Rob Morrill
Quick Take Videos
Note: these videos are by now, 2021, somewhat or very out of date. I'm keeping this page as a bit of an archive of past work.
Many of these videos are meant to give you a quick overview of digital tools so that you can see if they might be right for your classroom. Other videos quickly show how an aspect of an app works. For more info, have a look elsewhere on this site, do a YouTube search, or contact me. I'm happy to help! Unless otherwise noted, all of these apps work on Chromebooks.
Jump to:
-
Doing More with Functions and Conditional Formatting in Sheets
-
Google Drive: share and search in Drive
-
Google Forms: create exit tickets with Forms
-
Remind.com: distribute info or even micro-blog via one-way texts
16. Google Forms: surveys and quizzes with text and/or multiple choice
17. Feedback through Google Docs, including "Docs stamps"
18. Prezi: presentations whose form reflects meaning
19. Smooth Transition in Prezi
20. Numbered Lists and Format Paintbrush in Docs
21. Control Images and Text with Tables in Docs
23. Features of "View" and "Insert" in Docs
24. The Research Pane in Docs: do research and insert citations in Docs
25. Storytelling with Explain Everything
26. Key Concepts w/ Younger Students in Scratch Jr. -- Coding + Content!
27. Insert Links into Any Image: Thinglink for multimedia projects
Spreadsheets let you start manipulating data in powerful ways. Check out this quick look at getting started using functions to do tasks like dynamically adding or averaging numbers.
Functions in Sheets 2:39
Creating Charts from Google Sheets
Sheets makes it easy to create charts and graphs, and these can then be inserted in Docs, Slides, Sites, etc.
Creating Charts 2:06
Inserting Charts in Docs, Slides, and Sites
Google makes it easy to insert a chart you've made with Sheets into a Doc, Slides presentations, or Site. The inserted chart will update when you make changes to the Sheet it's based on.
Inserting Charts 1:09
Doing More with Functions and Conditional Formatting in Sheets
This video shows a few more ways to use functions, and it also introduces conditional formatting. Conditional formatting allows you to make a cell behave a certain way (like turn red) if particular conditions are met (like its value is less than zero).
More Functions and Conditional Formatting in Sheets: 4:34
Here's an orientation for your Google Drive. If you've recently switched from a different system, this quick take video will help you get the lay of the land.
Navigate your Drive: 1:39
Create, Move, and Color Folders and Files
This quick take shows some ways to get your Drive organized and looking pretty, including a pro tip about how to put a file into multiple folders simulanteously.
Create, Move, and Color Folders and Files: 1:38
Google Forms isn't a great tool for a sign-up sheet if six parents can sign up for the 5:00 conference slot or if fourteen students volunteer to bring chips and dip to the party. Easily solve this problem by limiting the number of times a Forms option can be selected. See Bjorn Behrendt's Choice Eliminator site for more.
Sign-ups with Google Forms: 1:39
Keep is a great tool for jotting to-do lists, longer notes, and for saving images and pages from the web. Color-code, label, and organize your notes, share them with collaborators, and create them on any device as they sync between your laptop, phone, and tablet.
Google Keep: 1:48
This timeline generator allows students and teachers to easily create, share, and embed timelines with text, links, images, video, quizzes, and more. Use it across the curriculum in creative ways to present ideas and research. Now with a collaboration feature. Sample timeline.
Timelines Across the Curriculum: 1:26
The Question feature in Google Classroom allows students to respond individually to the teacher or to participate in an online conversation with other students.
Google Classroom Questions: 1:21
Make custom Google maps with points, lines, shapes, text, images, and links to web pages, videos, Google Docs and Sheets. Tell stories about history, literature, science, society, and more. Using My Maps how-to video, My sample map on Caesar, Google My Maps page.
Google's My Maps: 1:07
Use your phone, tablet, or computer to send updates and reminders, or even to create a micro-blog for your classroom with sub-140 character posts. Parents get a text message, everyone's numbers remain confidential, and you can turn off the ability to reply.
Remind.com: 1:06
Essays and Worksheets through Google Classroom
Create a single essay doc or worksheet, then easily distribute personal copies to each student. They can type their work in, receive feedback during and/or after, then submit for your comments and grades. Docs are named and organized automatically in both students' and teachers' Drives. Here's a guide for students on Accessing Google Classroom.
Essays and Worksheets through Google Classroom: 1:02
Google Forms
Use Google Forms to make everything from qucik, "exit ticket" style check-ins to lengthy quizzes and tests with text and multiple choice answers. See responses in various ways, including automatically grading multiple choice with Flubaroo or turning short answers into a doc with Save as Doc.
Google Forms: 1:26
Feedback through Google Docs
Here's a look at giving feedback on student work through Docs, and it includes a favorite pro tip of mine: creating a bank of comments and links to help resources for common grammar errors. Here's my page of "Doc Stamps" that I copy and paste into comments.
Feedback through Google Docs: 1:29
Prezi
Prezi is a great way to create dynamic presentations whose form reinforces and even creates meaning. Watch this or "Smooth Transitions in Prezi" for a pro tip on how to keep your viewers nausea-free! Here are Prezi's tutorials.
Prezi: 1:24
Smooth Transitions in Prezi
Prezi can be a fantastic presentation tool in which the the form of the presentation, the structure and transitions, reflects the meaning, the ideas and content. OR, it can be a nausea-inducing roller coaster ride. Here's a pro tip on nausea-avoidance. Also see Prezi's good tutorials, like this one.
Smooth Transitions in Prezi: 1:19
Numbered Lists and the Format Paintbrush in Docs
The format paintbrush tool is surprisingly useful for applying the formatting of one piece of text to another. I like using it to make some lines in a document numbered.
Numbered Lists and the Format Paintbrush in Docs: 00:31
Control Images and Text with Tables in Docs
Tables are a great way to add more variety and control to images and text in Google Docs.
Control Images and Text with Tables in Docs: 1:02
Convert Word to Docs
If you have or recieve Microsoft Word documents that you want to convert to Google Docs format, Google makes the process pretty easy and effective. The formatting usually translates well, and the Word version still remains in your Drive.
Convert Word to Docs: 1:08
Features of View and Insert in Docs
Here's a quick look at a few key features in the View and Insert drop-down menus in Docs. Change margins, insert math formulae, create headers, and do other cool stuff.
Features of View and Insert in Docs: 1:27
The Research Pane in Docs
The "Research" feature in Docs lets you conduct research then insert images, links, and properly-formatted footnote citations.
The Research Pane in Docs: 1:23
Storytelling in Explain Everything
Explain Everything is a screencasting app for iPads, Chromebooks, and other devices. It's a great way for students to narrate their understanding of something and accompany it with visuals that they manipulate. This example shows how it might be used for story telling. For younger students, the teacher or I could set up the visuals based on the students' storyboarded ideas, and then we record. Older students could tell a story or share their knowledge of a topic
Storytelling with Explain Everything :58
Key Concepts with Young Students in Scratch
Scratch Jr. can be a great way for students to visualize and gain ownership over concepts they study relating to math, money, time, etc. They combine those ideas with challenges arising from the block programming environment of the app, and in the end, they see their growing understanding come to life. Available on iPads and Android tablets.
Key Concepts with Young Students :27
Another example of Scratch Jr, this one with photos of the money rather than drawings.
Money Literacy and Coding with Scratch Jr. :29
Insert Links into Any Image with Thinglink
Thinglink lets you take text, images, video, sound, docs, and more and insert them as linked "tags" on an image or collage of images. A great, flexible, easy tool for teachers or students to create interactive projects. More resources here. Also, woof.
Insert Links into Any Image 1:30