Mrs. G’s Guide to Technology for Writing 1, 2, 2023-23

Greetings CHAT families!

For the past two years, students at CHAT have begun to use and be familiar with Google Classroom. Students found that the platform helped them keep track of assignments, was a repository of any handouts from class that they had lost, and offered an online way to complete homework.  Considering those benefits, I will continue the work my predecessor (the AMAZING Mrs. Prichard) began by using Google Classroom for my classes at CHAT.  Below are explanations and descriptions of some helpful resources to help you get set up for the year.

The G-Suite for CHAT Classes

Kim Nelson has assigned an email account with chatclasses.com to all of my students.  (Last year’s students will continue with their emails.)  This is essential for using Google Classroom and the multiple tools that come with the G-Suite for education.  Mrs. Nelson has also made some videos and a teaching sheet for using your CHAT email account and getting into Google Classroom.  She uses an Algebra 1 class as an example, but the steps will be the same for my writing classes.  

• How to Sign in to Gmail and Google Classroom for CHAT students

• How to Forward Your Email and Create a Filter

• Intro to Google Classroom for Students (20 minutes)

• How to scan a multi-page document using Genius Scan (free) and get it into Google Classroom  (Note:  Genius Scan is phone app that scans documents and saves them as PDFs.)

• Student Quick Guide to Google Classroom

• Another Google Classroom Tutorial

Google Drive

• With the G-Suite, students have access to Google Drive, which is a multi-dimensional platform for documents, slides, spreadsheets, etc.  Think of it as a filing system for your digital content.

• To get started, students should create separate folders for each of their classes.  For some classes, they might want folders within a folder.  (e.g. A Writing 2 folder could have subfolders for Essays, Grammar, Literature.)

• A well-organized Google Drive will help students stay better organized with their school work.  

Google Classroom

• All assignments for the semester will be posted in Google Classroom even if we’re face to face.  

• Students will be added to the roster and will get an invitation to join the class.  Follow the links in the email.  Parents will also be added.  If you prefer to not be added, let me know.  

• The assignments will come in one or more of the following formats:

• An attached Google Doc on which students can type

• A quiz or form that students can complete

• A discussion question on which students can type a comment or respond to a classmate

• An assignment where a student can upload a document or some other type of electronic work

• Students will need to remember to “Turn in” their homework via a button on the assignment page.

• Google Classroom also has a calendar that keeps track of due dates for assignments.

Communication

• Email:  My email is amanda.gonsalves@CHATclasses.com.   

• Blog:  I send weekly notes in an email and post them on the class blog.  I will also use the blog for sharing other information, such as videos, websites, etc.

• Writing 1

• Writing 2

Finally, the 2 most important questions students and parents ask:

• “Where can I find worksheets and materials?”

• Attached to Google Classroom assignments

• In the shared folder for your class

• Writing 1

• Writing 2

• Note:  These documents can only be accessed by students with CHAT emails; they are also set to be “View Only.”

• “How can students hand in homework?”

• When we’re face to face, all work can be handed in physically in class

• Via the Google Classroom assignment (using the attached document or uploading material)

• If and only if a student is still in the process of figuring out Google Classroom 

• Send an electronic version (i.e. pdf, Google docs, or Word document – NO Pages or photos) via email.

• The specific name of the assignment must be in the subject line.

• Send only one assignment per email.