MC Digital Blog

AutoMastery Google Forms Add-on AutoMastery  is a new Google Forms Add-on that was created by  Mary Ellen West , a technology coordinator from Georgia. This add-on allows you to automatically differentiate assignments for students based on the score they receive on a Google Forms quiz. As the teacher, you will set a mastery score and a beginner level score. Students who score at or above mastery will receive a link to an extension activity. Students who score at or below the beginner level will receive an assignment that is designed to fit their needs and help them build the necessary skills to move to the progression level. Students who score above beginner but below mastery will receive an assignment that is designed to bring them up to the mastery level. All assignments will be sent to the students through an automated email. When you go to install the AutoMastery add-on, you will more than likely see a warning message that says the app has not been approved by Google and to only

Common Sense Media recently shared a great article for teachers to introduce 1:1 devices within their instruction. Check it out: 6 Tips for the Paperless Pioneer: Making the Most of Your Chromebooks 1. Begin with low-stakes activities. - Create a few low-stakes, content-light activities designed to get students used to the routines of the Google for Education platform. Teacher example: Paper-pencil scavenger hunt, which required students to navigate through a teacher website, the school website, and Google Classroom , in order to find and record various information. Students gained experience with functions like posting comments, accessing online resources, and checking their grades without having to worry about digesting difficult content. Moreover, the fact that the actual assignment was still completed on paper and turned into the bin on my desk at the end of the period allowed reluctant students a smoother transition into the paperless world.  2. Teach to no more than four studen

As of July 1, 2017, all teachers and administrators must obtain 2.0 Digital Learning CEUs for renewal by 2019. Please read over this Google Slide Presentation. Slide 10 has an easy solution to be able to easily knock this out of the way. :) 

Add Audio to Google Slides  shared by EdTechify As everyone knows, Google Slides is one of the best ways to create collaborative presentations.  Those of us that have used it also know that the inability to add audio into slides can be the bane of our existence.  However, there's good news!  Google Slides can have embedded video via YouTube.  The tricky part is: Finding an easy way to record your audio Uploading that "audio" to YouTube Displaying the "audio" in your Google Presentation so that it looks pretty There are many methods out there, but the one that I've found to be simplest is using  Screencastify .  I recently posted  how to record OVER a presentation using Screencastify  (end result is a video file).   Step 1: Open Screencastify and record with the "Cam".  If you only want audio without video, simply cover up your webcam with your thumb or post-it note. Step 2: Record your narration.  Pause if you need to.  Whe

Take a Brain Break Go Noodle  is a great free tool that has tons of appropriate music videos with coordination activities for your students. From yoga to The Sid Shuffle, these short videos will help students take their mind off testing and get the wiggles out!

This week we are sharing a wonderful new web tool that allows you to create standards based formative assessments with instant access to mastery grading. To get started, go to:  https://www.edulastic.com/ Click on the "Join for Free" button and you can create a free teacher account by linking your Google account. Once you have created your account and entered your school information, create your classes. Edulastic allows you to import student rosters from Google Classroom. On the left side of the screen, you can see the menu to create an assessment, visit the assessment library, view student reports, or manage classes. Edulastic  has a fantastic library of assessments already made and tied to standards. In this example, I searched for "fractions" in the assessment library. I can search assessments by grade level, topic, or standards. You can click on an assessment in the library to preview it or assign it to a class.

This week, we are sharing strategies for wrapping up your Google Classroom for the year. Clean Up Your Google Drive Google Classroom creates a "Classroom" folder in your Google Drive. In the folder is a sub-folder for each class you have created. You can move the folders and I recommend making a new favorites folder and moving any favorite assignments or project examples to this folder. It will make it easy to add assignments or handouts next year to your new classes. Another good idea is to create a 2016-2017 sub-folder in your "Classroom" folder and move all your current courses into the folder. This will make it clean and ready to go for next year. Archive 2016-2017 Classes Google has an archive tool to save your completed classes and remove them from your home screen.  Note  that you cannot add new assignments and students can no longer turn in assignments once a class is archived. To archive a class, login to Google Classroom and click on the

It is a good practice to frequently change your password in your google account.  Here are the steps to change your password: Step 1: From your Gmail account - access your “My Account” settings. Step 2: Once in your settings click on Personal Info and privacy to find these settings: Step 3: Using the Personal Info section find your password and sign in method, it will tell you when you last changed your password. Step 4: Once you click on your password area - you will be prompted to verify your current password and then select a new password as shown. Click “Change Password” to save.

Newsela  now allows you to import your classes from Google Classroom. This allows you to get started using Newsela quickly with your students. To get started, go to:  https://newsela.com/ Login or Sign-Up with your Google Account Click on your name in the top right corner of the page and click on the "Classes" tab: Click on the "Import Google Classroom" button. You will need to authorize  Newsela  to have access to your Google Classroom account. I had to close and refresh the page to see my classes. Check the box(es) next to the class(es) you wish to import: Your students will now have their own accounts created and added to your classes. You can immediately assign them articles and text sets! I hope this new feature saves you time and helps you use  Newsela  more effectively with your students!

Capitalizing a large portion of text or an especially long title can be a pain. Doing the opposite—converting capital letters to lowercase—is equally a waste of time. Simply choose “Capitalization” from the Format menu in Docs, and select one of the following: lowercase, to make all the letters in your selection lowercase. UPPERCASE, to capitalize all the letters in your selection. Title Case, to capitalize the first letter of each word in your selection.

Our clever students have figured out how to change the name and settings on the PC/Laptop Volume Controls task bar button.  We have had to make adjustments to the tool rights or policies.  The icon on the task bar will no longer work.   Here are directions on how to change the volume for your PC/Laptops . 

As a Johnston County Schools employee, you can now buy both the Macintosh home version AND the Windows home version.  You no longer need a code to verify your employment you will only need to use your JCS email account!  Still the low price of $9.95 each. Here is the link to take advantage of this change:  https://www. microsofthup.com/hupus/home. aspx

For a limited time, Canvas has made Live Webinar Training available to Johnston County Staff. This training, which is normally a service that they charge for, is available from  February 14th to May 14  so make sure to take advantage of it while you can! There are a variety of topics to learn, ranging from beginner to advanced, so there is something for everyone.  NOTE: This training is intended for teachers who are interested in learning more about Canvas. This is not training for students.  Click here  for instructions on how to create an account and sign up for trainings.  

We have reports of teachers no longer having the My Students Tab in the state NCEdCloud Portal.   We have not been able to determine the issue with NCEdCloud staff but we do know relates to flagging staff with specific job codes.  We have verified with a few of the teachers who no longer have the My Students Tab that they do have the correct job code.  The NCEdCloud support staff have advised the teachers missing the My Student Tab to request the  My Students for Non-teachers  role to reinstate access to change student passwords.  The  “My Students for Non-teachers”  exception role in the IAM Service can optionally be requested by teachers and staff that don't have one of the specific jobs the system flags (or system issues not recognizing correct codes) but do have students assigned to them. When granted, this role allows teachers and staff who are teaching classes but do not fall within the previous job codes, to see their assigned students via the  "My Students for No

Mrs. Pam Batchelor, JCS Instructional Technology Facilitator Specialist, has created three very informative videos on the new Student Accommodation feature for SchoolNet! Check it out by visiting:  http://jcsschoolnet.weebly.com/student-accommodations.html