Submitting late work to Google Classroom

Google Classroom has lots of amazing features to streamline workflow and teacher feedback, but it does have some drawbacks or missing features. One potential problem is with work that is submitted late or resubmitted -- there's no notification for teachers to let them know that new work has been turned in. One way around this is to require students to leave a private comment on any work that is submitted late, or that is resubmitted, or for whatever reason needs special review. This creates an email to the teacher that includes both the comment and a link to the assignment for quick review.

Student adding a private comment

Email notification of new submission

You can see more of this at http://alicekeeler.com/2015/11/09/google-classroom-submitting-late-work/

Rewordify to simplify online text

Rewordify is a flexible online tool that teachers and students can use to simplify text and to improve vocabulary. Students can use it to "translate" challenging English by defining difficult vocabulary within the text. Teachers can use it to create vocabulary lists and quizzes from specific texts. It's web-based, so it works on Chromebooks or most phones without issue. You can use it immediately with hard text (without logging in or setting up accounts), or you can set up  teacher and class accounts to create individualized assignments and track student progress. It's easy to modify to suit your needs. Quick and potentially very helpful tool!

Tech for good

I thought this was such a good idea. I'd love to see this start to happen at Homestead.

Make webpages more readable for students with EasyReader

Students who are easily distracted or need some visual supports when reading online may benefit from using the Chrome extension EasyReader. This extension strips out distractions like ads, sidebars or extra images, and allows users to customize the appearance of text (like increase the font or change the color contrast). It's easy to install and use on any device that uses a Chrome browser -- just click the extension, click the section of text you want to read and go.

Mercury News online article

Mercury News article with EasyReader