Screen Shot

Pardon my absence - I have been repairing computers. Take a look at my work......

 

Santa came early and brought me a box of laptop screens and bubble wrap. :)

 

 

Here is one broken screen. I have heard it all from "It was broken when I resisted arrest." to "I just opened it up and it was like that."

 

Remove the bezel. Unscrew the four tiny screws that hold the screen in place.

 

Ruin your manicure by peeling up the blue sticker that holds the pin plug in place.

 

 

New screen with protective screen plastic. Now we work backwards, unwrap, plug in pin plug, re-stick the blue sticker and replace the four tiny screws.

 

One of the tiny screws.

 

 

Power it up and make sure it works. If it doesn't work, remove the screws and check the plug.

 

Replace bezel. Ta Da!!!!

Charge!!!

Well, approximately 800 laptops have been issued to students. Of course, one of the first questions asked was “Where and how are we going to charge all of these laptops?” Teachers were issued two multi-plug surge-protected power strip extension cords. This would allow half of the class to charge for half of the class period and the other half to charge their laptops the second half of the class period. In addition to that we added charging stations in the cafeteria. Now, these are not fancy stations like you would find in an airport. These charging stations were created with the same power strip extension cords that teachers were issued, two long tables, and a plethora of zip-ties.

One Blessing Counted Multiple Times!!!

My editor, who is a very dear friend of mine, will tell you that one of my quirks is that I have a sequencing problem as well as an aversion to commas. I have a difficult time doing things in the right order. The comma thing keeps her employed - and this job doesn't pay. So thank you Editor for your endless work in making me appear and sound literate, coherent and educated. (To my audience, I wanted this to be a surprise so it hasn’t been proofed by Editor – this is what I really sound/write like.)

--- IT Girl
 

Yup, I am Thankful for YouTube.

If you have been on Facebook at all this month you have no doubt noticed the November “Thankful” status updates. While many of us use the social media as a platform to discuss and even rant about political views or the performance of our favorite sports teams. It is nice to see that November turns our statuses into outbursts of praise and thanksgiving if only for a month. I too have posted my “Today I am thankful for….” statuses. I find that while on Facebook I am thankful for all of my many blessings and friends and general day to day stuff that makes me happy or makes me a better person (although some days the better part is iffy at best) but thankfully I can post in this blog the techy things that I am thankful for.

This is actually a long story – and those of you who know me best, know what that really means. Yes, pop some popcorn, pour yourself a beverage, and snuggle up. We are going to be here awhile. This post actually begins when I was in junior high. (Wait, don’t leave, I have a point, I promise – channeling my inner Elle Woods)

My mother was bound and determined that she would teach me to crochet. I just couldn’t get the hang of managing the hook, the yarn, my fingers, and counting all at the same time. My mother was undeterred. She kept trying, bless her heart. (Yes, I am southern.) She tried and tried for years. She was hopeful that I would get it, eventually. Finally, she stopped trying. She crocheted numerous baby blankets for my children without inviting me to participate. I was thrilled. No more pressure. I had already resigned myself to the fact that I would never be able to crochet. I was ok with that. I would never be a brain surgeon either and that hasn’t really bothered me. So I doubted that not being able to crochet would either.

Fast forward to summer of 2013. My oldest son is an avid gamer, so when his PS3 yellow-lighted, his world came to a screeching halt. My dad was a great mechanic. I did not inherit those skills. In fact, I am sure he is in heaven getting a good chuckle out of the fact that sometimes I repair computers as part of my job and that I have in fact been issued a screwdriver.  I felt powerless to help my son. I was also unwilling to spend the money necessary to replace the outdated gaming console just weeks after he put his own down payment on the PS4. (FYI that will be out this Friday.) I asked if he had any friends who had the same problem with their machines and if they had any advice for him. He said their only solution was to buy a new one and they were on their 2nd and 3rd PS3s. I wished there was something I could do to help. I went to bed that night wondering how much it would cost to repair it.


When I awoke the next morning, my dining room had been transformed into an operating room. Jacob had laid towels across the table. On the table were a laptop cued up to YouTube and his most prized possession, his PS3. “Mom, you and I are going to fix this.” I could not believe what I was seeing and hearing. Jacob told me that he had been up late the night before searching YouTube for a fix and he had found one. We would need a screwdriver, thermal paste and lunch. So we borrowed a multipurpose screwdriver set with a point I had never seen before, then we headed over to Radio Shack to pick up some thermal paste and drove through Wendy’s. Now, we were ready to work. Below are pictures of the procedure. We even had to wrap the mother board in aluminum foil and bake it in the oven to activate the paste. It was a tremendous learning experience for both Jacob and me. I am so glad he let me scrub in. (And yes, it worked after it was reassembled and we only had four screws left over.)

So, remember when I said I would never be a brain surgeon and I was ok with that, well now that I have been a PS3 scrub nurse, I felt that I needed to tackle that other thing I decided I would never be. That’s right. My son’s broken PlayStation sparked a curiosity. Could I learn to crochet? Did I want to? Who really crochets anymore? Well, wouldn’t you know, a dear, sweet (somewhat younger) friend, Ashton, was learning to crochet. Hmmm. Maybe I will just see how her crocheting venture goes. Then it hit me. I needed to learn. I needed to conquer that. Ashton was having the best time making things for her, her friends, and her family. She was the nudge (push) I needed. I texted my mom that night, way past my bed time, and told her I was FINALLY ready to learn if she was STILL willing to teach me. She agreed with all the enthusiasm of a mom who can’t wait to teach her child something – ANYTHING. So we set a date for Sunday afternoon, in between church services just in case. I showed her the patterns I had picked out and she sat on the couch with me while I crocheted silently. (Remember I could barely manage the coordination and the counting. I couldn’t even fathom holding a coherent conversation concurrently.) I single crocheted my heart out. I was thrilled. Ashton had liked my status when I posted that I was thankful for my mother’s patience in teaching me to crochet. I couldn’t wait to take a picture of my finished project and send it to her.

We scheduled lesson 2.This time I would learn to crochet a flower. I was so excited I could hardly stand it. Then during lesson 2, it happened – overload. I had mastered the single crochet. I understood the idea of the double crochet although I had never done one. Now, knowing what I know about a single and what I thought I knew about a double, could I transfer that to a triple? Wait, did my mom just tell me to do a half double crochet? Isn’t that just a single? I distinctly remember in math 1 being half of 2. OMG!! I would never be able to crochet. I looked at my mom with frustration.  I had just learned to crochet in a straight line now I am expected to crochet in circles?! She took my hook and my messed up lopsided round and said “I can fix this”. Sigh, I would spend the rest of my life contracting out my crocheted flowers. Mom left and I jokingly said maybe I should look it up on YouTube. Defeated I logged into Facebook and looked up Ashton’s page. I wrote her a note that said “Flowers are hard”.

Ashton replied quickly and gushed that she loved making flowers. I was thrilled for her and sad for me but figured maybe I could strike a deal with her, maybe she would make my flowers for me and just mail them to me. I was about to suggest it and resign myself to being a beginning single crochet person for the rest of my life when Ashton did what I only joked about. She sent me link to a YouTube video with a message that said, “This is how I do all my flowers because the rounds confuse me too”. Music. To. My. Ears. I was not alone. A young girl was able to validate my frustration and help me move past them. YouTube was the answer. Oh my goodness!! Since then I have set up a playlist for my crocheting tutorials.

I am an Instructional Technology “expert” (I use that term loosely) and I know the value, or thought I did of setting up Professional Learning Networks. Why didn’t I seriously think about YouTube to help me learn how to crochet? Why did my PLN only exist for my Professional Learning Network? Personal also begins with the letter “P”. Perhaps I need a P&PLN.  Now I can include my adult friends and teenage friends.  My son, 15 and my friend Ashton, 18, both knew the value of YouTube as a tool for learning. The skeptical adult in me saw it only as a place to look up new music, movie trailers, inspirational video clips for training sessions, or classroom simulations.

I promised I had a point and here it is, our students recognize the educational value of YouTube. We as educators must not be afraid of it. Yes, there is junk on YouTube and things that I don’t want my kids to see but that is true of just about anything and anywhere. So we must be diligent in teaching them how to search. Perhaps that should be my next series. In conclusion, I am thankful for the young people in my life who teach me new things every day. And, I am thankful for YouTube which helped me become a surgeon (of sorts) and helped me learn to crochet.

--- IT Girl

Chocolate and Praise

Hello faithful and loyal readers. I apologize for the long hiatus. I really intended only to take the weekend off from writing – not a week. Life is funny that way. I hope the 31 Day Challenge did not defeat its purpose which was to develop a habit of writing on a daily basis. Hopefully, I will get back in my writing and posting groove. While I was writing the 31 Day series, there were many other things going on in my Instructional Technology life. I have already written about the 1:1 Initiative – here is the link to an article about that.

 So, what has happened in the meantime? Well, students got their laptops and teachers got busy integrating. That is where the real magic happens. And what does every teacher need to keep going? That’s right, chocolate and praise.

 As I have visited classrooms and seen technology in action I have placed one of these notes in the teacher’s mailbox. It’s not much but sometimes any little thing will help. J

 

 

 

 

--- IT Girl

Reflections

Well, today is the last day of the 31 Day Challenge. It is a bittersweet day. I hope you have learned something this month. I have learned so much. In fact this month’s posts will become next month’s Tech Tips mail outs for the teachers in my district. I have also learned that Google is a lot more than just a search engine or cloud-based storage. Google actually has an entire educational side. I can’t wait to share all that I have learned with my teachers, in bite-size and manageable chunks.

I probably learned the most about myself. I won’t lie to you; there were days I didn’t feel like writing. I am sure you can go through the list and pick out which days those were.  October was a crazy month at my house: my oldest son in Driver’s Ed and the other son in band during football season. We had two parades this month on top of Homecoming Week. Did I mention that they both had big projects for school and they are both in the Christmas Play at Church, and, yes, rehearsals started in October? So, October was a challenging month just to survive much less write. I promise none of that was whining or complaining – I just want those of you who read this and also blog but didn’t think you would have the time or energy to write for 31 days that if I can do it ANYONE can do it.

I really liked the idea of writing about one topic for a specific length of time. It really helped with the age old question of “what will I write about today?”  All I had to do was pick an application and write about it. I think the best part of this entire challenge is that I did write EVERY DAY for 31 days – even if it was just a sentence or two.

There is always a down side though. I did a lot of things during the month of October that I would have loved to share with you all but it wasn’t directly related to Google so I couldn’t post it. (I am sure I could have but then that would have been overload for my readers.)

Now back to the positive. I have a lot of material that I can work into future blogs. I am even thinking of organizing my writing for the blog as topical. Then I can refer to my October adventures as “case studies”. That sounds so much more academic than a “hey, guess what I did today” post. Stay tuned for more Google news, though. I am sure there will be much more to write about.

If I had been really clever, I would have made this 31 Lessons Learned but I didn’t – you’re welcome. J

See you soon J (Yes, I am thinking about taking the weekend off.)

--- IT Girl

The Penultimate Post

A visual wrap-up and perhaps an foreshadowing of an upcoming topic.

Google Search 2.0

Let’s talk a little bit more about Google Search. As soon as Google became a verb, web searching became as common place as sock changing. In fact, as the mom of teenage boys, I would argue that web searching is much more common than changing socks.  Today we will be talking about Google Search Education.

Web searching can be a powerful tool in the hands of a student. Let’s follow that metaphor. Would you give your 4th grade students a circular saw and just tell them to cut something? Of course you wouldn’t. So Google is no different, or at least it shouldn’t be. The materials on this site can help you and your students become skilled searchers – no matter where you are in your searching experience.

Lesson Plans & Activities –Here you will find a series of lessons that will help you teach your students to create meaningful searches. Lessons are based on levels of search expertise – Beginner, Intermediate, or Advanced.

Power Searching – Self-paced teacher trainings.

A Google a Day Challenges – A Google a Day Challenge helps students put their search skills to the test, and to get your classroom engaged and excited about using technology to discover the world around them. Challenges include searches relating to Culture, Geography, History and Science.

Live Trainings – archived webinars for your viewing pleasure.

 

Google Forms Rubric

Today has been a long day. I am trying to get today's blog in under the deadline and of course when pressed for time writer's block rears it's ugly head - so, my dear readers you get a video today. The good news is that in just under 4 minutes you can learn how to create a rubric.

Sunday Funny

I've nevere heard of Curve Fragrance but these were too cute to keep to myself. So thank you Curve. 

More Google

Guess what I found today. That's write the official Google blog. You can get a Google Tip of the Day long after October and my 31 Days of Google is over. Here's the link www.googleblog.blogspot.com

I will certainly be bookmarking it. 

See you tomorrow. 

Happy Internet Satety Month!!

October is Internet Safety month along with Bullying Prevention Month. I have been trying to figure out how to work those topics into 31 Days of Google. So imagine my joy when I stumbled across this treasure: Google' Good to Know Guide - A Guide to Staying Safe and Secure Online. The page has links to valuable information for any and everyone concerned with Internet Safety. But, my teacher heart skipped a beat when I saw a link titled: Google Digital Literacy and Citizenship Curriculum. Oh my goodness!!! Lesson plans and activities for teaching my students about being a good online citizen. There are three PDF files that you can download and print to use in your classroom. The lessons are standards based and include key vocabulary, hands on activities, optional activities and assessment.

Class 1: Become an Online Sleuth
Class 2: Manage Your Digital Footprint
Class 3: Identify Tricks and Scams Online

I am tickled pink to find and share this information.

Happy Internet Safety Month!!!

--- IT Girl

PS - Tina, this is for you :)

Google Like A Boss

In keeping with the theme of Google Searching here is an infographic about that very topic. I found this particular file over at Lifehack.

How Search Works - Google

Pop some popcorn for today's Google lesson. I feel extra geeky today now that I know how Google works. I may actually change my opinion of spiders. :)





--- IT Girl

Google a Day......Enough Said!!

I am SO excited!!!!!!! I can't believe I didn't know about this.

Check out this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9X2iFKn01c

Here is the screen shot. The question of the day is at the bottom of the screen.

Here is the coolest thing - if you can't fit it into your lesson plans you could use this to differentiate. Students who need that additional challenge can search until their heart's are content AND learn something. And here is a secret that is just between you and me. As they improve their search skills to answer the question of the day, they will enhance many other reading and reasoning skills not to mention the amount of critical thinking they will have to do. Oh my goodness, I wish I had known about this when I was in the classroom. :)

I can't wait for you to try it out.

--- IT Girl

Ten Minus One

Today's Topic: Search Tips

On the far left of this navigation bar you will find the feature Google is most famous for. Search.
When you click on the word Search you get this familiar page:

So without further delay here are some tips to help you become a Google Genius.

1. Start Simple: Don't get fancy. Start by entering a basic word or name in the search bar. If you are looking for a location, enter the name along with the town or zip code.

2. Spelling Doesn't Count: That's right, sound it out. Points will not be deducted from your results if you misspell it. Google's spell checker automatically defaults to the most common spelling of a given word no matter how you spell it. Google is SO smart.

3. Use web friendly words: Spelling may not count but word choice does. Instead of searching "my tummy hurts" you will get better results using "stomach ache".

4. Be Exact: Ok this is for those of you want to get fancy with your searches. Use quotations marks around the words in your search to search for a specific phrase in an exact order. "Benjamin Franklin" or "Tortellini Soup".

5. Don't be sensitive: Google search is not case sensitive so feel free to use CAPS, CamelCase or lowercase.

6: Look in one place: Use site: before your search term. If you want information from a government site only, then type site: gov before your search.

7. No punctuation: Punctuation isn't necessary.

8. Need a specific file type? No problem add filetype: and the 3 letter extension (PDF, DOC, XLS, PPT...........)

9. Let me Google it: Looking for a definition? Put define: in front of any word to get its definition.

 I have no clue what we will be discussing tomorrow -- so be sure and tune in to see what happens.

--- IT Girl

Sunday Funny

This is one of the best things about Google, typing in the search box and watching the list "self populate".

And of course, what girl doesn't like to be right?

--- IT Girl

Paperless Part 3

Paperless, huh? Students can turn in their work and teachers can comment and provide feedback. BUT, how does the teacher know if the student actually made revisions? If a teacher has 150 students she can’t possibly remember every single writing assignment that is turned in much less recognize any revisions that may have been done. Well, Google Docs “records” each revision.

 

 

Click on file.

Click on “See Revision History”

Ta Da - the revision history now appears in a window on the right hand side of the window.

Are you giddy about Google yet?

--- IT Girl

This one is for the trees.....

I am wearing my Environmentalist hat again. We talked about using folders in Google Drive as assignment “inboxes”. We also talked about using the comment feature to provide feedback. So far we haven’t HAD to print anything out, right? Let me paraphrase Shakespeare, “To print or not to print, that is the question”. Using Google Drive won’t completely eliminate printing (some of us are just paper trained and need that tangible student project and that is ok) but Google Drive will give us a paperless OPTION.

Teachers generate a lot of paper “stuff” throughout the nine months of school. But, Google Drive could change that as well. Teachers mean well, they don’t set out to deplete rainforests one ream of colored paper at a time they simply want their students to have ALL of the information they need to be successful. So, what if teachers used Google Drive to share all of that information? Imagine never hearing “You didn’t give me one” ever again. Students would have access to presentations, links, study guides, templates, rubrics, or even reading assignments all within a folder. This information would even be available offline. Oh my goodness, this could possibly mean no more phone calls requesting just one more copy or reduced last minute sprints to the copy machine down the hall to make copies. Parents would be able to see the notes that students don’t copy from the board. This may not only be environmentally sound but could be one step closer to world peace.

Let’s create a Class Handout Folder.

This would be a folder where you can put any documents you want your students to have access to, but not be able to change. To make a handout folder, do the following:

• Create a folder.

• Name it something that will make sense to both you and your students. A good format might be “year-period-teacher-handouts”, such as “2013-14-Practical Writing-Handouts”.

• Click on the Share icon. (Person with a plus) • Add your students to the “Add people” section at the bottom, and give them only “Can view” rights.

• Your students will receive an email with a link to the shared folder.

• Your students will need to login to their email and find the email from you, their teacher.

(In my district we provided our students with Gmail accounts – more on that later) • Students click the “shared folder” link in their email.

• Once they click on the link to the shared folder, there will be a blue box/button in the top right hand corner that says “Add to Drive”

• Clicking on “Add to Drive” add the handout folder to their list of folders in their Google Drive folder on their desktop.

• Now anything you add to the folder will automatically be available to the students in the shared handout folder.

Do you have files that you share with other teachers in your department or grade level? You could create a shared folder for them as well just like you did for students.

Don’t forget to iron your super hero capes this weekend – you may be well on your way to saving the planet.

--- IT Girl

 

Comments – The New Feedback

Google Docs allows you to add comments to the share document, presentation, etc. This is a useful way to share ideas or give feedback to students. Comments that you leave on students’ documents can be commented on by the students as well, and back and forth. This provides a way to have a conversation about the progress of a project/research paper or to get clarification from a student or simply to provide feedback.

To insert a comment:

·        Click in the document or select the words where you want the comment to be linked.

·        Click “insert” in the top menu bar then click “comment”

·        A comment box will appear to the right of the document where you can type in your comment.

 

·        This comment will not be visible to others who share the document. These comments will not appear when the document is printed.

·        Collaborators can reply to any comment by typing in the box labeled “Reply to this comment”

·        You can also click the links to “Edit” your existing comment or to “Delete it”.

·        You can also click “Resolve” to close the comment from further replies.

·        Or you can click the “comments” button in the top right corner of the document or presentation to leave general comments not tied to a specific part of the document.

 

 

Tune in tomorrow for yet another way to help save the planet.

 

---- IT Girl

 

 

Go Green with Google Drive

I am a lazy environmentalist. In fact, I am so lazy about it I can’t even get the word environmentalist out of my mouth before I have shoved another recyclable item in the trash can. Yes, I want to save trees. I love trees. I abhor landfills; they stink both literally and figuratively. I want clean drinking water and all of those other things. Unfortunately my environmental responsibility ends with me picking up litter and not throwing trash out of the window of my car. I did make adorable jack-o-lanterns out of empty glass bottles, I am sure that must count for something. And, this post is all about going green with Google.

If we are using Google Drive in a classroom setting, it makes sense not to print out every piece of writing a student does throughout the writing process. It makes a lot of environmental sense to hand in assignments electronically, especially in writing. The teacher then can comment and provide digital feedback as well. No more lugging around canvas tote bags filled with reams of paper. The final Publishing step in the writing process is the only step that dictates that printing could be a necessity.  And we all know that Publishing no longer refers to just printing out and stapling to a bulletin board or even rewriting in our very best handwriting. In fact, once this writing piece goes to my editor (yes, I learned my lesson) and I reread it one more time to make sure it is really what I want others to read, I will copy and paste it into my blog program and click the publish button. Ta-da…published but not printed.

Ok, so back to the task at hand, how to actually go green and not print everything students complete in the classroom. Remember all the previous posts about sharing? Well, that’s what this is about, too. Students creating folders in their My Drive and adding you, the teacher, to that folder. (See, it’s not magic or rocket science.) And, the steps could be reversed so that the teacher is creating the folder and adding the students. It is all a matter of preference. So without further delay, here are the instructions for using Google Drive to collect student work.

·        Students create a folder in their My Drive

·        Students name their folder. The naming conventions should be uniform from class to class and student to student. For example: Year_Period_Student Name (13-14_Period1_ITGirl)

·        Students then share their folder using the “Add people” section. (Remember that is the little folder icon with the person and the plus)

·        The student should give the teacher “can edit” rights. This allows the teacher to provide feedback, notes, suggestions, and grades.

Note to the teacher: all of the students’ shared folders will show up in your list of shared folders under “Shared with Me” in Google Drive. If you have a lot of students this can appear to be an overwhelming mess. So the best thing to do is organize the folder list. (This is a one-time thing. So think of the time investment up front as sanity savings in the long run.)

·        Click in your “My Drive” section and create a new folder for the current year (13-14)

·        Open the folder you just created. Now create new folders, one for each class period.

·        Open your “Shared with Me” section. (Remember this is where the shared student folder clutter is.)

·        If your students followed directions J and name their folders to include the class period, you can sort the folder list. (Click on the “Sort” button in the top right hand corner of the screen.)

·        Select the students for a particular class period and drag and drop the selected folders into the Period/Class folder you just created.

·        Repeat for the remaining student folders and class periods.

Now you have student folders ready to collect assignments. J

When students complete an assignment, they just add it to their folder and the document will now be available in your “My Drive”.

Now, where is my I-just-saved-the-world-super-hero-cape? I know this one act does not qualify me to call myself an environmentalist but it is a step in the right direction.

Until next time.

--- IT Girl

Is today Monday?

Yesterday was Columbus Day. The school district that I work in had a Professional Development Day. So technically, there was no "school" Monday. I enjoyed soaking in bed a little longer than usual --ok, longer than I should have. There were only a few small fires that needed to be put out but by 10 a.m. everything was calm. I even got to have lunch with my BFF. The blog post was an easy one, although my editor just texted me and said she knows I skipped her yesterday because she found a typo. But overall it wasn't the dreaded Monday. Monday was not satisfied to let me off the hook so she kidnapped Tuesday. That's right today has been a Monday. Computers have dropped the domain, not a tough task but it is tedious. I was supposed to teach classes about Copyright but there was a key broken off in the lock of the door to the supply room (aka my office - I will post a pic of my office soon. I think you will get a kick out of it.) So I rounded up a projector, the power cord was missing. Thank goodness the teacher called and cancelled her class - today was her first day. It is horribly humid and my hair went flat so all in all it is a MONDAY. With all of that in mind here is today's Google Form lesson. It is a two part video series although the creator says there are three videos. I could only find the two. So if you find the third - Yippeee!!!!. I think you will really enjoy it. The links follow.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3nQB3VujPI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UaofsbzZgk

 

--- IT Girl

Movie Time

This week in my town the forecast calls for rain. What are a few of the best activities for a rainy day? Yup, reading a good book or watching a movie. So in honor of gray skies and much needed precipitation I am providing you links to videos to guide you through creating our next topic. Google Forms.

There is SO much I want to tell you about Google Forms. I could write page and pages and pages on the use and benefits of Google Forms. You could devote your life to reading about Google Forms OR you could click on this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBDtOc4AHCQ and watch a 7 minute video that will walk you through creating an online quiz.(The best thing about using a video as a learning tool is that you can pause and rewind as often as necessary.)  I am assuming most of my readers are teachers. If you are not a teacher substitute survey for quiz. It does not matter what your occupation is or how you want to use Google Forms the process is the same.

Sunday Funny

It's not Thursday but we are going to throw back a little. Do you even remember life before Google? Well perhaps this will take you back in time. 

So Many Questions.

Question types

I bet you are thinking that using Google Forms means only multiple choice questions, right? Wrong. There are actually NINE questions types you can choose from. Options 1-5 seem to be the most logical choices for teacher created quizzes, but maybe y'all think more outside the box than I do.

1 - Text

Type in a question.  The user gets a one-line text box to enter their response.

*

2 -Paragraph

Type in a question. The user gets a multi-line text box for their response. This type of question is best suited for open-ended or essay type responses. For my Texas ELA teachers, think 10 line short answer.

*

3 - Multiple Choice

Type in your question. Enter in as many options as you wish for the answer choices. You can also copy and paste in your list if you have it typed up elsewhere. (Think about those quizzes you have created In Word.) You can also choose to add the Other option where the user will be allowed to add and choose a write-in choice for your list. When the user completes the question, they may only choose one of the choices you have provided

*

4 - Checkboxes

Same as Multiple Choice When the user completes the question, they can choose as many of the choices as they wish from what  you have provided.

*

5 - Choose From a List

Same as previous two question types. Note: There is not an Other option like in the Multiple Choice and Checkbox types. When the user completes the question, they may only choose one of the choices you have provided from a drop-down list.

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6 - Scale (While the previous question types are well suited for quizzes this particular type is best suited for surveys.)

Type question, type in your question Enter the starting point (0 or 1) and the ending point (up to 10) for your scale You can also  enter labels for the endpoints of your scale such as “Disagree the most” and “Agree the most”, or “Lowest ranking” and “Highest ranking” The user will be presented with a scale of values on which to place their response

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7 - Grid  (Again, best suited for surveys.)

Type in your overall question or directions that will apply to each question in the grid. Choose how many columns you want in the grid (1 to 5), and you provide descriptive labels for each column Enter as many rows as you wish for the grid, and enter a question or statement for each. When the user completes the question, they will be presented with a grid of rows and columns and will need to click a single cell to place their response for each row.

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8 - Date

For the Date type question the user will simply choose a date from a drop down box or with up/down arrows. You have the option to include the Year or not. You have the option to include the Time or not.

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9 - Time

For the Time type question you can choose either the time of day format or duration format with hours, minutes, and seconds. The user will then select the time or duration using drop down menus and up/down arrows.         Information provided by "Using Google Forms" by Eric Curts.

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