TeacherMade has a new name: Classwork Studio
TeacherMade is a teaching tool that works for remote teaching and in-person learning. It’s free and easy to use.
It may feel like things are getting back to normal for schools, but experts warn that disruption is the new norm in education. From major weather events to large levels of sickness, staff shortages, and other unforeseen circumstances, there will be disruptions in every school district in the future. School leaders and teachers must have a Plan B ready when these disruptions occur. This way, learning can continue without issue. Having tools that fit your students’ needs is essential for planning for the unexpected.
Enter Google Meet, a free video-conferencing tool that’s integrated with Google Classroom! Many of you have already used Google Meet, but you might not know about all the extensions and add-ons you can use to make the app work for you and your online classroom.
Google Meet is Google’s secure video conferencing application, accessible for anyone with a Google Account. While Meet usually limits meetings up to 100 participants for 60 minutes at a time, schools gain access to advanced features – including up to 250 participants per session.
Google Meet integrates into Google Classroom so it’s a natural fit for most Teachers. Meetings can be recorded and stored in the owner’s Google Drive, resources and attachments can be shared with participants, and captions can be toggled on or off for accessibility purposes. Additionally, for Teachers with multiple classes and/or sections, Google Meet allows individual links to be created for these different groups. That way, each class has a designated virtual classroom.
Teachers can hold office hours or student meetings with Google Meet. Former high school Teacher John R. Sowash created a great guide for setting up Meet events of different kinds! Be sure to check it out for some unique ideas:
Grid View
While students will want to focus their attention on the Teacher, Teachers want to see all of their students to ensure that everyone is attentive and that no one falls behind. The Grid View extension lets Teachers toggle a grid layout, which makes all meeting members visible! While it’s not recommended for large meetings, a classroom environment with 20–30 people would benefit from a grid view.
Nod
Want to avoid interruptions and digressions during lectures? With the Nod extension, students can react with specific emojis without disrupting the classroom. So, students could use the “raise hand” emoji when they have questions, and Teachers would receive a notification. It streamlines the classroom process and organizes the environment without taking away from any interactivity!
Meet Attendance
Another excellent tool for streamlining the classroom, Meet Attendance, creates a Google Sheet that tracks student attendance across meetings. Rather than painstakingly marking each student present and switching between tabs or windows, Teachers can collect information in the background.
Push to Talk
While a general “mute all” extension doesn’t exist yet for Google Meet, one workaround is the Push to Talk extension. Chrome users don’t have to worry about forgetting to mute or unmute themselves. Instead, they can activate their microphones by pressing and holding down the space bar. Users can also configure a new hotkey if they’d prefer a different button. This tool was made for remote learning, so be sure to try it out!
Dualless
For Teachers unable to use or acquire dual monitors, Dualless touts itself as the “poor man’s dual monitor solution.” The extension allows users to create two windows on one monitor, with several ratio options available to create a custom look for your screen. That way, Teachers can have Google Meet open in the larger window, with lecture notes or other resources in the smaller one.
Google Meet is just one piece of the puzzle. With Google Meet, you are connecting through video conferencing. The next step would be to use tools that work with Google Meet to take learning to the next level.
When adding new tools to your arsenal, it’s vital to consider if it’s the right tools for you and your students first. One good rule of thumb is considering the Triple E: engagement, enhancement, and extension.
TeacherMade is the perfect complement to Google Meet. Once you meet with your students online, assign a worksheet through TeacherMade. With TeacherMade, you can:
With TeacherMade, you never have to make online worksheets alone. Instead, you can share worksheets with colleagues. Our collaboration tools allow you to get another set of eyes on assignments as you edit and create them. You can also invite another teacher to view student results so you can troubleshoot any learning struggles.
Don’t get stuck without an option for virtual learning. You never know when the next remote learning situation will pop up. You may see an extreme weather event, a large level of student sickness, or a staffing shortage. Make sure you have options for all parts of your classroom. TeacherMade has you covered on the assignment creation front.
TeacherMade transforms teaching materials into interactive digital lessons and saves teachers time with instant autograding. Our platform integrates seamlessly with major systems for personalized student engagement.
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