Tech Tutor Mark

From the always dependable Richard Byrne comes this fine list of Top 10 Add-Ons for Google Docs, Forms and Sheets . These are not apps, but add-ons to make your Docs, Forms and Sheets more functional and powerful. Many of you are using a few of these already. Free Technology for Teachers: 10 Good Google Docs, Sheets, and Forms Add-ons for Teachers WWW.FREETECH4TEACHERS.COM

View Michigan's most iconic natural and cultural destinations with the help of Google Trekker . Explore the interactive imagery and plan your next visit.  If you can't physically make the trek, explore it from the comfort of your favorite device - from any location. Teachers, take note.  Here is the link: http://www.michigan.org/googletrekker/

Here is an excellent list from educatorstechnology.com and very well researched!  Some of these I have never heard of.  It truly seems like the best of the best. Please provide feedback. Which have you tried?

Here is a helpful list of royalty-free music and sound effect sites for projects, thanks to Larry Ferlazzo's blog.  The post includes a lot of additional comments from his followers (59 more comments) which are also helpful.   Richard Byrne also offers this list of Royalty Free Music for Education  and check out the related items at the bottom of the page. As far as online video editors, this is a good list to choose from - other than having to install Windows Movie Maker . Any one of these 10 should work to help you put together a quick video.  PowToon is more for animation and YouTube has a lot of music built right in. WeVideo (no longer free) and Magisto are both recommended, but don't forget one of my all-time favorites, Animoto .  Do a search for " Animoto for Education " so you can create longer videos with your class during your teacher trial.   If your class is using an iPad, a recommended app is Video Star , which allows you t...

As the temperature hit -17 this morning, I found myself wanting to do a screenshot of my Weather screen - just to prove to people in other parts of the country that it really was that cold. So, I jogged my memory for how to do a screenshot on an Samsung Galaxy Note. Has anything changed? I wondered.  If you don't do screenshots on a regular basis, you may find yourself forgetting the different ways to make this magic happen.  So, for those Android users out there (and particularly the Samsung Galaxy users), here is a cheat sheet which spans all different models, courtesy of digitaltrends.com. http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/how-to-take-a-screenshot-on-galaxy-s3-note-2-android/

An Introduction to Google Sites: Getting-Started Resources This week we present some Getting Started Resources for Google Sites.  What makes Google Sites such a powerful tool for teachers and students is that it integrates all of your Google Docs, Slides and Sheets from your Google Drive into one website that you can create (for free) and use in your class every day.   The perfect tool for blended learning, Google Sites is the single Google app which lets you create a classroom website, a student ePortfolio, a video warehouse, an online file cabinet, a daily blog, a reading list, and more.  You may ask, "How can I get started with this tool right away?"  Here is a guide, some video tutorials and a website to get you started.  Use your current district Google account to log in, and then go to http://sites.google.com to create your site(s).  You can create as many sites as you want. Google Sites: Creating, Editing and Sharing a Site (pdf...

On Monday, January 12th, I will be presenting six sessions on Google Sites at Caledonia Community Schools (near Grand Rapids). Click here for the Google Sites Session Handout Creating Your Classroom Website in Google Sites Here is the Agenda for the training session: Pick the 5 most important pages you will want on your website (examples may include the following: Homework, Photos, Assignments, Class Calendar, Newsletter, Contact Info., Blog, Online Resources, Student Work, Videos). What Kinds of Pages Can You Add to Your Site ? (compare the different page types). How to Set Up the Navigation of Your Site (edit the Sidebar menu and/or Horizontal menu). How to Create a Web Link (to a shared document or to any website). How to Add Pictures to Your Site (from your computer or from the Web). How to Add a Video to Your Site (embedded, or as a Web link). How to Add a Calendar to Your Site (from your Google Cmalendar). Gadgets That Can be Added (examples of different...

One thing I don't like about most free online training (especially Google training) is that it becomes dated so quickly.  So quickly, in fact, that it just isn't very helpful.  GCF Learnfre.org is one of the exceptions to this rule.   The training they provide for Google Drive and Docs on this page alone is very much up-to-date with Google Drive's current interface and the changes they have made are reflected in this recent online offering.  If you browse the rest of their site, you will also see that they have free training for other up-to-date software like Microsoft Office 2013, as well as new training for apps like Pinterest, Instagram, a new YouTube tutorial, a free Photoshop Basics tutorial, a free Excel Formulas tutorial and an updated iOS 8 lesson.  Register for a free online class in any of the Microsoft Office applications, including Access 2010 and 2013.  These classes remain free through ge...

I have used many screenshot tools and methods over the years.  These have ranged from the simple pressing of the PrtScn button and pasting it into Paint or Word, to adding flair with Microsoft Office's Drawing tools, then switching to Techsmith's SnagIt and then back to Windows 7's Snipping Tool .  I don't know how long Greenshot has been around, but as of today, I have found my new screenshot tool, and it is free. I first read about Greenshot when doing a search for how to quickly add arrows and notes to a screenshot that could then be added to a Google Doc. My search took me to this blog entry  from Blog.ClassroomTeacher.ca , so my thanks go out to the teachers in Ontario, Canada who edit this blog. I really hate the "Drawing" method ( Insert--Drawing)  that Google Docs uses to insert any type of annotation, including arrows and circles, which I use often when creating tutorials.   I don't mind using the drawing features of Microsoft ...

I presented this session at the 21st Century Symposium on August 26th and again at EdCamp Bluewater on November 2nd . Here is the session handout .  Click on the links to explore my Top 10 favorite places to learn technology for free.