YouTube & Picasa

This week I got to experiment with some new ideas for utilizing YouTube as well as getting to know my way around Picasa (an app I've never used before).  I enjoyed using both and they are pretty easy to use and navigate your way around.

YouTube

YouTube is so great for searching for anything from music videos to tutorials.  It covers a wide range of subject matters; I doubt you could do a search and come up empty handed.  If you really like something, you can subscribe to it so you don't have to search for it every time (you must have a google account to do this).  There is also a YouTube for Teachers and a YouTube for Education.  The education site has allows you to choose your level of teaching, as well as the subject matter you are looking for.

 

The YouTube Education site kind of reminds me of Google Scholar in the respect that it has more "reputable" videos.  Most of the videos (not all) seem much longer and more in-depth in their detail.  If you want to learn more about YouTube Education, click HERE.  Another site that shows videos that I thought was really good for education was WatchKnowLearn- check it out!

Another feature of YouTube that I got to play with this week was a tool called "TubeSnack."  This is a free service that you can sign up for (or use your google account) that allows you to put together a reel of videos to create your own personal playlist.  I like this because you can choose your topic and only put in the videos you want.  I made one on the topic of Zumba for my daily warm ups.  Instead of searching for a video the morning of my lesson, I pre-picked these so I can go right to my stack and it's ready to go.  Also, by having this prepared ahead of time, I already know I like them and I know they are easy enough for the kids to perform them (thus, customizing my TubeSnack to fit my needs).  It's almost like making a video lesson plan; pretty cool!  Check out my TubeSnack of Zumba videos.

Click HERE to watch a video on how to create your own TubeSnack.

Want some more TIPS & TRICKS of YouTube? 

Picasa

Picasa is an awesome photo (image) program that allows you to organize, edit, upload and share your images with others.  As I stated earlier, it is not something I have used before this week.  The cool thing is that once it is downloaded, it automatically searches your computer for images and uploads them into Picasa.  From there, you can create new albums, slideshows, collages, edit and label your pictures, tag people or locations, or even order prints from a local store.  To download Picasa, click HERE.

After downloading, here is an introductory video to help get you started.

I got to create and play around with two cool features this week: create a collage and create a web album.  Creating a collage is easy and fun with different templates, borders/background colors, etc.  I created the collage below of from this school year's track pictures (girls & boys teams).

To learn how to Create A Collage, click HERE. 

Creating a Web Album was fun also.  It really is a great way to share photos and allows you to showcase them in a nice format for others to view.  Also, you can choose who you send it to and who can view it (only you, anyone with the link, or public).  To learn how to Create a Web Album, click HERE.   

Click on Chiefs Training Camp 2013 to view the Web Album I created. 

Need information on Organization in Picasa?  Click HERE or HERE.

Need help Editing and Image?  Click HERE.

Need additional help?  Click HERE or HERE.

Google Earth vs. Google Tour Builder

Google Earth allows you to see the Earth in updated satellite 3D images that give you way more perspective and realism than looking at pictures from a book (that may be really old or out of date).  You can explore any part of the world as far away or as close as you'd like.  Street level view is great if you want to stand on the ground at your selected location and check out your surroundings.  You can search for a specific destination, address, business, structure, landmark, or even get driving directions.  In addition, you can explore beyond by going into the galaxy and looking at the stars or planets.  You can also go deep into the ocean and explore what's beneath the big blue sea.  Teachers could use to for all kinds of subjects.  To see a brief tutorial on how to use Google Earth, click on the video below.

  

To see how to Create a Google Earth Tour, click HERE.

Why Teach with Google Earth?  Click HERE. (additional links for "how to teach with google earth" and "examples of google earth activities" are also in the column to the left in this link)

Need some Google Earth lesson ideas?  Click HERE....or HERE....or maybe HERE!  (you could also do a google search "google earth lesson plans" for endless links)

Want more tutorials on Google Earth?  Click HERE.

Google Tour Builder is an awesome extension of Google Earth that allows you to create a "slideshow" presentation with text, pictures or video while mapping out and viewing your destinations as you go using Google Earth (it's like PowerPoint and Google Earth got married).  While adding your locations, you can still zoom in if you want to showcase a building or landmark or you can simply zoom out to show a broad location.  You can also choose different markers (i.e. school building, flag, etc) to showcase your locations.  I really think this is an awesome way to showcase a nice looking presentation for any type of information you want to share (biography, pictures from a trip, family history, countries containing "X" species, plants or wildlife, comparing terrains...the possibilities are endless).  To see a brief tutorial on how to use Google Tour Builder, click WATCH VIDEO.  

To watch my tour builder presentation, click on Michael Jordan.

Why Use Tour Builder?  Click HERE.

Need some Google Tour Builder lesson ideas?  Click HERE....or HERE....or, once again, HERE!

No matter your preference, both of these are great tools and only you can decide which one will work better for you in your classroom.  I say the more resources the better!
   

Google Calendar

Google Calendar is a really easy way to keep track of personal, school or business events.  You can create as many different calendars as you wish and share them with as many people as you'd like.  You can color code your calendars and events, as well as view your calendar in different ways (day, week, month, etc...).  The video below will give you a brief tutorial of Google Calendar.

The personalized features in Google Calendar really get fun and more helpful when you start to utilize some of the things in your "Settings" and "Labs."  I will share with you some of the features I enjoyed setting up in my Calendar this week.  1.)  Sending Google Calendar Daily Agenda to G-Mail Inbox;  2.)  Hiding Morning & Night; 3.)  Getting the Weather Forecast in your Calendar; 4.)  Adding Interesting Calendars

Sending Google Calendar Daily Agenda to G-Mail Inbox

I check my e-mail first thing in the morning and several times throughout the day.  By setting up this feature, google calendar sends my daily agenda to my inbox at 5 am showing me all the events for that day.  Just in case I can't or don't check my calendar, this is a surefire way to get that information so that I don't miss a morning meeting or an after school event.  Click HERE to see a video of how to set it up.

Hiding Morning & Night

This is a Lab feature that allows you to block off unused portions of time (aka "inactive hours") that you are not likely to use most of the time (i.e. 12 am-5 am).  This really comes in handy when you use the daily or weekly calendar as those are sectioned off into hours.  Click HERE to see a video of how to set it up.
Additional Tip:  To hide weekends:  Go to Settings (gear icon on top right), scroll to "show weekends," click No and Save.

Getting the Weather Forecast in your Calendar

Being a PE teacher, I tend to go outside several times throughout the year for my team sports units (mainly baseball, football, soccer).  However, the weather is on it's own agenda and there is nothing I can do to stop it.  Getting a "heads-up" ahead of time does help if I need to make changes or adjustments to my lesson plans for the day or several days.  Setting up the weather forecast feature gives me a 4-day look at the weather in my area.  Click HERE to see a video of how to set it up.

Adding Interesting Calendars

If you are a sports fan like me, or you like to know when the holidays are in, say, Brazil, you will like this feature.  For example, I am a KC Chiefs fan so I subscribed to that team.  On my calendar, there is a football in the corner on the days that they have a game scheduled so I know all the dates and times.  In addition, it tells me if it is a home or away game (i.e. GB @ KC or KC @ Oakland).  In addition to the professional level, they also have college and international levels to choose from as well (that means that KU Jayhawks basketball will also be added to mine--ROCK CHALK!).  Click HERE to see a video of how to set it up.

Those are just 4 of the many settings and labs that you can choose from to further customize your calendar to make things easier and more convenient for you.  Please check out the links below if you want further information.

For more information on Google Calendar Settings:  Click HERE

For more information on Google Calendar Labs:  Click HERE

For Information on Creating & Editing Events: Click HERE

For information on Sharing Calendars:  Click HERE
MORE Tips for Google Calendar:  Click HERE

Google Drive

This week I got to experiment with Google Drive and all it has to offer.  A huge advantage of drive is that you can access it anywhere in the world once documents are stored just by logging in to your Google account.  This is great for people who travel, work a lot from home, or for those that can't collaborate face to face every day.  Teachers, this is also awesome for organizing your class files, assignments, etc.  Drive allows you to store, share and send documents, as well as work on a document together at the same time (if you have editing rights to it).  In reference to my last statement, when someone sends (shares) a document to another individual, the owner can choose to allow the recipient to view, edit or comment on the document(s).  If working together, you can see the changes happen right before your eyes.  Everything in Drive is in real time.  Your documents are autosaved while you are working so you don't have to save them manually every time you make a change.  In addition, there is also a "revision history" section that allows you to revert back to an older version if you don't like the updated changes that you made to a document.  You can go back and forth as much as you want from version to version because it continues to save as you go.  This is a pretty cool feature, especially if you mess up a lot like I often do.

In many ways, Google Drive mirrors Microsoft Office in the respect that it has many word processing functions inside of it (i.e. Presentation = PowerPoint, Document = Word...you get the point).  When uploading a file that is saved on your computer, you can keep it in the original form or convert it to one of the processing tools inside of Drive (if you convert it, you have a lot more options on editing).  Drive also allows you to create a form, which lets you to make a questionnaire, survey, test, etc.  This is an awesome feature, especially for teachers!  A drawing is another item you can create for diagrams, charts, etc.  This feature is pretty cool for brainstorming and "webbing" activities for research or writing projects.      

For an introduction to Google Drive, watch the video below:

I am going to talk a little bit more about my top 2 features in Drive: 1.)  Creating a Form and 2.) Creating Folders, Organizing and Sharing Documents with your students (and colleagues).

Creating a Form

As stated earlier, creating a form allows you to make a questionnaire, survey, test, assignment dropbox, etc.  You are allowed to choose your background and the format of your questions (multiple choice, text/paragraph response, checkbox, etc.).

You can then choose how you will receive the results (spreadsheet format, etc.)

Click on the example to view a questionnaire that I created for back to school night. (Tip: if your URL is too long for people to remember, shorten it by going to tinyurl.com-  my URL for the example is now tinyurl.com/KParentSurvey- try it out)

To watch a video on creating a form, click the video below.

Want something to help you grade your quizzes/tests?  It's free!  It's called Flubaroo...check it out!

Creating Folders, Organizing and Sharing Documents

I am pretty meticulous about organization.  I also have multiple classes so creating a folder for each class is a must for shared articles, assignments, etc. for each individual class.  In addition, google allows me to create separate contact lists and put them into groups so each class can have their own e-mail list for sending out and receiving information.

The video link below is really good at explaining how to break up your classes into sections, upload and create assignments, grade assignments, etc...  It also shows you the student view.  Click here for google drive for teachers video! (The other video link at the bottom on organization is pretty good too)
   

Want more information on creating documents?  Click here

Want more information on sharing documents?  Click here

Want more information on files, folders and organization?  Click here