Have you tried Google Classroom? Google Classroom is a blended learning platform for schools. It is part of the Google Apps for Education (#GAFE) tools.
I never in a million years imagined using it with kindergarteners. But, guess what?! I did!
I was amazed with my students ability to navigate the system and its overall ease of use.
I was amazed with my students ability to navigate the system and its overall ease of use.
Via Google Classroom I am able to give my students assignments, links to websites and send announcements. We primarily used Google Classroom to learn about various Google tools such as Google Docs, Google Drawings and Google Slides. Yes, you could use Google Drive to get to these tools but Google Classroom is much less work and easier to navigate. Trust me. I tried both ways.
What I loved about this platform was that it gave my students the opportunity to create, collaborate, learn and explore. Students discovered that they were capable of creating digitally.
Rarely did students finish assignments in one sitting. That was okay. I made sure to provide time throughout the week as well as to make sure that the assignment did not have an immediate due date. For early finishers, I was able to differentiate by adding a writing component, having them help other students or giving them a different assignment.
Our culminating assignment was to create a Google Slide presentation about an ocean animal. This assignment allowed my students to show their mastery of many of the skills that we had learned over the course of the school year.
Want to learn more about how to get started with Google Classroom? Sailing into Second Grade has a great blog post about Google Classroom basics.
Happy Teaching!
I'm Mrs. Parker; a wife, mother and a lifelong learner. I am blessed to be a kindergarten teacher where I get to laugh, learn and play alongside my students. My blog is a reflection of my journey as a teacher.
We used Google Classroom with our K and 1st graders this past school year. The students loved it and so did we. We can't wait to explore even more this year.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to share ideas on how else to use Google Classroom.
DeleteHi there,
DeleteQuestion for you...how were your students able to log onto Google Classroom?
I can't wait to use this with my 4th graders this year!
ReplyDelete✰Becca
Faith Filled Teaching
Good luck! If my Ks can do it, so can your class. :)
DeleteDo your students have a Gmail login for Classroom? Most primary grade teachers I have spoken to don't have Gmail turned on for the their students. Can you please describe how your students get into Classroom? How do they get to their Drive files?
ReplyDeleteThanks for your assistance.
Gene
Our students have an account set up by our tech dept. Children under 12 can not email per say but can use Google apps for Education.
DeleteMs. Parker, your article and especially the student sample were very inspirational! Question: Did you have parents question your use of GAFE with your kindergarten students? If so, how did you ease their mind about its use in your classroom?
ReplyDeleteSeeing is believing. One that that I did was invite parents to see their child using GAFE. Their were amazed at what their child could do and how they helped one another.
ReplyDeleteYeah I agree that Google Classroom is a great way to teach so many things to the kids. We have also been using it in our Phoenix preschool. You know our kiddos really like it.
ReplyDeleteMy district uses chromebooks as 1:1 device. Trying to show K teachers that building capacity at K is important and possible. Any suggestions to make teachers believers? Any class routines? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteFirst, I would share this post with your team. It is possible. In k, I would go slow. We haven't started yet because we are still mastering logging in. But, I am ready to launch it soon. Feel free to email me.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWe have used Gmail, all GAFE, and Google Classroom very successfully with our gr. 3-12 students. However, could someone explain how they get the younger students into Classroom and other GAFE without their using/having a gmail account? (Parents already are often suspicious of gr. 3 having email until they understand it is "locked down" and only used for training, for gr. 3/4.) Thanks for any advice.
ReplyDeleteStudents have an email address but are unable to use that feature. Our IT set up the accounts. The email account only allows access to GAFE tools.
DeleteThanks. Each one still has to sign into the account and enter a password, right? But they could all have the same password to make it a little easier, I'm thinking.
ReplyDeleteAre there any other apps for android tablets which the kindergarten children can use for creative writing? Which allows free hand drawing and writing a couple of lines with it?
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your comment. Have you tried Seesaw? It is a great app which children can record, write, draw as well as take pictures and app smash. I highly suggest you try it.
DeleteThank you for this post! We are a GAFE school district in NC and are working to get more K-2 teachers on board with using Google Classroom! Would you mind sharing more details about the procedures/routines you used so that your Kindergarteners were successful with this? Did you model it whole group first? Were students working on the computers in a small group setting or was your whole class working on the computers at one time? Was there an adult assisting with signing in, navigating to the site, etc. or were students taught how to do that first? Any details would be extremely helpful!
ReplyDeleteHi, Sarah
DeleteThanks so much for stopping by my blog. You ask some great questions that teachers are often concerned about. This blog post may help with the details. http://learningwithmrsparker.blogspot.com/2015/07/google-classroom-tips-for-young-learners.html Please let me know if you need anything else that I may be able to explain.
I would love to make a facebook group for k and 1 teachers and how to utilize google apps in the classroom. Do you think you'd be willing to share? I'd love to take the plunge but would need some direction.
ReplyDeleteKristen
Kristen
DeleteI think this is a great idea. I sent you a direct email.
Hello Ms. Parker, Did your students log in themselves or did you log in each one in yourself?
ReplyDeleteI set up my students account including joining GC for them. In my opinion, I felt this was an unnecessary step. Rather, I wanted to focus on using GC. I was able to do this for them one afternoon after school.
DeleteCarmelina,
ReplyDeleteIf a student has a gmail account, you are able to have them join Google Classroom. When creating the Google Classroom you can change the class code to an easier one. This can be helpful for primary students. Alice Keeler has a great blog post on this topic. http://alicekeeler.com/2015/07/12/google-classroom-change-the-class-code/
I usually just log in for them so that when they use it the first time their account has been created.
what kind of logins do you use. I find it hard to get them logged in because they want me to do everything for them
ReplyDeleteTo create their GoogleClassroom account, I set that up for them. I found it easier in K. In grades 1 and up, they probably could do this. Once they have joined my class, they do not need to do anything else. They can access GC via our school student home page. My students have their own computer. So, once they log in, they have access to several of the sites that we frequently use. Hope this helps.
DeleteDiane Wilde, Our district uses Clever for single sign-in abilities. The younger students may then use a provided QR code that is scanned to log in. Makes it much easier and faster for the little ones.
DeleteI see you did projects. Did you teach core- reading and math with specific standards? How does that look? Overwhelmed and frustrated with my district's expectations.
ReplyDeleteYes, Nicki you can teach specific standards using Google apps. I would highly recommend reading GaFE for Littles or following the hashtag #gafe4Littles on Twitter. In the beginning of the year, remember that we are teaching basic skills; click, drag, draw to familiarize students with the tools. It is possible. Please feel free to email if you have questions.
Delete