In February, both 443 middle schools spent some time working with Google Slides on our iPads to familiarize ourselves with the pros and cons of the platform from our students’ points of view.
We discovered how powerful the collaborative aspect of Slides can be. Students can work together to create a slide presentation in pairs, small groups, or as an entire class. Slides is especially suited to collaboration because each student or pair has a SPECIFIC spot on which to work; there are no cursor wars like there can be on a shared Google Doc.
We also discovered that our students work in Slides on an iPad is a touch limited. Students cannot easily add an image or video via iPad (they would easily be able to add these on desktop computers). On their iPads, users are limited to adding text and shapes. We also discovered that one user can change the theme or color scheme for the entire presentation and can accidentally (or not?) hijack another user’s slide.
Overall, I think we agreed that the collaborative aspect of Slides far outweighs the limitations as a classroom tool. We even wondered if limiting students to text and shapes might focus their input and allow for more depth in their content.
We demonstrated our proficiency with Google Slides by creating a shared presentation showcasing each school’s classroom happenings: Dodge City Middle School and Comanche Middle School .
Since our work in February, several teachers have commented on using Google Slides in their classrooms for various tasks--music to my ears! So when I found a link to Alice Keeler’s crowdsourced project (with @htullman) Using Google Slides to Teach, I was dying to share it with teachers. There are SO MANY good ideas on this slide, and as the creators suggest, add your own, if you’d like!
As a teacher using your laptop, you have the ability to add images and video (see Slide 28 for a great tip about using Slides to more efficiently share You Tube videos!). You can also create templates (like the note card template on one of the slides). Here’s Alice Keeler’s tutorial for creating templates in Google Slides.
I love Alice Keeler's edtech stuff at Teacher Tech--so helpful. I also am loving Kasey Bell's work at Shake Up Learning--lots of helpful Google info, including this Google Slides Cheat Sheet!
Have fun and be sure to share the ways Google Slides work for you!
We discovered how powerful the collaborative aspect of Slides can be. Students can work together to create a slide presentation in pairs, small groups, or as an entire class. Slides is especially suited to collaboration because each student or pair has a SPECIFIC spot on which to work; there are no cursor wars like there can be on a shared Google Doc.
We also discovered that our students work in Slides on an iPad is a touch limited. Students cannot easily add an image or video via iPad (they would easily be able to add these on desktop computers). On their iPads, users are limited to adding text and shapes. We also discovered that one user can change the theme or color scheme for the entire presentation and can accidentally (or not?) hijack another user’s slide.
Overall, I think we agreed that the collaborative aspect of Slides far outweighs the limitations as a classroom tool. We even wondered if limiting students to text and shapes might focus their input and allow for more depth in their content.
We demonstrated our proficiency with Google Slides by creating a shared presentation showcasing each school’s classroom happenings: Dodge City Middle School and Comanche Middle School .
Since our work in February, several teachers have commented on using Google Slides in their classrooms for various tasks--music to my ears! So when I found a link to Alice Keeler’s crowdsourced project (with @htullman) Using Google Slides to Teach, I was dying to share it with teachers. There are SO MANY good ideas on this slide, and as the creators suggest, add your own, if you’d like!
As a teacher using your laptop, you have the ability to add images and video (see Slide 28 for a great tip about using Slides to more efficiently share You Tube videos!). You can also create templates (like the note card template on one of the slides). Here’s Alice Keeler’s tutorial for creating templates in Google Slides.
I love Alice Keeler's edtech stuff at Teacher Tech--so helpful. I also am loving Kasey Bell's work at Shake Up Learning--lots of helpful Google info, including this Google Slides Cheat Sheet!
Have fun and be sure to share the ways Google Slides work for you!