Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Mixing Pencil & Paper with Google Docs.

I was able to visit Dustin Curtis's 5th grade classroom last week at Bayyari Elementary in Springdale, Arkansas. When I walked in I noticed that students had their Chromebooks open, and a word problem was displayed for them in a Google Doc. The students were working diligently on a paper with a pen to complete the problem that was posed for them. After completing their task on paper, the students simply clicked on the insert tab to add a picture, and took a snapshot of their work. The work they had just completed was then a part of the document on their screen. Underneath the snapshot the students were then able to explain their thinking and problem solving process on the Google Doc.

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This concept seems simple enough, but think of all of the benefits this truly brings:
  • It still gives the students the opportunity to work with pencil in hand, something we never want to get away from as technology continues to progress.
  • Student work getting lost or mysteriously landing in a random pile on the teacher’s desk is gone.
  • The students having control over their work in their Google Drive file to share with teachers or parents, and eventually choosing pieces for a portfolio.
Those are just a few of the many benefits that could come from this. If anything, this could be a great first step for any classroom that is taking their first steps with 1:1 technology in their classrooms.

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