One of the biggest challenges with using Google Drive and Chromebooks as your primary way to author and edit documents is that there will be times where you receive a document in the more traditional Word, Excel and PowerPoint file types. Whether it's sent to you as an email or it's one that you downloaded from the internet, if you're accustomed to using Drive, there are many hoops to jump through to get it opened. Today's Chrome extension breaks down that barrier by making Office files editable in Drive without having to change the format. This means that you can continue to use Drive and Chrome regardless of the files that are being sent your way.
To get started, add the Office Edition for Docs, Sheets & Slides extension to Chrome. In your extensions toolbar (beside the url bar) you'll see the extension show up grayed out.
When you have an office document to open, it will open the document in an interface that has a little more limited editing functions. The basics will be there and, as you edit the document it will still be saved in your Google Drive account, it just won't change it's format to a Google Document. When you're done editing, you can share that file making it easier for others (who may not have Google accounts) to not have to try to figure out how to get it open.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
Google Hangouts (similar to Skype) is a web based application you can use to chat one-on-one or in a group using text, voice or video. Use the Google Hangouts app or extension to access your chats with a single click. Watch the short 1 min. video below to see how Hangouts work.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
Tired of having too many extensions in your toolbar? Try Extensity, the ultimate tool for enabling and disabling all your extensions for Google Chrome. Just enable the extension when you want to use it, and disable when you want to get rid of it for a little while. You can also launch Chrome Apps right from the list.
* Keep your browser fast - disable extensions that you won't use right away.
* Keep your toolbar clean
* Ideal companion for extensions collectors.
* Turn all extensions off (and back on) with a single click.
* Quick switch between several extension groups.
Application for Education:
When teachers assign various apps and extension to students they are going to need a way to organize those tools. This productivity tool allows students to manage Chrome extensions with just a few clicks.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
Want to send a link to a website via email? While on the website you want to share, click on the Send from Gmail extension to open a Gmail compose window with the name of the site already in the subject line and a link to the site already in the message area. Save time when sharing resources with colleagues and students.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
Today's extension gives you and your students the ability to save any webpage to your Google Drive as a PDF. This can be super helpful because of the changing nature of the web. Everyday the web changes in a variety of ways. If you visit CNN.com right now, it will be different in three hours because the news always changes. You may be able to find that story again, but sometimes it would be beneficial to have that page saved as it is at that moment in time. The Save to Google Drive extension can help you with that.
After installing the Save to Google Drive extension, the Google Drive icon will appear in your toolbar. When you're on a webpage that you want to save, simply click on the icon and it will scan the page and save it to your Drive as a PDF. It's important to know that the webpage is no longer active and the links will not work, but you will have a record of that page at that moment in time.
Additionally, with the extension installed, another option will be available when you right click on a piece of content on a webpage (image, link, etc.). For instance, right clicking on a picture will prompt you to "Save image in Google Drive" as one of your menu choices.
This gives you great flexibility to keep and hold content for future lessons, even though the web will change. Here are a few ways to use this in a classroom:
Current events: If there was a big event that happened over the weekend that got a lot of coverage, this allows you to save that for class next week to discuss or highlight.
Media literacy: What images or headlines might have been used and what story did they tell about a particular topic. This can bring up a great discussion of bias in media.
Web layout and development: Analyze the trends of websites over time.
Annotation: Take the webpage, print the PDF and annotate it.
There are many different possibilities created by having a record of an individual webpage on a given day.
Check out this video to see how it works.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
The goo.gl URL Shortener is an extension that lets you create a short URL with a single click. Simply click on the extension to create the short URL. Then click copy to be able to paste it somewhere else. You can also easily create a QR Code for the site. Just click on "QR Code" and then right click on the image and choose copy.
Applications for Education
Turn long URLs into short URLs that are easy for students to type. Or create QR codes that students can scan with their phone or tablet to access a site or file. Check out this Edutopia article for engaging ways to integrate QR codes into your classroom.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
If you are anything like me, you have tried to learn a second language on numerous occasions and failed miserably. Google created Google Translate for people just like you and me. With this tool you can translate nearly everything from written text to spoken words. You can find the Google Translate Chrome App here! You can find the Google Translate Chrome Extension here!
https://translate.google.com
The Google Translate Extension for Chrome lets you translate sites while you browse. Simply highlight the test you want to translate and right-click to access the extension.
Google Translate Extension
You can even embed Google Translate into your website. This will make your site more accessible to visitors who do not speak your native language.
Learn more about Google Translate at https://support.google.com/translate. For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
Pixlr Editor is a browser photo editor for all your editing needs. Have full control over your images, including layers and effects.
Pixlr Editor is an online photo editor. No download is required, and it's 100% free. It contains a lot of the features that you normally see in desktop graphic design applications.
Some key features include:
No account necessary. Create an account for free storage space if you prefer.
Nothing special to download or install, it works directly in the browser.
Provides tools like layers, lasso tool, brush controls, cloning, and filters.
Optional private Pixlr Library where you can store all your photos and images.
Tools include red-eye reduction, a spot healing tool, drawing tools, clone tools, sharpen, blur, and many more.
The suggestion for getting started with Pixlr Editor is to understand working with layers.
One of the best place for students to get images for multimedia projects is from themselves. Pixlr offers great tools for students to use to create and edit their own images for use in video projects, slideshows, online collages, and ebooks.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
The Add to Classroom extension allows you to add whatever website you are on to your Google Classroom with just a few clicks.
Applications for Education
Save time in your planning by utilizing this extension to quickly share a site with your students as an announcement, assignment or question without ever having to go to your Google Classroom. See how it works below.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
The PowToon app is a great way for you or your students to make animated videos or presentations. It's very similar some of the other video creation tools in that you can customize the content using the preset templates. Whether you're trying to explain a concept or introduce a project, PowToon can help you to engage your students or give them a platform to create.
There are a number of free templates available and there are also many object available that can be animated and included in your video. You control the animation, the text and can tell stories in fun new ways. Once you're done, you can export and publish them to a variety of platforms. There are lots of tutorials to help you out and you can even have students record themselves as voice overs.
Check out this introduction from the folks at PowToon.
There are limits to the free accounts so be sure to check out the account types here. There are EDU accounts available too but they are all paid. This is a great tool for teachers to use as a way to quickly and easily create videos for students. The PowToon blog has a post about 11 Ways to Use Powtoon in your Classroom
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
Newsela is a site that provides news and nonfiction articles for grades 2-12. The site adds multiple new current event articles each day from trusted news sources, each at five different reading levels and organized by category and reading standard. Categories include topics such as arts, astronomy, economics, geopolitics, music, sports and zoology.
Applications for Education
Build reading comprehension with relevant articles provided at varying levels so that you can differentiate for your students. Newsela makes it possible to have the class or small groups reading on a common topic at levels that are just right for each person. In addition to creating classes and assigning articles within Newsela, you also have the option to share directly to Google Classroom.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
Google Keep is possibly one of my favorite Google Apps/Extensions and it can be an important component to organizing your digital life. It is like Post-It notes, but better. With Google Keep you can create notes and checklists. You can also insert photos and audio clips into Keep, https://keep.google.com/.
Picture of Google Keep web interface.
Once you've started creating your Google Keep notes and lists the fun really begins. You can also color code your notes, share them with other Google users, and set scheduled reminders for your really important items.
Keep Apps are available for Android and iOS
In addition to the web interface for Google Keep, you also have mobile apps on Android and iOS. The Google Keep Chrome extension lets you create and save notes directly from your Chrome browser, https://goo.gl/JdUsSy.
Make sure you take the time to check out Google Keep. Another good resource, how to send information from Gmail to Keep (Quora).
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
Use Google Maps to find local business information, directions, and street-level imagery around the world.
Google Maps provides users with powerful, easy to use mapping technology.
Street View - Street View in Google Maps enables you to explore street-level imagery around the world, showing you places as if you were there in person. You can use Street View to check out a historical site, or plan a virtual field trip across the globe.
Different views - Earth view enables you to explore 3D imagery and terrain from Google Earth directly in your browser. You can also view satellite imagery in Google Maps.
Google Maps Introduction
How to create a "My Map" in Google Maps
Application for Education
Students can work collaboratively on a map and each person would be responsible for creating and editing their own layers.
This tool can be used in many curricular areas such as:
ELA - literature trips for each chapter of a book
Social Studies - record an event like the U.S. Civil War with a different layer for each year of the war
Many more ideas, including science, math, and design can be found atPractical Ed Tech
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
The Google Dictionary extension gives quick and easy access to definitions, parts of speech, and pronunciations without having to leave your current page to look it up. Powered by the online Google Dictionary, this extension works in two different ways.
First, once the extension is installed, all you have to do is highlight the word (1) on the webpage and click on the Google Dictionary icon on your extension toolbar (2). A popup will show up in the upper corner with the definition including a speaker icon (3) that will pronounce the word for you.
The second way is to simply double click on the word that you want to define. This will highlight the word and display a popup box over the word with a definition as well as the pronunciation speaker.
This tool provides quick and easy access to difficult words as well as their pronunciations. The biggest benefit in the classroom is that students will then be able to get this information without ever leaving the page they are on. This can obviously help as they are reading text on webpages, but of equal importance is to help with focus. When students have to leave their current page to go out and define an unknown word, this changes their focus from their current task and can potentially cause for distraction. Stamina for reading digital texts is a struggle for many students, this helps with one of those barriers.
Here's a video walking through the extension as well as the options that are available to customize the experience.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visithttps://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
Turn Off the Lights is a browser extension that allows you to shade out all the distractions around a video on a website. Turn Off the Lights is super easy to use but very customizable. Simply by clicking on the extension icon in the top right of your browser window, you can focus attention on the video and let all the peripheral distractions fade to black. Turn Off the Lights is FREE. It also works with multiple browser types and video sites, so you are not limited to Chrome or YouTube.
Getting Geeky
Turn Off the Lights is very versatile and customizable. It worked well on YouTube, Vimeo and news sites like CNN or KSDK. The extension did struggle when transitioning from a video advertisement to the main video. You can change the opacity of the shading, create custom colors, add fade in and fade out effects, and really make it your own experience. Personally, I increased the shading, added a blurring effect and bubbles to my videos.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
Screencastify is a simple video screen capture extension for Chrome.
It is able to record all screen activity inside a tab, including audio. Just press record and the content of your tab is recorded. So you can easily create a screencast for video tutorials, record presentations etc. It also supports desktop capturing, allowing you to record anything on your screen (not just tabs).Videos up to 10 minutes can be saved locally, uploaded to Youtube, or Google Drive with a single click.
Applications for Education InScreenCastifyeducators can use it to create short video lessons for the flipped classroom. Students can use ScreenCastify to create help videos for classmates, parents, and teachers. Having students create these types of videos provides practice in speaking skills and giving clear directions.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
The Google Classroom app allows you to easily access Google Classroom with a single click and already be logged in. This app should already be added to the Chrome App Launcher for teachers and students.
Applications for Education
It is helpful for elementary students to use this app from the shelf on their Chromebook for easy access to Classroom. As long as they are logged into the Chromebook with their personal @parkwayschools.net account, they will be taken straight to their Classroom home screen. Teachers, refer to Bill’s intro post on the differences between apps and extensions to see how to access the Google Classroom app from the Chrome App Launcher.
For a list of all Apps and Extensions that have been whitelisted in Parkway, visit https://goo.gl/sUpBKk.
I'm excited to let everyone know about a new project that we have going on between now and Thanksgiving. As we get more Chromebooks in the district, we've had many requests for how to get more functionality out of Chrome and suggestions for ways to do some of the things we've traditionally done on a laptop. As you probably know, on a Chromebook, if it's not on the web, you can't do it. However, there are tons of ways that we can do similar (if not identical) tasks using the Chrome browser.
So, for the next few weeks, every day you will find a new Chrome app or extension highlighted on this site. Take what makes sense for you or that you need and leave the rest. You will always be able to go back and find other things when you're ready.
All that being said, what, you might ask, is an Chrome app or extension and where do I get them. Here's a brief explanation.
Apps - Chrome Apps are essentially bookmarks to websites that live online. When you're using the Chrome browser or a Chromebook, these are all stored much like apps would be on a smartphone. They will take you to a website and, if it's a Google tool, you and your students will already be logged into the site and you're ready to get started.
Chrome Apps can be accessed in two ways.
On a laptop:
Open the Chrome browser and look for the "Apps" button in the upper left hand corner.
When you click on it, you will see a list of all Apps that you have installed on your account listed there.
If you don't see the "Apps" button, click on the three dots in the upper right corner and select "Bookmarks" and then "Show bookmarks bar". The apps button should show up as long as you are logged in with your "parkwayschools.net" Google account.
On a Chromebook:
Click in the lower left corner or hit the "Search" key.
Your list of Apps you have installed will show up on the pop up.
Extensions - Extensions are a little different. Extensions are little programs that run and add additional functionality in to your browser. There are many possibilities and we'll explore these over the next few weeks. Depending on what the extension does, most of the time, you will find them right beside your search box at the top of the screen on the right.
All Apps and Extensions can be installed from the Chrome Webstore which you will find on your list of installed apps.
We hope that you will find the information shared here over the next few weeks to be helpful and enlightening. If you have questions, please don't hesitate to contact any of those listed below. Thanks and enjoy the next few weeks of Apps and Extensions.
