PPS Instructional Technology

In previous posts I shared how to share documents with your students using a distribution list and the GClassFolders script that can be found in the old version of Google Spreadsheets.  Here is one more way to share documents with your students, and possible my new favorite way! DOCTOPUS In the new Google Sheets you will find the Add ons menu.  This menu allows you to add features to your spreadsheets and documents, much like the script gallery used to allow you to do.  The great thing is that the new Doctopus add on is very simple to use and walks you right through the process.  The added bonus of sharing documents through Doctopus is that you can set up templates for your students to use, as well as grading them using the Goobric rubric feature. Check out this video to learn more, or check out Doctupus in the Add ons store :

Last Week, I explained a way to share Google docs with your class without typing each email on every document by using the distribution/contact groups in Gmail.  Today we will learn how to use the script Gclassfolders to create assignment folders, edit and view folders for your class/classes. This is a great script.  What you need to do is enter your students names and emails one time into a spreadsheet, then the script automatically creates and shares folders for each of your students and two folders for the whole class.  I love this script and have used it multiple times.  It takes some time up front, but it saves me so much time over the course of the school year! You can find out instructions and more information about GClassFolders here .

When teachers first start using Google Docs, one of the questions I most frequently get is "How do I easily share my documents with ALL my students without having to type every single name in on each document?"  As a teacher, I completely understand the importance of this question.  Sharing documents is one of the most important features of Google Docs, but if it becomes a time and management nightmare, who would want to use it?  Well, I have some good news!  There are a few methods that you can use that will make it easy to share documents with your students all year long!  Here is the first and simplest method.  It involves setting up a distribution/contact group in your Gmail, then simply sharing any documents with that distribution/contact group. METHOD 1: Distribution/Contact Group Step 1: Begin in your chrome browser while visiting your PortagePS Gmail. At the upper-left corner of your gmail, you will see the compose button and above that the ...