Google Classroom
-Create a free account with Google.
-If you are creating a course for the first time, you will be asked to give it a name and provide details about your course.
-To add students, click the add students button in the top right corner of the screen and type in their email addresses separated by commas.
-In the classroom menu on the left hand side of your screen, there is an option called About this Course. When you click on that button, it will show you all of the information that was provided at the beginning.