It's Sunday Morning and I'm sitting in my office at school with papers and books spread across my desk, spilling onto the floor to the point that I can't move with tackling a project or making a final decision on what to do with this pile or that pile. Why you ask? Because the new semester starts tomorrow.
It feels like the day before the first day of school in September. There's new classes, new students, the chance to start again, do things differently, do them better, engage students in different ways, apply new things I've learned over the last four to five months. But that's not what I've been concentrating on. I've rearranged my office, added another file cabinet, cleaned my desk, cleaned my files, cleared my bulletin board, and purged, purged, purged. My recycling box is overflowing!
And I sit here thinking, wow, I've got a mess going here, but do I know what I'm going to do in class tomorrow? Jeez!! This happen every year. I start over, I start fresh, clean out the old, get ready for something new. And no matter how much I prepare and plan, it's still the day before the new class and I'm at school putting the final touches together.
But you know what? That's ok, I'm not alone. I've run into colleagues here this morning, I've talked to people doing school work from home, and I know my principal will be in today (well she is every Sunday, so that maybe doesn't really count). This is what we do, and this is what most people don't ever see. The Sunday morning work before church session. The 2am sessions finishing up things. Twelve hour days so we can go home and not do school work for one night. These are teachers. These are people I work with. These are my people, my tribe, and I'm proud to be part of this.
So.......guess I better get back at it........new students to connect with tomorrow, gotta get my A game on! Happy New Semester!
Sunday, January 25, 2015
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
Organize Your App Launcher in Google
For those of you that are like me, you like to have things a certain way. Some might call this controlling, I call it being organized.
My App Launcher in Google is no exception. And in my personal account I can drag the icons around, but in my GAFE school account, I downloaded the App Launcher Customizer.
With this extension, I get the Configure option at the bottom of my App window that you see in the picture below.
When I click on Configure it opens a new window (see below). On the right side I can drag the icons around and put them in the order I want. On the left are additional icons I can add to my app launcher simply by dragging them over. You may need to refresh your window before the changes go into effect, but you should not need to close and reopen anything.
My App Launcher in Google is no exception. And in my personal account I can drag the icons around, but in my GAFE school account, I downloaded the App Launcher Customizer.
With this extension, I get the Configure option at the bottom of my App window that you see in the picture below.
When I click on Configure it opens a new window (see below). On the right side I can drag the icons around and put them in the order I want. On the left are additional icons I can add to my app launcher simply by dragging them over. You may need to refresh your window before the changes go into effect, but you should not need to close and reopen anything.
Once again I am in control!
Sunday, December 7, 2014
Searching Google Drive
Many of you already know the basic search feature in Google Drive. And usually we use it when we are frantically looking for a document we needed yesterday and cannot find. But did you know you can filter your search?
When in Google Drive, go to the far right side of the search window, and you'll see a drop down arrow. Gotta love drop downs, there's always more options! Click on it and you can filter your search (see image below) Choose what type of file, what the file opens in, or who owns it.
Now I can't take credit for this little discovery, I was still randomly searching until Todd Segar pointed this out. AND...AND....AND....you can filter your gmail search as well:
Oh Thank You Google Gods for helping me find things when I am most frantic (which is most days!) Happy Googling!!
When in Google Drive, go to the far right side of the search window, and you'll see a drop down arrow. Gotta love drop downs, there's always more options! Click on it and you can filter your search (see image below) Choose what type of file, what the file opens in, or who owns it.
 |
| Google Drive Search/Filter Options |
Now I can't take credit for this little discovery, I was still randomly searching until Todd Segar pointed this out. AND...AND....AND....you can filter your gmail search as well:
 |
| Gmail Search Options |
Oh Thank You Google Gods for helping me find things when I am most frantic (which is most days!) Happy Googling!!
Monday, October 20, 2014
Folders in Gmail
As we transition from Outlook to Gmail more and more as a district, the most often asked question is "Can I create folders in Gmail like I did in Outlook to organize my emails?" Well, yes and no.
What Google has done, instead of allowing you to create folders, they let you create labels, their version of folders. The video below does a great job and walking you through step by step.
This is a HUGE step for me to move away from Outlook and use Gmail more as my primary email. Happy Organizing!
What Google has done, instead of allowing you to create folders, they let you create labels, their version of folders. The video below does a great job and walking you through step by step.
This is a HUGE step for me to move away from Outlook and use Gmail more as my primary email. Happy Organizing!
Thursday, October 9, 2014
New Share Window in Google
For those of you that share your Google Documents A LOT, you've probably noticed the share window looks a little bit different, especially if you are are GAFE school. When you click on the Share button, Google now is keeping you within your domain (for me that's the Fairmont Area Schools group, see below) HINT: if you don't see this, click on the green circle in the top right.
Now while sharing with the people within Fairmont Area Schools is all fine and dandy, many times I want my information to be available to anyone with the link and internet access. That used to be a visible option. To get there, click on People at Fairmont Area Schools (or whatever your window shows as your domain) and you'll get more options, but most important you see More at the bottom of your list. Click on that.
Now while sharing with the people within Fairmont Area Schools is all fine and dandy, many times I want my information to be available to anyone with the link and internet access. That used to be a visible option. To get there, click on People at Fairmont Area Schools (or whatever your window shows as your domain) and you'll get more options, but most important you see More at the bottom of your list. Click on that.
You should get a screen like the one below, look familiar??
Now I can choose my normal settings (Anyone with a link, can view) and save it and continue.
Thursday, September 25, 2014
Screen Capture Ideas
As the staff in my building continue to build their technology skills, I'm reminded repeatedly of two important points: 1) there is always more than one way to "skin a cat" and 2) an old dog and always learn new tricks.
This week's discussion has centered around screen capture. It has been asked of the staff to show they have mastered different pieces of our technology expectation list. In a perfect world I'd be able to work one on one with everyone, but we all know that's not where we are. So the staff are asked to find alternative and creative ways to share their accomplishments. The most convenient way is to share a Google Doc with screen shots.
I have mistakenly assumed that most people have done this. I could not have been more wrong! And through discussions, I'm finding more ways to do what I have been doing for a long time. So here are some "new" tips from the old dog on screen capture for a PC.
1. Capturing an Image
If you simply want to capture the entire screen, hit the Print Screen button, usually in the upper right of your keyboard. If you only want to capture the active window, hit Alt + Print Screen. There will be no indication you've got it, this is where trust comes in.
2. Open Google Doc
For what the staff is being asked to do, simply go to your Google Document and Paste (Ctrl + V) the image in the document. Once you have pasted it, you can resize the image, change the text wrapping (to Wrap Text, see picture below) so you can click and drag the picture around, and crop the image if you are only looking for portions of the screen shot.
No while I did some searching I also found a new way to capture the screen. My PC at school has something called a Snipping Tool. (Click on All Programs > Accessories > Snipping Tool.)
This tool allows you to draw a box around the area you want to capture, starting in the top left, clicking and holding to the bottom right. When you release the mouse, a window opens for you to edit and save the image.
This image is now on your computer (or the server if at school) and can be inserted into a Google document.
No matter what method you use, these or another one you might know of, the bottom line is they get the job done and allow the user to show what's happening on their screen.
This week's discussion has centered around screen capture. It has been asked of the staff to show they have mastered different pieces of our technology expectation list. In a perfect world I'd be able to work one on one with everyone, but we all know that's not where we are. So the staff are asked to find alternative and creative ways to share their accomplishments. The most convenient way is to share a Google Doc with screen shots.
I have mistakenly assumed that most people have done this. I could not have been more wrong! And through discussions, I'm finding more ways to do what I have been doing for a long time. So here are some "new" tips from the old dog on screen capture for a PC.
1. Capturing an Image
If you simply want to capture the entire screen, hit the Print Screen button, usually in the upper right of your keyboard. If you only want to capture the active window, hit Alt + Print Screen. There will be no indication you've got it, this is where trust comes in.
2. Open Google Doc
For what the staff is being asked to do, simply go to your Google Document and Paste (Ctrl + V) the image in the document. Once you have pasted it, you can resize the image, change the text wrapping (to Wrap Text, see picture below) so you can click and drag the picture around, and crop the image if you are only looking for portions of the screen shot.
No while I did some searching I also found a new way to capture the screen. My PC at school has something called a Snipping Tool. (Click on All Programs > Accessories > Snipping Tool.)
This tool allows you to draw a box around the area you want to capture, starting in the top left, clicking and holding to the bottom right. When you release the mouse, a window opens for you to edit and save the image.
This image is now on your computer (or the server if at school) and can be inserted into a Google document.
No matter what method you use, these or another one you might know of, the bottom line is they get the job done and allow the user to show what's happening on their screen.
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Clearly to Clean your Web Page
Many times educators find great articles on the web they want to share with classes, but don't always have technology access during the class time. Yes, there are still situations where printing (for some of you that's the worst word I can say) and distributing is the best option to reach the most students.
If this is you, the go to the Google Apps store and download the Clearly extension. Why you ask? Most websites are filled with advertisements and extras that can mess up the look of the printed page (see the screen below).
When you apply the Clearly extension, you get a much cleaner look to your page, not advertisements, and larger print size (for those of us that need that.)
On the right side of your screen you'll have options to print, highlight text, and even clip the article to Evernote if you use it (which is a blog for another day).
When I know I want to keep an article, but not all the extras, Clearly is clearly the way to go!!
If this is you, the go to the Google Apps store and download the Clearly extension. Why you ask? Most websites are filled with advertisements and extras that can mess up the look of the printed page (see the screen below).
When you apply the Clearly extension, you get a much cleaner look to your page, not advertisements, and larger print size (for those of us that need that.)
On the right side of your screen you'll have options to print, highlight text, and even clip the article to Evernote if you use it (which is a blog for another day).
When I know I want to keep an article, but not all the extras, Clearly is clearly the way to go!!
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