Cleaning up your Classroom Tech for Summer Break

Cleaning up your Classroom Tech for Summer Break

As the academic calendar winds down, it’s natural for educators and administrators to daydream about their summer plans. But before you leave your classroom behind for the summer, you might devote some time to do some digital decluttering of your devices. Think of it as the virtual version of wiping a chalkboard clean—it takes a little time now, but you’ll appreciate it when you return to the classroom next school year. Here are a few things to consider as you prepare for the summer break.

Decide on a strategy

Are you a dive-in-and-do-it-all-in-one-day type? If so, get out your calendar and schedule a day to spend on digital clean-up. On the other hand, if the thought of spending hours on end sorting through your devices makes your eyes cross, try setting aside smaller chunks of time. Spending just 15 minutes before or after each school day sorting through files can make the task more manageable. 

Delete, delete, delete

With the school year still fresh in your mind, it’s the ideal time to spring clean your devices. Are apps you or your school no longer use taking up space on your devices? Do you have saved parent email lists, photos, or lesson plans from previous school years that you no longer need? Go through and purge any apps, files, bookmarks, emails, and folders that you know you won’t need for the next school year. 

File it

“What if I might need it later?” is a common refrain when decluttering. If you’re finding you have a lot of files, apps, or lessons that you think you might need in the future, it might be helpful to create a “maybe” or “decide later” folder. You could even put a reminder in your calendar now for a date a few months into the next school year to review your “maybe” file.

Reflect. 

Let’s face it—the last few years have been incredibly challenging for educators. You’ve made it through another school year, enduring difficulties your professional training never could’ve prepared you for. Take a moment to acknowledge the wild ride it’s been, full of rocky moments and silver linings. You could even write yourself a short note summing up aspects of the school year that went well and those that didn’t.

Enjoy your well-earned summer break! 

Tips for Transitioning Back to School After Winter Break

For everyone in the academic world, winter break is a happily anticipated time. It’s two weeks filled with much-needed relaxation and recreation. But after the days of presents, family traditions, and delicious baked goods, it’s difficult to return to the classroom, and to the mental demands of full-time schooling.

Coming back from break is inevitable, but feeling bummed about it doesn’t have to be. Check out our tips for successfully transitioning back to the classroom, and help get your students prepped and excited for a new semester.

Give Your Classroom a Refresh

A classroom, like a home, needs an occasional reset. Use this new semester as a chance to give your environment a little bit of a spruce up. Start with restocking community supplies, dusting surfaces, and perfecting bulletin boards.  Then, take a closer look at items that might need to be replaced, such as worn-off nametags, book covers, or old bathroom passes. Giving your classroom some TLC is certainly time-consuming (#teacherlife), but creating a fresh, happy environment is worth it.

This is also a good time to assess your storage options and electronic care. Take a look at our recommendations for organizing all of your important tech gear. 

Allow Students an Opportunity to Share

Most students, especially younger ones, will be excited to reconnect with classmates and will be anxious to share some of their winter break adventures with the group. For teachers, the challenge is to not have winter break stories interrupt instruction time. Meet them halfway by allowing students to share a break highlight with the class. Use this randomizer to call on participants, adding some extra fun to the activity. 

If you’re a middle or high school teacher, think about beginning the class with a pressure-free icebreaker. Oftentimes, students are shuffled into different class periods at the start of a new semester; some new students could be joining the school as well. In any case, it’s helpful to give everyone a fair shake at getting acquainted. Check out our ideas for easy, fun icebreakers here.

Practice Procedures

It might go by in a flash, but two weeks is a long time to be out of the everyday routine. If you neglect to re-teach procedures, students will create their own. Don’t let this happen to you! Go over your expectations for pivotal classroom transitions, such as: what to do when the bell rings, dismissal to and re-entrance from recess, passing in homework, needing to use the restroom. Taking the time to get on the same page will save you time (and frustration) moving forward.

Review, Review, Review

Teachers have a lot of content to cover- but as tempting as it is- don’t simply proceed as usual. If you have cumulative content, or if the break occurred in the middle of a unit, make sure to work in some review time. Consider beginning with a review game or engaging activity to get those brain juices flowing. This will ease students back into the swing of things and help ensure that fundamental understanding is there. 

Bethany at Teaching with Technology compiled an incredible list of tech-friendly, fun activities to excite your students.

With the help of these ideas, we think you and your students might even be excited to return to the classroom. Best wishes for a productive second half of the school year!

Six Steps to Follow for Digital Cleanup

Spooky season is upon us, and to teachers and admin everywhere, there’s nothing scarier than clutter. As far as stressful messes go, classroom clutter takes the cake: disheveled books, piles of unsorted papers, and stale dry erase markers littered all over the place. 

However, there’s another type of clutter that is arguably more important (and therefore, more disruptive to teachers), and that is digital debris. Although less noticeable to others, digital messes take up space, both electronic and mental.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by your electronic messes, don’t be afraid! Just follow these six, must-do steps for digital cleaning.

1. Get your email in good shape. Unless you’re someone who automatically sorts email as soon as it arrives (a tough, but good habit), you’re probably due for an email inbox overhaul. This is a good time to trash useless mail, and while you’re at it, unsubscribe from some pesky auto-mailings. Create specified folders (ex. parent communication, observations, extra-curricular activities) to stay organized.
   

2. Be smart about storage. For smart phones specifically, loading your device with unused apps, dormant text messages, and too many pictures slows the efficiency of the machine (and uses precious battery power). This is especially important if you’re using teacher apps like Plickers or Class Dojo on your personal device. Rid your phone of excess “weight” by deleting apps you no longer use, comb through your photo albums, and delete old text messages.
   

3. Cleanup your Google Classroom. Keep your GC nice and tidy by archiving old classes and deleting old class calendars. Consider creating a folder specifically to store exemplary work for students’ future reference. Remember to not delete the Classroom folder; it’s necessary and difficult to recover.
   

4. Make your desktop presentable. If you’re too embarrassed to screen share your desktop with the class, then it’s time for some organizational overhaul. Sort documents, pictures, and other files into existing folders, or create new ones. While you’re at it, sift through old folders, trashing documents that are no longer relevant.
   

5. Give your devices a dusting. Literally. Dust and particles can damage the efficiency of your machine over time. To clean it, wipe the exterior and screen with a dry, microfiber cloth. Gently turn over the keyboard to allow the debris to fall. If you’re feeling extra ambitious, use compressed air to ensure that it’s as clean as new and running smoothly.
   

6. Backup the important stuff. It’s an easy task to forget, but one that will serve you well in the future: offload pictures, videos, and important files to a safer location. Dropbox and Google Drive provide perfect locations to safely store files, but you can also opt to use an external hard drive.

Implementing these steps will give you (and your devices) renewed energy and a fresh outlook.

The Tech-Lover’s Holiday Wish List and 2020 Classroom Must-Haves

As silver white winters melt into spring, many parents complain of the already-forgotten holiday things; toys have been discarded, and gadgets are broken or low on battery. That’s why, when selecting a gift, it’s crucial to consider the long-term engagement potential and usefulness. The perfect gift is one that captures the recipient’s interest for months or years to come.

As leaders in the field of technology, we’re familiar with hundreds of noteworthy and interesting devices. For the end-of-year holidays and for 2020, here are a few of our favorite things.

For babies and toddlers.

· Anyone with kids knows that everything farm-related is a huge hit with the little ones. Leapfrog’s Sing & Play Farm contains several fine motor-enhancing features to push, pull, and switch. Paired with five play areas and animal sounds galore, this toy is sure to keep their attention.

For young children.

· Vtech’s Touch and Learn Activity Desk features dozens of educational, interactive activities. Four double-sided cards introduce letters, numbers, animals, and people. From vocabulary words, to an easel and chalkboard and musical melodies, there is always something new to explore.

· Let their imaginations run wild with these KidiGo Walkie Talkies. These two-way radios are kid safe and keep conversations secure from other radio users. The backlit, LCD screens also allow for the exchange of messages. Talk about endless entertainment!

For middle and high school students.

· Give the gift of gaming adventure with the Xbox One S Two Controller Bundle. The system, which includes two controllers, 3-month trial of Xbox Game Pass, and a 14-day trial of Xbox Live Gold, has impressive 4k Resolution. And with over 1,300 games to choose from, it will truly take your gift-ee to another world.

· Whether it’s for a backyard birthday BBQ or a classroom dance party, this HP portable Bluetooth speaker makes getting the perfect tunes for any event, easy.

For any age.

· ASUS Chromebook Flip C434 is sleek, stylish, and boasts an amazing 87% screen-to-body ratio. It’s no wonder that this beauty has attracted countless positive reviews from across the Internet universe.

· The SmartThings Hub provides the user with connectivity to all of their devices, such as lights, locks, speakers, and thermostats. Additionally, the SmartThings outlet, directed via app, gives the user the ability the control whatever is currently plugged into the outlet. Both of these make the perfect gift for a practical tech aficionado, or a husband who’s tired of turning the car around to make sure the hair straightener is off.

· Anyone will feel like an incognito Inspector Gadget with Google’s Wear OS watch. Keep track of fitness goals, get reminded of meetings, and become notified about texts and calls all from one smart piece of jewelry. Choose one to go with every style, and read more about the countless ways a SmartWatch can help simplify life.

For classrooms.

· Teachers have enough to do without having to answer a million, repeated questions. A Digital Vision Viewer Document Camera is a game changer in this regard; teachers have the ability to project a physical document for the whole class to see. Whether it’s modeling a complex math problem, or projecting answers for a trade and grade, this helps save the teacher’s voice (and sanity).

· With up to 14 hours of battery life, this Chromebook 3100 Education by Dell is durable, practical, and affordable, making it the perfect match for the classroom.

Here’s hoping that one of our favorite things will also become a treasured belonging to one of your favorite people.

Get These Free Tools From Microsoft

Free is always good. And, it’s even better when something that’s free is also super useful. Microsoft has three free tools for educators we think you should take full advantage of as they will organize staff and enable professional development. 

Flipgrid

Flipgrid announced last summer that its recent partnership with Microsoft means it will be free for all educators and students. Flipgrid is a video discussion platform used by tens of millions of PreK to PhD educators, students and families in 150 countries. It works on Chromebooks, iPads, iPhones, PCs and Android devices.

What’s special about this software is it has tons and tons of uses, including how administrators can use it to engage their professional learning network. Flipgrid can build community among staff and create conversation beyond small talk. Just returned from a conference and have something to share? Take a few minutes and use a grid.

The best part is if you already had Flipgrid, it was automatically upgraded to Flipgrid Classroom this summer. And if you bought it, no worries, Microsoft is prorating every educator who upgraded to Classroom last year.

Microsoft Teams

Organization is the name if the game. Get the entire team on one page with Microsoft Teams.

Microsoft teams is the tech giant’s complete chat and online meetings solution. With it, you can create collaborative classrooms, connect in professional learning communities and communicate with school staff from a single experience. Host audio, video and web conference or just chat with any staff member in your building, Microsoft Teams makes it all easily attainable. Oh, and it’s free.

What’s more is this handy tool is also integrated with Office 365 apps so you can easily co-author and share Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote and SharePoint files. It is customizable and pairable with a phone system.

Microsoft Translator

Today’s school culture can include students and parents who speak another language besides English. When you can’t employ enough translators or bilingual teachers, download the free Microsoft Translator app.

The app works on any device to allow you to start and join a translated conversation. Microsoft Translator can translate more than 60 languages and its camera capabilities translate text in photos and screenshots. Voice translation mode allows you to have conversations with parents and students who speak a language other than English.

These three free Microsoft tools may be just the tech you need to make the new school year run as smooth as cafeteria pudding. Which ones are you planning on integrated into your school this semester? Share in the comments below.

Go-To Tools for Presentations: When to Blog and When To PowerPoint

The goal of a presentation is to effectively convey information that allows the audience to remember what has been said. That being said, there are several options as to how to give a presentation, specifically for a final project. For students, presentations can be given as individuals or groups, or for educators in seminars. The best tool for the job depends on whether the presentation will be visual or verbal. 

When to Blog 

Blogs are definitely the ideal verbal tool for presentations. They are becoming increasingly popular for e-portfolios, offering students the opportunity to review, communicate, assess, archive and display their work - including blogging for projects and presentations. Google has a great Keyword Planner tool that allows the writer to enter seed keywords and receive a list of suggested search terms. Microsoft’s Windows Open Live Writer is another solid option.

There are several pros to using blogs in presentations:

• Blog writing is informal, unlike academic writing. This style takes the pressure off students and also allows them to speak their audiences’ language. Blog, or web log, style is typically relaxed, which makes it comfortable and easy for students.

• Blogs allow for comments. Students can get feedback from peers, educators and even parents about their blog.

• Blogs are published. The students’ work is online and can help educate others about their opinion.

• Blogs can easily be linked to social media. Blogs are almost made for social media. A student’s project can easily be shared or linked to the school’s social media account.

There are also some cons:

• A blog doesn’t allow the student to practice his or her speaking skills. In today’s world - where it is a struggle to compete with online and handheld distractions for students’ attention - there aren’t as many real-world opportunities for students to practice their speaking skills.

• Blogs aren’t conducive to group projects. It can be hard to track who-did-what if only one blog is uploaded. Presentations give an entire group the opportunity to participate, even those that aren’t the strongest writers.

When to PowerPoint

When the presentation goal is to be visual, the presentation needs to be done in PowerPoint. Microsoft’s presentation software allows users to create fluid, cinematic motion in one click. Slides can be duplicated, morphed together, moved, etc. 

There are definite pros to PowerPoint: 

• PowerPoint is the standard when it comes to professional settings. It’s been offered in Microsoft Office versions for more than a decade. It’s highly-recognizable.

• PowerPoint can improve presentations. The software’s ability to use animations and images is a definite plus. Even basic shapes can enhance data and help get the point across.

• PowerPoint slides can be easily distributed. The slides can be printed or emailed. They can be uploaded to the cloud or saved on a flash drive.

Yet, there are also some cons to PowerPoint:

• PowerPoint requires some time to learn. There are a lot of options, which can seem overwhelming to users. Also, novices could put too much information on slides, ruining the entire purpose of using PowerPoint – which should be to enhance a presentation. No one wants to sit and read slide-after-slide. 

• PowerPoint could be riddled with technical difficulties. The computer could stop working, power might be lost to the outlet or the overhead display doesn’t work right. These might seem like conditions that can be avoided, but you never know what can happen in a space that is unfamiliar.

Follow us @AreyJones for more great tech tips.

Top Chrome Extensions For The Google Classroom

Google Classroom has been instrumental in changing the way education looks today. It streamlines assignments, boosts collaboration and fosters seamless communication to help make teaching more productive. There’s also the advantage of being able to integrate hundreds of Chromebook apps and extensions that save teachers and students time and make it seamless to share information. Extensions enhance the browsing experience by tailoring Chrome’s functionality towards individual needs and preferences. 

Here are some of our favorites.

Grammarly

Grammarly is an online editor that gives all of your text the once-over before you send it to colleagues, parents or students. It’s a free extension that revises the text you type in Chrome, Facebook, Gmail, Twitter, Linkedin and anywhere else on the web. It suggests corrections based on both spelling and grammar, and it explains alternative options because we call all still learn.

Screencastify

Screencastify is a great tool to use when you need to create a quick demonstration or instructional video. It is a screen recorder that allows you to capture, edit and share videos in seconds. It can tell a story in just a couple of clicks.

CheckMark by EdTechTeam

This extension is designed to give teachers the ability to provide students with feedback quickly and easily. When a teacher highlights text in Google Docs, an overlay pops up with quick shortcuts to frequently-added comments such as “Spelling” or “Check Punctuation,” or “Evidence needed.” CheckMark has both comments related to grammar as well as concepts, citations and more.

Shareaholic

Shareaholic gives you the ability to share and bookmark great content, without stopping what you’re doing on Chrome. It works with Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and more than 200 other services. It makes all your shared links searchable in one place and won’t slow down your Google Chrome.

Alice Keeler – Teacher Tech

This extension gives you quick access to Alice Keeler’s Teacher Tech blog – which covers all things classroom and Google Classroom. A quick click on the extension pulls up a list of her most recent posts. Topics include: 50 Things You Can Do With Google Classroom, A Tour Of Google Classroom and Google Slides, Create a Drop Shadow on Text.

LastPass: Free Password Manager

This handy extension saves all your usernames and passwords in one spot. It gives you secure access and will autologin to your websites and sync passwords. Plus, anything you save on one device is instantly available on all your other devices. Slick.

We'd love to know your favorites on Chromebooks, too.

Tech Cleaning Tips From Your Grandmother

My grandmother fit every grandmother mold possible. Impeccable hair. Crisp aprons. Mouthwatering homemade bread on the counter. She ran a tight ship with even tighter hair. For Grandma, spring cleaning was as much a celebration as it was a chore (but then she always smiled most when she was working).

I have more than a little of her blood coursing though my veins, and now that the weather is shaking off winter’s chill, I have the urge to clean as she used to do. And I can apply her methods to my phones, laptop, and tablet just effectively as I do everything else in my home.

Get sorted. While my grandmother had an eye and a hand for organization, my grandfather had a different method. Every weekend, she would group the mail, his receipts, and his tools and put everything back where they should have gone in the first place. Take the time to organize your documents and files in a system that makes the most sense to you, and delete files that are no longer relevant. For every minute spent here, you’ll save twice. 

Put the right things into the right storage. It’s okay to hold onto things (I myself am pretty sentimental). The trick is figuring out where to put them so that they can be reached where you need them and out of the way when you don’t. Consider organizing your files in bulk by year, and clearly label each file and folder with its exact contents. This saves you stress and energy, whether you are looking for Aunt Lucy’s china or last year’s lesson on volcanoes. And no, “Science stuff” doesn’t count.

Clear your desktop. If Grandma could see my laptop screen, she would sigh, “Clutter, clutter, clutter, dear. How can you see what you mean?” It was an odd expression, but I understood it. If you save everything to the desktop, you’ll never find what you really need. This works just as well for your desk as well as your desktop. Save it only for items you need to find quickly or things you use every single day. Rely on your filing system for the others. Delete the rest.

Clean your Windows. Grandma loved a clean window (even if the birds didn’t). If you are running the digital version on your laptop, Windows 10 has a handy Disk Cleanup tool to clean up temporary and unnecessary system files that could be obstructing your computer performance. Use this handy guide for additional information.

Empty the trash. Now that you’ve gotten everything where you want it, it’s time to remove what you don’t need once and for all. My grandma always emptied the trash as the last part of her cleaning routine, grabbing a bag and hitting every bathroom and bin on her way out the door.

Grandma made the most of everything (I can still taste her creative leftovers), and I hope these above tips help you make the most of your time and managing your technology this spring. If you found any of these valuable, we’d love your feedback--follow us on Facebook for more!

Greener Pastures: The Dawn of the Paperless Classroom

I picked up my son’s backpack the other day, and the weight of it astounded me.

It was so...light. Empty even.

I remembered my school days. I didn’t just wear a backpack; I lugged it. I measured my progress in school by the physical weight of my assignments. I remembered how frustrated my mother would get when I home--yet again--with a broken arm strap or a ripped seam because I had demanded too much of it. After all, aren’t backpacks crammed with notebooks, worksheets, books, and scratch paper a normal part of education?

Not if technology has anything to do with it.

According to the World Wide Fund for Nature, technology--when appropriately used--can reduce paper usage by up to 30%. Take Bank of America for example (they did). When the largest bank in the country turned to online reports, forms, email, double-sided copying, and lighter-weight papers, it reduced is paper consumption by over one billion sheets of paper. That’s a 32% reduction--on internal operations alone. 

And if Bank of America can do it, so can your school district.

There are several ways to save paper and money through the use of technology. 

• Use emailed school and class newsletters instead of sending home printed ones.

• Direct parents toward a consistent website or web page for frequently asked questions, the latest news, or the most recent homework assignments.

• Store documents in electronic archives for instant retrieval (rather than relying on file cabinets).

• Encourage the use of on-screen editing features, instead of printing and editing by hand.

• Share events on a shared calendar with reminders.

• Use Google Forms instead of worksheets, quizzes, and paper tests.

• Use Google Drawings for scratch paper.

• Use OneNote for notetaking.

• Embrace the cloud system for swift data recovery and increased collaboration and distribution of resources.

But it’s more than just paper schools are saving. Printing supplies--everything from copier purchases to toner to maintenance contracts--are expensive line items. With reduced paper comes reduced printing costs, and printing supplies--everything from copier purchases to toner to maintenance contracts--are expensive line items. Moving to educational technology also saves more precious resources: family time, patience, creativity, sanity, and wear and tear on a backpack you can keep for years.

How does your school save natural resources while unleashing productivity, innovation, and collaboration? We can always help you find more ways.

6 Tools in Google Docs To Help Write (and Grade) Term Papers

We’re in the throws of March Madness, and productivity across American businesses--and classrooms--is taking a nosedive. (Research shows that employers lose an estimated $4 billion in revenue due to the paid time lost in managing brackets, discussing team matchups, and watching games.)

And your students aren’t immune.

While college basketball teams are gearing up for the culmination of the season, high-school students across the country are prepping for midterms, term papers, and research projects. To stay ahead of the game, they have to stay on the ball--and Google Docs is a fan favorite.

1. Choose your Add-ons wisely.
   There are several Google Doc add-ons that can help you write--and grade--an effective paper. Word clouds, editing tools, a worthy thesaurus--all of these can improve your language and flow while demonstrating your knowledge of the material. Before you start adding a bunch, however, start with Extensity, an add-on that makes sure extensions and additional add-ons play well with each other.
   
   Try: Pro Writing Aid, Kaizena, and Easy Bib

2. Get a second opinion.
   Having another set of eyes on your paper is always a good thing. An unbiased proofreader will catch unclear phrasing, grammar, and flow problems, and they may be able to offer insight on specific context you could be missing. Use the Chats and Comments functions within Google Docs to make sure you and your friendly editor are both on the same page.

3. Find supporting research.
   Just like you can use the CTRL + K function to create link text, you can also use it to find likely resources--and sources— for your material. Simply type out the topics you are researching, highlight, and hit the shortkeys, and Google will give you some suggestions. Make sure to cite!

4. Use your Tools to Explore
   Another excellent resource in the Google Doc toolbox is the Explore function. Hidden in the Tools menu, Explore opens a side tab in your doc and gives you additional ideas and sources that support your paper based on the phrases, topics, and ideas you are talking about. It pulls from other Google services, like Google Scholar, Google Images, Google Quotes, and Google Dictionary.

5. Harness collaboration.
   With Google Docs, you can pass around thoughts, edits, suggestions, and formatting questions with relative ease. You can also sneak back into past revisions if a tossed idea ends up being relevant again. These commenting tools are also crucial for teachers who want to encourage deeper research or call out worthy sentences.
   
   Tip: Make sure you understand the difference between the Editing and Suggesting modes in active collaborating. Determine who has the final say before ideas start to swarm.

6. Minimize distractions.
   While not a specific function of Google Docs, it’s all-in-house ability to focus a student’s efforts can help funnel creativity in a purposeful, productive way. There’s no need to have multiple tabs open (including ones with live updates of the games); there’s just you and the page, and all the time and tools in the world to fill it.

What add-ons are you using in your Drive? We would love to know.

6 Markers of Memorable Mentors

We’ve all had at least one teacher or adult make a notable impression upon our lives. They singled us out, pushed us out of our comfort zone, guided us in our chosen craft, or put us on the road to our destined career--or all of the above.

Being someone’s mentor isn’t easy, however. It takes time, dedication, patience, self-control, and generosity--all the qualities that make a great educator (and a pretty decent human being). Here are ways to develop those traits and use them to benefit your mentee.

Make sure you’re ready.

Being a mentor is an important job--and it’s one you must do on top of the other important jobs that fill your life. Make sure you have the time, emotional intelligence, mental bandwidth, and organization skills to properly nurture a mentee, and you must be willing to work with students and young professionals who may have different backgrounds, education, opinions, and strengths. Remember, this is mentoring, not cloning. There’s a good chance you’ll both come away learning something valuable.

Light the fire with a good match.

One of the reasons your mentee approached you (or the other way around) is likely because you both share an enthusiasm for your job or your field of study. Embrace this and use it to shine a light on your mentee’s potential strengths, opportunities, and challenges. While this enthusiasm will fuel your initial arrangement, pay close attention to how well the two of your work together. Chances are the arrangement will either add to your own fires, or it will sap your energy and burn you both out. Be aware of this chemistry early so you can either mix it up or dissolve it before any damage is done.

Remember where you started.

It can be easy for those of us established in our respective fields to forget what it was like at the beginning of our studies and careers. Your mentee may enter into the relationship with idealism and unrealistic expectations; your job is to harness that passion and direct it toward what’s possible. Help them focus their efforts, find the tools, and develop the necessary skills. Meet them where they are, so they can determine for themselves the best way to go.

Be generous with your knowledge.

Great mentors are teachers, and great teachers are always learning. Take the time to clearly share what you know about your field, the industry, or the task at hand, and don’t let your mentee be the only one asking the questions. Make sure you both stay in tune with the process by asking how they are doing, what they are getting from the experience, and how you can be of greater assistance.

Stay available and accountable.

Establish a regular schedule for meetings so that you both can plan your time accordingly and hold each other accountable. Set the tone for these sessions, and have specific objectives. These expectations also serve as boundaries so that you can both tend to the other important aspects of your lives.

Remain objective and fair.

Perhaps one of the hardest parts about being a mentor is attempting to be an active observer. Mentorship is not friendship (think more LinkedIn and less Facebook); you are their advocate, but you do not owe them any favors, nor do they owe you any allegiance. For a mentorship to work, the mentor must feel comfortable conveying honest assessments and constructive feedback, and the mentee must feel comfortable approaching you for advice and guidance, even if one of their challenges is working with you or your field. Your role is to guide. Their role is to learn. There should be no hidden agenda or ulterior motives.

Mentorships can have a profound effect on education, careers, and personal lives. If you have a moment, we’d love to hear your stories about what being a mentor (or being mentored) meant to you. 

18 Excel Formulas and Functions for 2018

You already geek out over Excel’s amazing functionality and its features in Windows. Maybe you’ve already used it to create a calendar template. Maybe you color code your personal budget targets. Maybe you already use it to track student progress, grades, test scores, attendance, and days until your next school holiday. We’re not here to judge. We’re here to help you make the most of what this powerful spreadsheet application has to offer.

Basic Conditional Formatting

When you’re dealing with a mountain of data, conditional formatting can help you find specific information quickly and visibly by color-coding cells that match specific criteria. For instance, you can highlight any student who has missed more than three days of class or any test scores that fall below passing. Learn more here.

Formula-based Conditional Formatting

And sometimes, just a basic highlight isn’t enough. Sometimes you want your spreadsheet to help you identify the next step in your process, like setting up a conference with parents or an email to the student. Formula-based conditional formatting can help with that. Here’s how.

=SUM(): The first function you learn really adds up.

You already know how to add up cells in Excel, but did you know you can hit CTRL + [Cells you want to add] to instantly add them to an equation? This is a fast way to add across random columns or rows.

=SUMIF(): For more selective sums

Sometimes you want to add and gather data in a different way. The =SUMIF equation will look for certain data in a table and add similar items together. This could be helpful if you track attendance by day of the week and want to learn which days most kids come to class.  Learn more here.

=COUNTIF(): Add up occurrences of a value.

=COUNTIFS(): Add up occurrences of multiple values.

The COUNTIF() function allows you to count how many times a certain criterion occurs in your specified range. For example, if you add a letter value grade to each assignment, you can use the COUNTIF() equation to count how many As, Bs, Cs, Ds, and Fs a particular class or a particular student has. Use =COUNTIF(Where do you want to look?, What do you want to look for?).

More information on COUNTIFs here.

=AVG(): The average formula for above-average teachers

The average function works similarly to =SUM in that it allows you to grab the data within a column or throughout a sheet. If you use average test or homework scores to finalize grades, the =AVG function adds up (and divides evenly).

=MIN(): Find the lowest number in a range

=MAX(): Find the highest number in a range
This is a great way to find the range of cells quickly and accurately, especially if you are grading on a curve, or want to quickly obtain the range of test scores for a given exam.

=LEN(): Count characters in a single cell.
Never misjudge your Twitter character count again. This function will count the number of characters in a specific cell. Great for writing assignments with text limits.

=RANDBETWEEN: Generate a Random Number

Need help picking which student goes first with a presentation? Enter the RANDBETWEEN equation. Simply type =RANDBETWEEN(1,100) and it will return a completely unbiased whole number between 1 and 100  just like that.

=ROMAN: Convert to Roman Numerals

Perhaps not the most useful of formulas, but when C, V, L, and I are Greek to you, it can be a useful tool. Use =ROMAN(Destination cell with number you want to convert).

=ROUND(): Do a one-handed round-off

The =ROUND function allows you to round off numbers to a specific digit. Use =ROUND(number, digit) as the equation, keeping in mind that “0” digit will return a whole number, “1” returns to the tenths, and so on. =ROUNDUP() and =ROUNDDOWN() are equally fun, and further explained here.

=YEARFRAC(): Compare a date range to the entire year.

=DAYS(): Count the number of days in between two dates.

=NETWORKDAYS()

Still counting down to the end of the year? Excel can take the work out of that, too. Use =YEARFRAC(start_date, end_date, [basis]). For example, =YEARFRAC(1/1/2018,5/31/2018, 1).  Learn more about the calendar basis here. For the number of days or actual work days, use =DAYS(start date,end date) or =NETWORKDAYS(start,end) respectively. Place your date values in cells for increased flexibility and celebrate further with conditional formatting. 

These are our favorite Excel equations so far in 2018. Which ones did we miss of yours? We'd love to know and talk more about education tech, especially when it comes to Microsoft.

How To Prevent Tech Injuries

Technology has moved us forward in many ways, but it can also have us curled up in pain if we’re not careful. Here are four common tech-related injuries that are as easy to get as they are to prevent (thank goodness).

Computer Vision Syndrome (CVS)

If you use a computer for more than two hours a day, you could be at risk for computer vision syndrome, a condition characterized by eye strain, headaches, blurred vision, and dry eyes. While the condition is temporary, it can be frustrating, especially for people who must focus on computer screens for a large part of their days (and this adds up to about 70% of us, according to the American Optometric Association).

If you suffer from CVS, add frequent breaks to your daily routine, adjust the distance between your computer and your eyes, and keep your doctor apprised of any symptoms that don’t go away.

Tinnitus

Avid cellphone users--those who actually use their phones as phones--may be at a higher risk of developing tinnitus, a consistent ringing in the ear. While the connection is up for debate, some studies found that people who talk on cellphones for more than four hours a day were at an increased risk of developing tinnitus, which is difficult to treat.

Tech Neck

Tech neck is the catchy name for a condition that refers to degenerative neck changes due to poor posture, namely the shape we take while we are pouring over our smart phones and laptops. Maintaining this posture for long periods of time can lead to disc injury, muscle strain, nerve impingement, and ongoing related pain over the shoulders, down the back, and along the length of both arms.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is one of the reasons why repetitive motion injuries rank ninth for most common work-related injuries. The more time you spend hunched over your keyboard, the more likely you are to irritate the median nerve in your wrist, causing numbness, tingling, weakness, and pain in your fingers and hand.

Preventing carpal tunnel, and all of these tech-related injuries, is as easy as maintaining good posture at the keyboard, elevating your wrists while typing to avoid nerve compression, and taking frequent breaks to stretch, focus, and move your body in a variety of ways. Make it a habit to remind yourself and your students to sit up straight, pull shoulders back and down, and place both feet flat on the floor.

Arey Jones is here to make educational technology a comfortable experience for all, which is why we’ve been an industry leader for more than 30 years. Learn more about Arey Jones.

Setting SMART Goals For Your Classroom

While the New Year for the rest of the country started on January first, most teachers would agree their “new year” started last fall--and so did all of their goals for the school year. That said, January is the perfect time to review those goals, establish new parameters, and determine if they need to be adjusted.  

And using technology is a great way to do it.

We at Arey Jones are a big fan of the S.M.A.R.T. method of goal setting, a way of setting Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound goals. And when it comes to tracking and tackling targets, we dream big--and we dream in spreadsheets, calendar reminders, forms, and fonts - all in Google Drive.

Specific: Write Down Your Goals in Google Docs
On top of being portable and flexible, Google Docs allows you to share your goals with relevant people in your life, and they can leave comments of support, hold you accountable,  or add resources to help you along. How you phrase your goals is an important part of the process, and it’s important to keep these things in mind:

• What do I want to accomplish?

• Why is it important?

• Where must I focus my energy and time?

• Who is involved in its success?

• Which resources will help me succeed and which hurdles will make it more difficult?

Measurable: Using Google Forms to Track Progress

A SMART goal is a measurable one, and Google Forms is a relatively simple tool with many versatile uses. Simple set up the form to input all the metrics you want to track on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. From charting how many pages your class has read at home to keeping track of how many cups of coffee you’ve had each day, Google Forms is a highly-customizable tool that streamlines, validates, and consolidates answers and translates them into visible charts and graphs. 

Achievable and Relevant: Using Google Sheets to Keep It Together

Some people have found additional success using Google Sheets to track goals. Unlike a software with a steep learning curve, Google Sheets is easy to use, personalize, and adapt to your goals. Use Conditional Formatting to help you stay on track and organize your goals by worksheet to keep your thoughts, relevant resources, and successes handy. 

Time-Bound: Use Google Calendar To Set Reminders 

If friends, forms, and spreadsheets don’t hold you accountable, a daily reminder in your Calendar feed will. Create a fresh Google Calendar for your goals and set up small, actionable deadlines for the goals you want to work on today, next week, next month, and so on. 

What are your goals for the next semester? We hope you're able to accomplish them, and if you need help, we're always happy to chat.

Your End-of-Semester Tech Checklist For Google Classroom

Wrapping up a semester takes more than just accounting for all the class laptops, cleaning off your desk, and unplugging the printer; you should also spend a few minutes organizing your Google Classroom.

The emergence of technology in the classroom has given teachers something else to think about before locking up their classrooms for a long winter’s nap (or a much-needed summer break).

Google Classroom is a wonderful tool, especially when it is organized and maintained year after year. Here are a few suggestions to help you clean up after your last semester so that you can strike the right key with the next one.

Return all student work.

Google Classroom makes light work of homework by adjusting sharing permissions when it is assigned, and then once again when it is turned in. When you are done grading the assignment, don’t delete it; instead, turn it back to the student. This will remove the file from your drive and return it to the student (and they can delete it if they want). Emptying classroom files of assignments is a fairly cathartic process. Enjoy it.

More directions on how to return Google Classroom assignments here.

Remove students from old classes.

If you don’t want past students accessing (and potentially sharing) current class content, it’s a good idea to remove former class members from your student roster at the end of each semester. It may not prevent all forms of cheating, but it can be a strong preventative measure. 

Learn more about how to remove students from a Google class here.

Archive completed classes.

Archiving classrooms allows you to remove the class from your main Google Classroom page while still allowing you to copy, reuse, and access previously created material. The biggest reason to archive is that it helps make your page cleaner and easier to navigate--something most teachers appreciate, especially when logging in the first time after break. 

More about how to archive a Google class here.

Don’t forget about class calendars.

Every time you create an assignment with a due date, you automatically create a calendar entry in the class’s Google Calendar (yes, Google Classroom is just that good). Once the class is done, however, that calendar link just becomes one more thing to clutter your sidebar. Delete or hide the unwanted calendar in the Google Calendar Settings.

Clean up Google Drive.

Google Classroom is just a shinier, automated interface for Google Drive, which is doing all the heavy lifting of creating folders, sorting documents, and more. You may never want to dive this deep with your cleaning, but on the off chance that you want access to files in a different way, here’s your chance to keep your current files where you need them (in the Classroom folder) and to remove old ones to other locations as you see fit.

A good tip here is to create a Google Drive folder named “Archived Classes” and drag and drop completed classes from Google Classroom into this folder for safekeeping.

NOTE: You may never need or want to do this. This process doesn’t affect Google Classroom performance; it simply makes it easier to work within Google Drive for current classes.

Google Classroom has quickly become an invaluable tool for many teachers around the world. To keep it--and you--running most efficiently, it’s important to keep it maintained and organized. The good news? Unlike your physical classroom, where you have to move desks, take inventory, and haul boxes, you can clean up your Google Classroom at your kitchen table, coffee in hand, and in your pajamas--and it will still feel just as good when it’s done.

Want to learn more about what Google Classroom can do for you? We'd love to talk.