1 of 6

5 of the Best Google Apps and Project Ideas for Your Class

2 of 6

App #1 Google Docs

Google Docs has a ton of great features that are beneficial to teachers for classroom use. Sharable documents, easy collaboration, and voice typing are just a few of the benefits of Google Docs. These features make it possible for students to write collaborative stories, keep and share class notes, create a class newsletter, or any other fun project. One of the best features is the commenting feature. This tool allows teachers to highlight areas of student work, spell check, and more. Comments can be attached to these areas that need student revision which the student can see and reply to. For collaborative student projects, teachers can have their students do peer edits as well.
For more ideas on using Google Docs, check out this video from the Teacher Learning Community.
3 of 6

App #2 Google Slides

Google Slides is the perfect tool for creating fun presentations for your class. Not only do you have the ability to customize the slide themes, images, links, and videos, they are easily embeddable to take your presentation from linear to interactive. Students can click on any given image on a slide which can be connected to another slide containing more information, a link, or a YouTube video. You can also connect these slides with Google Forms to test the student’s knowledge on the subject at hand.
Check out this video to learn more about creating these interactive slides.
4 of 6

App #3 Google Spreadsheets

Google Spreadsheets are most often used for mathematics, data collection and analysis, and creating charts or graphs. However, with Flippity.net you can easily turn any Spreadsheet into a set of flashcards, a trivia game show, or even a spelling word manager. These all make for great studying tools for students in any subject and grade level. Other fun spreadsheets with Flippity include a MadLibs creator, a random name picker, a progress indicator, a badge tracker, and quizzes to earn certificates.
Check out their website for demos and instructions on how to use Flippity with Google Spreadsheets.
5 of 6

App #4 Google Forms

Quizzes, surveys, and comprehension checks are all great ways to use Google Forms in your classroom, But if you want to take Forms to the next level, try creating a “Choose Your Own Adventure Story” using Forms’ conditional branching. Conditional branching is the feature that sends a respondent to a page based on how they answer any given question. That means multiple experiences are available to every student participant. For example, one form might ask if they want to go left or right and the path changes based on which way they choose. This activity is fun for students, but can also build up students’ decision making and critical thinking skills.
For more ideas on how to use Google Forms, check out this article.
6 of 6  

App #5 Google Drawings

Labeling activities can be effective activities for any grade level in teaching new material. With Google Drawings, it is easy to create images with labels for these types of activities. For example, a Geography class might have to label countries on a map, or a Biology class might have to label parts of the human body. Labeling activities help students connect visual elements to vocabulary words. This connection can lead to better retention of the information. Google Drawings can also be easily shared and inserted into other Google apps.

Resource Guide: 5 Google Apps for Your Classroom

Published On: May 16th, 2016·By ·
 1 of 6

5 of the Best Google Apps and Project Ideas for Your Class

2 of 6

App #1 Google Docs

Google Docs has a ton of great features that are beneficial to teachers for classroom use. Sharable documents, easy collaboration, and voice typing are just a few of the benefits of Google Docs. These features make it possible for students to write collaborative stories, keep and share class notes, create a class newsletter, or any other fun project. One of the best features is the commenting feature. This tool allows teachers to highlight areas of student work, spell check, and more. Comments can be attached to these areas that need student revision which the student can see and reply to. For collaborative student projects, teachers can have their students do peer edits as well.
For more ideas on using Google Docs, check out this video from the Teacher Learning Community.
3 of 6

App #2 Google Slides

Google Slides is the perfect tool for creating fun presentations for your class. Not only do you have the ability to customize the slide themes, images, links, and videos, they are easily embeddable to take your presentation from linear to interactive. Students can click on any given image on a slide which can be connected to another slide containing more information, a link, or a YouTube video. You can also connect these slides with Google Forms to test the student’s knowledge on the subject at hand.
Check out this video to learn more about creating these interactive slides.
4 of 6

App #3 Google Spreadsheets

Google Spreadsheets are most often used for mathematics, data collection and analysis, and creating charts or graphs. However, with Flippity.net you can easily turn any Spreadsheet into a set of flashcards, a trivia game show, or even a spelling word manager. These all make for great studying tools for students in any subject and grade level. Other fun spreadsheets with Flippity include a MadLibs creator, a random name picker, a progress indicator, a badge tracker, and quizzes to earn certificates.
Check out their website for demos and instructions on how to use Flippity with Google Spreadsheets.
5 of 6

App #4 Google Forms

Quizzes, surveys, and comprehension checks are all great ways to use Google Forms in your classroom, But if you want to take Forms to the next level, try creating a “Choose Your Own Adventure Story” using Forms’ conditional branching. Conditional branching is the feature that sends a respondent to a page based on how they answer any given question. That means multiple experiences are available to every student participant. For example, one form might ask if they want to go left or right and the path changes based on which way they choose. This activity is fun for students, but can also build up students’ decision making and critical thinking skills.
For more ideas on how to use Google Forms, check out this article.
6 of 6  

App #5 Google Drawings

Labeling activities can be effective activities for any grade level in teaching new material. With Google Drawings, it is easy to create images with labels for these types of activities. For example, a Geography class might have to label countries on a map, or a Biology class might have to label parts of the human body. Labeling activities help students connect visual elements to vocabulary words. This connection can lead to better retention of the information. Google Drawings can also be easily shared and inserted into other Google apps.

What are your favorite Google Apps?

What are some Google Apps you enjoy using in your classroom? Do you have more ideas on how to use these apps in the classroom? Please share your thoughts and comments below.

Carolina Fransen is the EdTech Apps and Tools Editor at SimpleK12.com. She writes regularly about the use of educational technology in K-12 classrooms. If you have an app, tool, website, or service that you think we should know about, please send your information or tip to editor@simplek12.com.

 

Professional Development made simple

We offer flexible classes that address the needs of teachers and schools to support today’s classrooms and increase student success

Categories
Latest posts

Sign up for our newsletter