Recently a teacher came to the Google Docs Help Forums to learn how to turn Google Forms Assessments off. The teacher was afraid students would copy the Assessment’s URL to share with friends. I was glad when Lance a Google Doc’s Product Expert friend reached out to me for help. The teacher learned two simple steps for maintaining assessment confidentiality.
My passion for technology started 24 years ago when my daughter was in kindergarten. During the time I didn’t realize how much technology was going to interplay in my life. This tool changed my life in many different ways.
First: It unlocked hours of engagement for my daughter. Our first desktop computer provided academic support for her reading and writing.
Second: Investing in a computer to nurture my daughter’s interest in her academics became a tool unlocking doors for me into the digital world. It was our very first family computer which taught me about maintenance of this innovative device. Thanks to Gateway computer support I learned how to recover from a crashed state.
Third: My job as an aid supporting students of exceptionalities led to the creation of talking PowerPoint assessments. I watched student’s who had difficulty reading and focusing independently work through audio tests. Very focused and a self-motivator which boosted the students esteem to work independently.
Fourth: My success graduating from college in the top 10% of my class. I spent hours teaching my Windows 95 computer to speak my notes to me. It was the three-step method of typing & reading followed by listening through headphones which embedded the information into my memory.
Fifth: As an adult with spine issues my computer now types for me when I’m laying down decompressing my spine. It allowed me to free my hands from typing in an awkward position.
Sixth: Thanks to machine learning I never have to worry about whether my heat was turned down. All I do is access an APP on my phone to check but only to find the smart thermostat already did its job!
Seventh: Driving is a breeze with all the extra digital gadgets which help warn me about cars and objects near my vehicle. When one has a limited range of motion gadgets such as these provide independence.
Eight: My automobile’s radar control is a lifesaver thanks to adjusting speed on the pace of the car in front of it. It allows me to shift my body differently and last longer behind the driver’s wheel.
Ninth: Video chats allowed my husband to see our daughter and talk with her during his cancer journey. It allowed him to escape the confines of our house when he no longer could leave on his own.
Tenth: Google Homes ability to create shopping lists via voice control allowed my husband to add last minute items to our list. It alway’s amazed me how this was possible to do but reaching me on my cell phone was still limited in the rural area where we lived.
Eleventh: Social Media and the dreams it unlocked for me as an artist. Thanks to the positive use of social media my works of art were included in several digital art shows. I’m still amazed my mixed media, ink drawings and photos have journeyed from galleries in NYC, Digital Billboards in Time Square all the way to a digital display in the Louvre Museum.
Twelfth: The invite to what was the Google Top Contributor Program and now known as the Google Product Experts Program thanks to my use of social media. I’m thankful for the ability to assist people throughout the world with learning best practices and beneficial ways to use Google Products.
School project research is evolving due to the rapid advancement of the digital world. Recently I asked a student, “Where do you go first to look for research information?” The response was, “I look for a video on YouTube.” Coincidently the same day I noticed some new updates in Google Slides & Keep integration which may help the student become a more efficient video note taker.
The first benefit of using Google Slides to take video notes is its ability to embed YouTube videos. You may be asking, “Why is it necessary to embed the video into a slide?” Following is my 3 Simple Reasons for using Google Slides to take video notes.
It limits distractions such as ads and the listing for other video choices. The videos are viewable in edit mode.
Google Keep may be open alongside the slide where the video is embedded. Keep allows the students to pause and take notes while viewing the video without toggling between tabs.
Student will expand upon their ideas by adding a new slide to the deck. Keep notes are easily dragged onto a slide making it easy to add details.
In the Google Help Forums, I spotted the following question. “If there was a tool for ungrouping and grouping shared Google Calendars?” Naturally, my reply was you can group shared calendars by checking them off individually. However, there is a tool for users to ungroup all at once by using the following steps.
Click Option Settings (3 vertical dots) for the Calendar to leave open
Select “Display this Only”
I suggested to the user about grouping calendars together and embedding into a New Google Site. My idea would provide a simple method for viewing several team member calendars at once.
You may find the following Google Help Center resources beneficial:
It always amazes me when I hear someone say, “Something is wrong with this program!” “My shape, image, & text keep disappearing!” I always enjoy the look of amazement when restoring the item by moving an image through the layer levels. Layers allow users to move shapes, images or texts backwards and forwards through the layers.
Directions for Ordering Layers
Click Shape to Select (blue box appears around image)
