Google

Google Docs Challenge

by Katherine Ramsey

• What did you create, and why? 

         I created a Google Doc to send home with students on the first day of classes this fall. The letter has two main purposes: to give parents information about me and to get information from parents. The letter tells parents what supplies students will need, how they will be graded, and how parents can reach me. I ask for basic contact information from parents/guardians and ask if the student has access to the internet. I also offer extra credit for students if their parents send me an email (the act of sending me an email just about guarantees that my emails to them will not end up in their Spam folder).

• What went well for you?

        Most of this challenge went well. My familiarity with Microsoft Word translated over to Google Docs quite nicely. Formatting was essentially the same as with Word. I found the insert picture to work nicely and had a variety of pictures from which to choose. The fact that the document saves automatically made it to where I didn't need to worry about saving which is a nice feature.

• What was challenging?

         Some of the shortcuts in Word, don't work in Google Docs. In Word I type "--" and it makes one long bold line. In Google Docs, it makes two short lines. Not awesome. I couldn't find an option for inserting a date (in Word it is Insert - Date). I got over it and really decided that I didn't need a changing date - I just changed it to the school year.

• What did you enjoy? 

        I enjoyed using the Insert Picture function. There seemed to be more options for pictures than I had with Word. I enjoyed knowing that I have my welcome letter done and ready to go in September.

• What ideas do you have for using this tool with your students, grade level, staff or to communicate with families? 

         I will use Google Docs to communicate with students, parents, and colleagues. I like the fact that we can have ONE live document and collaborate on the document at the same time. I plan on using Google Docs for assignments - make a copy for each student. I'm looking forward to seeing all the ways I can use Google Docs in class.