4-25-2023 Tuesday Tech Tips

 

🚒📽📚 In today's Tuesday Tech Alerts, read all about avoiding "Reply to all" fiascos by using Bcc, creating GIF's with WeVideo, a classroom virtual author visit, & more!➡️ ➡️➡️

💡 Quick Tip 💡 We’ve all been there: you find the perfect website for your research project on marine biology, but in a sea of sources you accidentally close the tab. If only there was a way to get to back! Well, now there is...

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I say let's not even give them the opportunity

We Bcc You Clicking "Reply to All"

It's happened to all of us: you send an email to multiple recipients, and someone replies to all with "thanks!" Someone else replies to all "Got it!" Then a third someone, painfully unaware of the irony, replies to all with "Everyone please stop replying to all." It's not a good look. But with one little adjustment, this will never happen to an email of yours again.

When sending a group email that you don't want anyone to respond to with reply to all, don't use the "To" field or the "Cc" field for the email addresses. Use "Bcc," or Blind Carbon Copy. Recipients can't reply to all if it's sent with Bcc. If you were emailed these Tuesday Tech Tips from Tech Director Tom Mariano today, look at how the email was sent: it was sent using Bcc. You can't even reply to all if you wanted to!

Another added benefit of Bcc is that your recipients don't see each other's email addresses. If you send an email to your students' parents and don't use Bcc, then they all see each other's email addresses, which some people don't appreciate.

Did you know you can use WeVideo to make GIF's like this?
Contact your ITT to learn more.

To use Bcc, you can click "Bcc" like in the GIF above (click HERE to learn how to create GIF's with WeVideo), or using the Control + Shift + B keyboard shortcut in Gmail also brings up the Bcc field. Let's all work together to make our future "Inappropriate-Reply-to-All"-Free.

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Classroom Virtual Author Opportunity! Meet the Creator of Kid President

In this Flip Live Event on Thursday, May 4 at 10:00 AM ET, learners from around the world will be inspired and encouraged to share ideas and to be deeply imaginative. Join NYT bestselling author Brad Montague for a conversation as he discusses his new book, The Fantastic Bureau of Imagination, and gives a top-secret, behind-the-scenes peek at the official agency that keeps the world's creativity flowing!

Your students will have the opportunity to ask questions and find encouragement to share their dreams, songs, and stories

with the world. Recommended for elementary school, ages 5-10.

Register HERE

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For assistance with these topics, or anything else related to instructional technology, please click HERE to book an appointment with your building's ITT.

4-11-2023 Tuesday Tech Tips

🔖🛹💯 In today's Tuesday Tech Alerts, read all about using bookmarks to make your Google Docs easier to navigate, designing Digital Choice Boards, a long-awaited feature in eDoctrina, & more! ➡️ ➡️➡️

💡 Quick Tip 💡 Let's face it: sometimes, finding the tab or bookmark you’re looking for in Chrome can be tough. But there's good news! Now you can search through your Chrome tabs, bookmarks and history right from the address bar!

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Image credit: www.teachingforward.net

Quickly Navigate Google Docs Using Bookmarks

Did you know you can use bookmarks to link within a Google Doc to a specific section or page? Bookmarks can be used within the document, such as in a Table of Contents, or to use outside of Docs as a link to share directly to a spot in a document.

To create a bookmark:

1. Open a Google Doc 

2. Click where you want the bookmark. 

3. Click Insert and then Bookmark. 

To link to a bookmark from within the Doc, like a Table of Contents:

1. Open a Google Doc.

2. Select the text you want to link from.

3. Click Insert and then Link.

4. In the window that opens, click Bookmarks. A list will show the bookmarks in your document.

5. Click the bookmark you want to link to and then Apply

You can also copy the bookmark link and add it anywhere, such as in a Tuesday Tech Alert. For example, we can point you to our current Chromebook models HERE.  More details on working with bookmarks in Docs can be found HERE.

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Choice Boards: Benefits, Design Tips & Differentiation

Providing students with digital choice boards can be a powerful way to offer choice, agency, and differentiation, especially when you may have several absent students over the course of a unit or week. Check out more about choice boards HERE: Catlin Tucker Choice Boards.

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eDoctrina & Infinite Campus Integration for Grades 6-12

A slick new feature has been implemented within eDoctrina. It allows you to copy your assessment scores into your Infinite Campus gradebook. Find all the details HERE.

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All-staff  Professional Learning Opportunity!

For any staff who would like to brush up on their Google Workspace skills. 

• Unorganized Google Drive? 
• Not sure how to find an old Gmail message? 
• Want to get better at collaborating with Docs, Slides, and Sheets? 

Come to this hands-on session to learn tips and strategies for using your time more efficiently while using Google Workspace. (Each session = 1 PL/CTLE Hour for GTA members.)

Click here to register for the April 27 2:30-3:30 session and 

here for the April 27 4:00-5:00 session.

3-21-23 Tuesday Tech Tips

SAFETY ALERT

Recently a school district experienced a fire caused by devices were stacked on each other while charging. Please make sure devices are not stacked and have some space to ventilate while charging.

📽 🛠 🔋 In today's Tuesday Tech Alerts, read all about showing movies in the classroom, an easy troubleshooting step you can take when having any issue with a website, some Chromebook battery management recommendations, and more! ➡️➡️➡️

💡 Quick Tip 💡 Instead of sending someone a boring old link to an entire website or page, impress them by linking right to specific text on the site.

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If you're under age 30 and you know who
this is, then two thumbs up for you

The Reviews Are In On Showing Movies in School

It's a Thumbs Down from Ebert: "Here's the part that GCSD moviegoers aren't going to like: Per their user agreements, streaming services such as Netflix*, Hulu, Disney+, etc. may NOT be used in classrooms. It's not Greece, it's them. And the district has a legal obligation to enforce copyright laws."

It's a Thumbs Up from Siskel: "You're no fun, Roger! Let's remind them of the good news: Every teacher has access to Swank Streaming Services. It's in ClassLink, or you can log in HERE. There are currently over 500 major motion pictures available to legally stream on Swank."

Thanks, guys! The details on all of this, including a small exception to the Netflix user agreement, can be found HERE. Grab some popcorn and enjoy a nice read.

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No, it's not pronounced like "cachet"

Website Issues? Fix it Fast: Just Clear the Cache

When running into a problem with any web-based resource (i.e. a website), whether using a Chromebook or a Windows device, a great first step for you or your students to take is to clear the browser's cache. This will often solve the issue. It's quick and easy, the directions below are also linked HERE.

 

1. At the top right in Chrome, click the 3 dots "snowman" icon 
2. Click More tools  Clear browsing data.
3. At the top, choose a time range. To delete everything, select All time.
4. Next to "Cookies and other site data" and "Cached images and files," check the boxes.
5. Click Clear data.

Close Chrome, reopen it, and see if that did it. According to a statistic I just made up, clearing the cache will fix the problem 26% of the time.

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Chromebook Power-Saving & 

Battery Management Tips

Are you or your students experiencing your Chromebooks running low on battery power more quickly than you'd like? Check out the following Chromebook battery power-saving tips that the nice folks at Haverford High School in Haverton, PA put together. They include:

• Decreasing your screen brightness
• Shutting down when feasible, and definitely nightly!
• See how to do that HERE
• Closing programs and tabs
• Lowering the volume
• Yes, seriously
• And more- check them all out HERE.

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For assistance with these topics, or anything else related to instructional technology, please book an appointment with your school's ITT.

3-7-2023 Tuesday Tech Tips

   

In today's Tech Alerts, learn about how to temporarily share files in Drive, a free Gif creation tool for you and your students, and more! ➡️➡️

Tuesday's Tip: On a Chromebook, the key above the 6 key creates multiple “desktops” to switch between.   If you want to learn all the details, then this ⬇️is for you!

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But sometimes, it's not forever. 💔

You Can Now Share Google Drive Files Temporarily Thanks to a New Feature

From Michael Perrigo at chromeunboxed.com:

"Until now, sharing access to a Google Drive file meant it was permanent unless you manually removed a collaborator from it. Doing so requires you to first remember to do so and then to actually do it, obviously. The issue with this is that human error is the weakest link in technology. In some cases, you may only want to share a file or folder with someone who is performing contract work for you or simply taking a peek at something you’re drafting up, after which point they really have no business snooping around."

An example of sharing with an expiration date in action

Check out all the details HERE.

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An Actual Gif made with Brush Ninja

Become a Brush Ninja with, well, Brush Ninja

Brush Ninja is a fun tool that students can use to learn about animation, to illustrate the concepts they have just learned, or to make their presentations more interesting. Plus, it can be a fun, free, way for teachers to creatively present ideas to our students.

Benefits of Brush Ninja:

• Brush Ninja is free. No software licenses, no new hardware. All you need is a web browser, it just works.
• No logins are needed. You can open the website and get started straight away.
• It’s simple to use. Their objective has been to make it as easy to use as possible. 
• There’s no tracking or advertising. There is no need to worry about your privacy, or personal information being sold. You can check out the privacy policy here.
• No Messaging There is no way for children to contact or interact with anyone else on Brush Ninja.

How to use Brush Ninja in your classroom:

• To illustrate concepts & knowledge. Reinforce the things students have learned by having them create a slideshow with key information.

• Tech Alerts. Show off your Brush Ninja skills by making a Gif of a stick figure dunking for the Tech Alerts.

• Show their working. Particularly useful for Mathematics, students can display their thought processes and then tidy the animation up to show the final result.
• Creative Writing. Present stories, animated comics, or short cartoons.
• Animated Ideas. Brush Ninja is a great way to jot down ideas for creative projects.
• Presentations. Add some motion to presentations by creating simple animations of the topic being presented.

Don't wait- make your first Gif today! Brush Ninja is in ClassLink, and you can learn more about HERE!

(Hey, come to think of it, how do you pronounce "Gif," anyway? Find out HERE.)

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For assistance with these topics, or anything else related to instructional technology, please check in with your friendly neighborhood ITT.

2-14-2023 Tuesday Tech Tips

  

In our Valentine's Day Tech Alerts, we hope you ❤️love❤️  learning more about Nearpod, our schools' live morning shows, Google Classroom originality reports, and more!   ➡️➡️

Tuesday's Tip:  Do you know you can insert GIF's into Google Docs, Slides, Drawings, etc.?     If you want to learn how, then this ⬇️ is for you!

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Nearpod News

Check out these great updates to Nearpod! We especially love the updated Lesson Preview experience, and the new Math Manipulatives for students.

As a reminder, ALL Greece teachers have a premium Nearpod account- simply sign in with Google. Check here for more info.

Plus, Nearpod is hosting "Camp Engage," a free virtual PL opportunity from Feb 23-26! Save your seat at bit.ly/3Rw1rp9

(Yeah, no one at Nearpod asked us when our February Recess is.)

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Good Morning, Greece Central!

Many of our schools are broadcasting daily morning announcements on YouTube. If you're not a school-based employee, we urge you to please consider making it part of your morning routine to tune in to this incredible, funny, imaginative, informative student-led work from one of these schools.

The live morning shows can be found daily at these links:

• Arcadia High 7:20
• Brookside      9:15
• Craig Hill    8:40
• Longridge 9:15
• Olympia    7:15
• Pine Brook   9:00
• Autumn Lane Posted each morning

Additionally, past shows can be seen here for ARHS, AL, BS, CH, LR, OLY, and PB.

We're in the process of getting even more schools up and running. Don't see your school on here? Connect with your ITT to learn more about this and for help getting started.

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Have You Tried Originality Reports in Google Classroom?

You and your students can use originality reports to check work for originality and authenticity of assignments handed in through Classroom. When you run a report, it compares a student’s Google Docs or Slides file against webpages and books on the internet, as well as assignments submitted by other students in GCSD. The report links to detected sources and flags uncited text.

Learn more about originality reports with this brief video and help page, courtesy of the experts at Google.  

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We asked Chat-GPT...

For assistance with these topics, or anything else related to instructional technology, please check in with your friendly neighborhood ITT.