So...yesterday my family attended our nephew's wedding and it was absolutely breathtaking! The reception was held at the bride's family farm which was, by far, the most picturesque scene I have ever experienced in Kansas! The tent was set up for dinner and dancing while fields of tall grass, wild flowers and horses set the background. As we waited for the bride and groom to be announced, I decided to take some pictures. I captured a shot of my kids laughing and chatting with each other and it really warmed my heart! You see, since school has started it seems like all I do is taxi the kids here and there, sit in meetings for school, complete homework on the weekends and try to stay on top of the endless laundry! I can't remember the last time I actually sat down and relaxed with my family, until last night! I'm not gonna lie, I got pretty emotional looking back through those pictures when I got home. It reminded me that I need to slow down and enjoy these moments instead of getting bogged down by schedules and to-do lists.
You're scratching your head and asking yourself..... what does this have to do with cool teaching tools in Google Drive, aren't you? Well, let me share with you the key word in today's post... EFFICIENCY! I think when we can work smarter and not harder then we free up time to nurture our families and enjoy a little "me" time! One of the coolest features in Google Drive is the forms tool. Not only is this a great way for teachers to help students in their efforts to collaborate, schools can use it to collect feedback and even a bride could use it when planning her wedding! Here's how it works, you click the forms button, select the theme (which is my favorite part), create the questions, share it with others and Google does the rest! The results are automatically put into a spreadsheet and charts are even created for you to view!
Check out this survey I made in "forms" for my classroom rewards by clicking on this link!
Another awesome tool from Google Drive that I will definitely be using in my classroom is the Google Docs share feature! Students can create a writing document in Google Docs and then share it with their teacher and other students to receive feedback. Sharing the document and giving editing rights, allows students to help each other edit and revise their writing before they publish their final copy. Sometimes it is hard for me to meet with students for the editing part of the writing process and this tool helps with time and efficiency! The video below shows a class who used Google Docs to share their own writing and also created a class writing for their teacher. Each student added to the document and then published a collaborative writing piece. How cool is that?
Each week I am amazed at how much Google has to offer and the amazing tools that can be used to help me and my students to become more efficient. When living life, we have to remember to stop and smell the roses, feed our souls and do the things that fill our cup!
Happy Sharing!
-Sarah
No comments:
Post a Comment