Password Protecting Your Google Form

Okay, you can't really password protect your Google Form, but this neat work-around has merit.  When creating a form, just make the first question on the form a text box that requires a specific word before the user can go on to the next page.

 If you like to assess your students using Google Forms and don't want students not in class to be able to view the assessment, this is the way to accomplish that. You can duplicate the form and change the specific word in the text box for each hour (if you like). Right before the students take the assessment, write the word on the board or give it orally. Once all students have completed the quiz, you can also change the password.

Here is a video giving complete instructions on how to do this.

New Google Classroom Updates

Google Classroom just keeps getting better and better! The updates released this week are welcome additions for classroom teachers.

The biggest update, and definitely one of the most requested features is the addition of new question and answer discussions. You can post questions to your class and allow students to have discussions by responding to each other’s answers (or not, depending on the setting you choose). For example, you could post a video and ask students to answer a question about it, or post an article and ask them to write a paragraph in response. Other new Classroom additions include the ability to reuse content (announcements, assignments, or questions) and bump up assignments or announcements in the order they are seen on the page.

A big update scheduled for next month - Google Classroom will automatically create a Google Calendar for each of your courses and populate it with all content.  It will be viewable in both Classroom and Calendar!

Great Work Around Using Forms and Google Classroom

Just read this post from Joan Brown.  She uses Google Forms a lot with Classroom, but as all teachers know, it is sometimes difficult to get students to go back in and mark the assignment complete once it's done. Here is a link to her site detailing the steps.  Sheer genius!!

http://currentandcool.blogspot.com/2015/08/classroom-form-dilemma.html

Writing on a laptop

One complaint I hear often is that it is difficult to write using a mouse on a laptop or chromebook. You can attach a mouse to either using the USB port but that doesn't help you draw or write. The mouse isn't conducive to drawing.

One little trick I use is to grab a stylus (used on a tablet) and use it on my trackpad. You can draw or write with that stylus!