The Paperless Classroom: Google Docs = The Environmentally and Budget Friendly Classroom

The Paperless Classroom

Ideal, right?  Here are some tips that can help you move towards a more environmentally and budget friendly paperless classroom.

• Using Google Docs to create assignments and share the assignments with students.  Your students will need a google account too.  

What about a digital copy machine? This can be done by using "Doctopus" with this "add on" you can create copies of your assignments just as if you had done it with paper.  Doctopus will distribute the copies to your students, they will find the assignment in their Google Drive.  From there the students can work on their assignment individually or in groups because Doctopus can distribute the differentiated assignments to groups within your class.

Not only that, but Doctopus also creates a folder structure on your Drive and on your Students Drive.  It also allows you to "embargo" documents, this is helpful when you don't want your students to work on an assignment after the deadline.  We have used this feature too to administer writing and reading probes to our Special Ed. students.  

Google Docs also has a very cool feature called "Revision History" this allows you to see everything that has been modified in the document- by user and by time...yes, no more "I did work on the group paper Mrs. Smith" only to find out that he actually didn't!  With Revision History you can see who has done what in the document.  

Other useful features I like about Google Docs are:

• Live online collaboration
• Ability to insert reusable images with the built in Google search right within the document.
• Research and cite right within the document- with different citation styles such as MLA, APA and Chicago.
• A variety of Add ons to choose from such as Kaizena which allows you to leave feedback on the students documents via voice recording.  Sounds complicated but it is super simple!  This is particularly helpful to teachers who have a lot of student papers to grade and leave feedback.
• The ability to work OFFLINE on google Documents is great when you do not have an internet connection.  Enable Google Docs Offline now by going to your Google Drive > Offline (on the left hand side menu)> enable offline.
• The ability to work on your documents online and offline on your mobile devices iOS or Android. 

Google has just release their new Learning Management System called "Classroom" I am very hopeful that this new LMS will provide even better features than Doctopus.  For now, google is accepting applicants to receive "Classroom"- needless to say, I have applied already ;)

Below you will find some resources created by +Anna Otto, you can also find more resources to understand Google Docs here.

Go Paperless! Our team was recently called upon to teach members of our district's Learning Services department strategies for integrating technology into their professional development (PD) sessions. Knowing that our district would soon b...

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