Newsletter Archive – Page 10

Need Help with Canvas?

Canvas is an important learning tool in our district. We hope that you continue to find it a valuable teaching and communication tool. If you are new to the district or have questions come up about it, we want you to be aware of several resources that are available to you.

First, click the “Help” icon on the Global Navigation Menu. For general and common questions try searching the Canvas guides. If your problem or question is unique and specific to your situation you can chat online or call the Canvas Support hotline. You can be connected with a support agent that can help you almost immediately.

If you would like to slowly browse resources, please check out our resources at the P-CCS Tech website, https://tech.pccsk12.com/canvas-lms/

Have a lot of questions? You can set up a 45-minute meeting with a Panda Pro. This experience is available through the beginning of September. Find more about this service on their website.

If you are instructional staff working on meeting your PD expectations, please note we have a number of courses including the following listed below (all of them are 3 hours) that can help increase your understanding of how to use Canvas effectively available for you in the Catalog. https://catalog.pccsk12.com/

Canvas 1.0
Canvas 2.0
Canvas 3.0
Canvas in the Face to Face Classroom
Simplify and Streamline your Elementary Classroom with Canvas

As always, please submit a tech ticket if you have any questions. https://links.pccsk12.com/helpdesk

Canvas

Cross-Listing Your Canvas Courses

As we approach the new school year, those of you who are teaching multiple sections of the same course might consider cross-listing in Canvas. Cross-listing allows you to move section enrollments from individual courses and combine them into one course. This feature is helpful for instructors who teach several sections of the same course and only want to manage course data in one location. So if you are a teacher that has multiple sections of one course or an elementary specialist that has many different sections, cross listing may be a great option for you and a big time saver. However, this action should only be done before a semester starts. Canvas recommends it be done before a course is published. If it is done after a course is published and notably student work has been submitted, that student work will be lost. Review the slideshow below carefully to help you decide if you want to do it.

Please review this slideshow carefully to review the pros and cons. The slideshow also walks you through the steps to cross-list your courses. Please note that teachers have the ability to cross-list courses but do not have the option to de-crosslist. To de-crosslist sections or for further assistance with cross-listing, submit a tech ticket.

Tips for Cross-Listed Courses

Whether you are new to crosslisting or have done it for awhile, review this list to help run it as efficiently as possible. Crosslisting should only be done at the beginning of a term (prior to any student submissions so to avoid their loss).

Be Sure To:

Keep “People” hidden on the Course Navigation Menu to protect student privacy
Change the course name so students don’t get confused if their scheduled section meets at a different time
If you want to use discussions, set it up as a group discussion so students are only interacting with people in their section

Streamline Your Workflow:

You can assign things (especially quizzes) per section to customize availability times and due dates
You can sort Speedgrader submissions by section
You can sort the Gradebook by section

Canvas Crosslisting Tips by kaelyn.bullock

Another random handful of web resources that might be of interest

Canva made this one-pager to get you to your favorite templates in a hurry!

The Texas Computer Education Association (TCEA) put together a list of technology tools that can be used by teachers and students for accommodation, modification, and intervention. They also have a downloadable free ebook entitled 51 Fun Tech Tools and Resources for Busy Educators.

Character.ai is a fun way to chat with all kinds of characters. But I’m more intrigued with their historical people, such as Julius Caesar, Abe Lincoln, Isaac Newton and more! Give it a try. There is no login required, however, you may have to wait a couple of minutes to get in. *Scroll to the right to find “historical.” PS: I suggest using this as a teacher-centered tool, having students help you craft and ask questions in whole group situations.

Premium Features now FREE in Quizizz Basic
If you’re new or a previous Quizizz user, you’ll enjoy these additional features in the FREE Basic Account. As noted in the graphic below, once logged in to Quizizz, you should see a “gift package” icon by all of these new additions. *Click on the graphic below to visit Quizizz.com and see for yourself.

Polls in Padlet

If you struggle with digital content organization and visualization, Padlet makes it simple! You create a “wall” where you can house content and interactive activities. The layout is simple and minimalistic. And Padlet just added polls! Padlet Press Release

Some summer resources highlighted in the Google for Education newsletter

Almost monthly, Google shares an education focused newsletter. You can view past issues by browsing to https://inthecloud.withgoogle.com/gfe-newsletters-na/northam-repository.html

Below are some resources called out in two of their summer newsletters:

Arts & Culture: Explore UNESCO World Heritage
For World Heritage Day, Google Arts & Culture released a new, updated destination for people to explore UNESCO World Heritage sites online, featuring hundreds of expert stories and thousands of images and videos.

Arts & Culture: Calling in our Corals
Take part in the preservation of coral reefs from your desk and learn to identify underwater sounds with marine biologists whilst contributing to vital research.

Arts & Culture: Step inside 3D exhibitions from around the world
Step into a diverse range of 3D immersive exhibitions curated by 50+ cultural institutions around the world, ranging from artist retrospectives to collections that are not publicly visible and to nature inspired galleries.

Arts & Culture: Try 4 new Arts and AI experiments
A new series of AI and Art experiences uses Google AI Image Generation Research to inspire cultural discovery and learning through play

New artistic data visualizations highlights hidden environmental effects
“Seeing the Invisible” explores four invisible environmental issues with in a new experiment on Google Arts & Culture in collaboration with artist Cristina Tarquini and the World Health Organisation

Teach CS First with help from Cobblestone and Google engineers
Our partners at Cobblestone will be livestreaming weekly lessons throughout the school year to help you teach a CS First lesson alongside Google software developers. It’s free, and lessons include ideas for both teachers and students to learn new skills!

Prepping Your Canvas Courses for the New School Year

We’re excited to let you know that your Canvas courses will soon be visible and ready for action. Canvas is designed to simplify your teaching journey and provide you with a user-friendly platform to engage with your students, organize course materials, and foster a dynamic learning environment.

Course Template

To assist you in creating an engaging and effective online learning space, we’ve prepared comprehensive resources for the course template. These resources include step-by-step guides, video tutorials, and best practices for setting up your Canvas courses. Whether you’re a seasoned Canvas user or a first-timer, these tools will ensure that you’re making the most of Canvas’s features.

Import Previous Content

We understand the value of your time, which is why Canvas allows you to seamlessly import content from your previous courses. Whether it’s assignments, quizzes, or discussions, the process is intuitive and streamlined. This means you can build upon the successful elements of your previous courses while introducing new and exciting content. Courses from last school year can be found at https://pccsk12.instructure.com/courses at the bottom of the page under “Past Enrollments.” If you need help locating courses from previous school years, check this blog post. Once you have located your previous content, you are ready to import it into your new courses following the steps below.

Please submit a ticket if you have any questions.

Beginning of School Year Canvas

Canvas Updates Summary

In case you missed it, here’s a round up of some of the best Canvas updates to be aware of:

Bulk publish/unpublish modules
Several updates to New Quizzes
- Create zero point practice quizzes
- Rich Content Editor in New Quizzes–Record video directly in New Quizzes (available for teachers and students), improved equation editor
- Integrate 3rd Party Apps (Like Studio and Google Tools) into New Quizzes
- Grade a single item quiz question across all students
Improved gradebook filters and saved presets

Highlighting Five Recent Google Workspace Updates

Google notes its Workspace Updates at https://workspaceupdates.googleblog.com/.

Listed below are five recent updates that will be in place by the start of school:

Linkable headings now available in Google Docs

To improve shareability of documents, especially longer ones, we’re adding the ability to copy links to headings in Google Docs. Simply, open a Google Doc on web > add a heading (type some content and set to “Heading 1”) > right-click the heading > click the “Copy heading link” button > paste the contents.

Insert emojis into Google Sites

By the end of August, you can create more engaging content on Google Sites with the new option to insert emojis directly into text boxes and headings. Simply, create or open a Site > click any textbox and the emoji button will be visible in the toolbar > select the emoji button > choose an emoji.

Add annotations to your presentations in Google Slides

We’re introducing a feature that lets you highlight or emphasize key content while you present in Google Slides. With the new pen tool, you can circle, underline, draw connections or make quick notes directly on your presentation.

Bringing Collaborations in Canvas to Google Assignments

We’re introducing a new feature exclusively for Canvas that allows users to create a Drive item and collaborate on it with other users in the course. Today, we’re introducing a new feature exclusively for Canvas that allows users to create a Drive item and collaborate on it with other users in the course. Teachers and students can now work together on a variety of Google Drive items, including Docs, Sheets, Slides, Sites, Forms, Jamboards, and Drawing.

Use the following steps to create a collaboration in Canvas:
- Sign in to Canvas > open the course > in the sidebar, click Collaborations > click + Collaboration > Google Drive (LTI 1.3). If you’re not signed in, sign in to your Google Workspace for Education account. Enter a title for your assignment > (optional) enter a description > under file type, select a Drive file type > under invite people to collaborate with you, select any LMS users for which to share the collaboration Drive file > click Create > in the opened pop-up, confirm your changes, and click Create.
Use the following steps to open a collaboration in Canvas:
- Sign in to Canvas > open the course > in the sidebar, click Collaborations > click the title link for the collaboration you wish to open. Note: You can only view a collaboration if you are an instructor or were added as a collaborator. In the new tab that is opened:
  - Sign in to your Google Workspace for Education or Google account
  - If this is the first time you’re opening the collaboration, click Join

Adding line numbers to Google Docs

We’re introducing the option to display line numbers within Docs that are set to paged mode. See https://support.google.com/docs/answer/13820512

The numbers are automatically calculated next to each line in the document, and can be configurable for the entire document, a page, or a specific section. Additionally, these numbers are preserved when printing.

This feature makes it easier for you to reference specific content positions in documents, particularly when collaborating with others on long or complex content.

THE GOOGLE FOR EDUCATION NEWSLETTER ISSUE 65

A few highlights from the July issue.

New Google for Education Training Course Catalog
Looking for Google Workspace for Education trainings for educators? Find the full catalog of offerings at goo.gle/teachercenter.

Journey to ancient Egypt in Return of the Cat Mummy
Students can explore ancient Egyptian beliefs, hieroglyphs, & mummies including a new game which invites users to explore and learn about the ancient Egyptian afterlife.

Play a cello inspired instrument with the help of machine learning
Viola the Bird is a way for anyone to learn about string instruments and to explore their own creativity through music. Regardless of their musical ability, users can help Viola the Bird play its cello-inspired instrument, and take a playful musical journey.

Leonardo da Vinci: Inside a genius mind
Google Arts & Culture has unveiled “Inside a Genius Mind” — the largest online retrospective dedicated to the genius of the Renaissance, showcasing his extraordinary codices alongside his artistic and scientific contributions.

Unpack Life Beyond Earth with NASA and Astrokobi
Students can hear from NASA astrobiologist Heather Graham and YT creator Astrokobi to understand what life is, where we would find it beyond Earth and what it would look like.

See past issues or sign up for the Google Education Newsletter.

Beat the heat with a REMC course and learn new skills for the start of school

Summer is a great time to learn a new skill, connect with other educators and explore ways to increase student engagement. All REMC courses offer 10 FREE SCECHs and can be taken from the convenience of your home and when the time is right for you. August courses include creating instructional videos, design thinking and much more!

Registration deadline is Thursday, August 3rd, each course begins on Monday, August 7th. Through the support of REMC SAVE’s vendor partners, all courses are FREE and there are no SCECH fees. Don’t miss out on this great summer learning opportunity!

Check out August 2023 courses here:

Register by Thursday, August 3rd. You will receive a welcome email with the course information prior to the course start date. If you have questions or need further assistance with your course registration, please click here.

K-5 Teachers: Welcome to Lumio!

Lumio is coming to P-CCS!

We are so excited to share that all Elementary Teachers will be getting Lumio accounts beginning on Monday August 7! P-CCS has partnered with SMART to bring new SMARTboards to every elementary classroom over the next three years. There are so many new amazing features that help make these Smartboards the best walk up and teach interactive technology and Lumio is the online component that leverages the Smartboard hardware! But even if you are teaching in an elementary building that didn’t get the new Smartboards this year, you will still have access to Lumio for use with your current SmartBoard and in the future when that board is replaced with a new one!

So what is Lumio?

Lumio is the online component of the SMART technologies resources that include lesson resources, interactive activities, games, collaborative workspaces, and so much more! (If you remember Smart notebook and Smart Exchange from years ago, this is the newer, better, online version!) Lumio is the digital learning tool for transforming lessons into active, collaborative learning experiences that engage students on their own devices. Transform lessons in seconds, then deliver them to student devices in a browser, or via Google. You can even combine different file types (PDFs, Google Slides, PowerPoint and Notebook files) into a single Lumio lesson! Import the lessons you already use, combine existing resources and enhance them with customizable components including games, collaborative workspaces and much more. Then deliver them to student devices quickly and easily, all from a browser or Google Drive.

How do I get started?

Starting Monday August 7, check your P-CCS email for information on how to access your account. Then keep an eye in your inbox for weekly emails from Lumio that will give you step by step training to use ready made resources in Lumio, create your own and how to share with students! If you ever need support, put in a tech request for Technology Integration at helpdesk.pccsk12.com.