Using Google Draw

I have found myself using Google Draw a lot in my classroom lately. Below are a few examples of ways that I have found it useful:


1. Creating student sheets for math
Ordinarily, it is quite difficult to get student sheets formatted the way you want in math. Google Draw allows you to freely move objects around, which is ideal for math! I always just modify the page size to custom and then input 8.5 X 11 so that it prints on a standard page. 

2. Creating Badges

With my grade sixes, I have tried to take a more gamified approach to math this year, using badges to notify students when they have "levelled up", beat a boss level problem, or are demonstrating mathematical thinking and vocabulary. I make all of my badges in Google Draw, and then I also use classbadges.com to award them to students. They find it extremely motivating! I also sometimes make badges for my first graders to send home in their agendas. Below are two badge examples. 

In teaching grade one, I often create sheets to laminate as parts of my centres. I create the individual sheets using Google Draw. Once I have them all finished, I download them as PDFs, and use a chrome app called PDFmergy to put them all together into one PDF document to share with colleagues. Below is an example. 

Grade One Porfolio

In my division II classes, students are able to create their own individual digital portfolios by creating a Google site. However, in my grade one classroom, I had to think of a different way to create a digital collection of student work. The solution that I came up with was creating one classroom site, with a page for each individual student. In Google Drive, I created a folder for each student, which I then inserted into their page on our Google Site. 

When students do work on the iPad, or take pictures, they use the Google Drive app (Which is signed into our class account) to upload their photos to their folder. This is awesome because it automatically updates their folder on their site!  

Number Introduction Centres

We just started transitioning into working with numbers from 1-20, and so I created a new set of centres to get kids to get a sense of number. Attached at the bottom is a link to all the necessary templates you would need to create your own. 




Templates for Centre Activities
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0ByN_OLXLIuI2THNJZVNmRDBMYlU/view?usp=sharing

Math Pattern Centers

I have been putting together Centers for my grade one patterning unit. Here are all of my resources to make the bins

These are the Labels I am taping to the outside of the bins to identify them

The sheets below are going into page protectors and into the bins to start off the centers. This way students who aren't able to create their own patterns can mirror these patterns. 



This is the link to my outline of all of the centres
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wtSZ6tuUfm0UbDd_mzskGkWJMDLum6c_tdmxS-p_sIU/edit?usp=sharing

Or you can check them out below: 

Trees of Alberta Project

We are just beginning to work on a science project on the Trees of Alberta
Here is a link to my research outline for students
Field Notes and Research Journal

Part of our program of studies requires students to Identify characteristics of at least four types of trees found in the local environment, including 2 coniferous and 2 deciduous trees. So I created a journal-style template to help students take "field notes" about their tree, similar to the way that scientists might take notes to record their observations out in the field. I included the next 2 pages four times so that students had one for each of the trees they would need to research

Then, to guide them through the research process and allow them to demonstrate their understanding of topics we have previously discussed in class, students will also have the following pages attached to their field notes booklet

All of these pages were created using Google Draw. I modified the page size to "custom" and made it 8.5x11 so that it would print out on a normal page. Finally, once all my pages were done, I downloaded them as PDFs and used the app "PDF Mergy" to put them all together in one document. 

To try something new, I also posted this resource on Teachers Pay Teachers for free. This is the link to the listing. 

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Trees-and-Forests-Research-Project-1500565

Of course, no project would be complete without a chance to do a self-assessment 

Math Zombie Apocalypse

Zombie Apocalypse: Math Style!

In my 6th grade classroom, our math lessons have taken a markedly zombie form. The zombie apocalypse is upon us, and the only way to save ourselves is to use our mathematical knowledge and thinking to earn supplies. Each week, there are a few updates, and these determine who will survive, and who will become a victim of the outbreak! The link above is to a Google Folder with all of the required resources necessary to host a zombie apocalypse in your math classroom. The students are SO engaged, and it is a great way to touch on many math concepts in a fun way. 

This is the link to the outline of how the game works 

Game outline/ Unit plan