Friday, October 23, 2015

Great Google Trick!

Have you ever heard of a Google Easter Egg? Well, Google is quite clever. They like to have fun with their product and one example of that is with "Easter Eggs." Like the name suggestions, these Easter eggs are like what you do around Easter: hunt for hidden eggs. Google has hidden tricks and fun things throughout Google.com for people to find.  I was preparing something the other day and I needed a picture of Atari's "breakout" so I google imaged it and all of a sudden, before my very eyes, the google image screen turned into a game of Breakout! 
So, if you go to Google and image search "Atari breakout" (or click "I'm feeling lucky") the actual game will begin and you can play it with the mouse. Give it a try! It's kinda fun. 

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Google Docs: Simple Navigation

I find it annoying to scroll through Google docs. I feel like sometimes my scroll wheel is going to wear out! It is because of this feeling that I set out to find a solution. Some google docs are not that long, so it's not a big deal. But others can get to be quite lengthy and constantly scrolling through the doc is not an effective use of the small amount of time we have in life. The solution I found is "table of contents" and "bookmarks." Both fairly similar, but each add their own unique advantage. 

Bookmarks: You can attach bookmarks anywhere in a google docs for fast, efficient navigation. When you add a bookmark, you can then "link" a word to that bookmark, so when you click the word, it brings you to that spot automatically. Here's an example: Mesopotamia Closure. In the example, I didn't want my students to have to scroll through everything every time. I wanted them to be able to click the task and be brought right to it. 

Table of Contents. Table Contents works much the same way--creating words into links that you can click and quickly move to that spot. With table of contents, you need sub headings. So when you type out a word, you need to change it from "normal text" to a "subheading." Once you have all your subheadings done, go to "insert" -- "table of contents" and a table of contents will appear for easy navigation. Example Here. (This is a demo created just for an example) 

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Save that Tab! (Google Chrome)

NOOOOO!!! I needed that tab! But I accidentally closed it because I have too many tabs and the area to select a tab is so small that I accidentally hit the 'x'!!! I don't know about you, but I tend to have a ton of tabs open when working in Chrome. When this happens, it is extremely likely that I accidentally hit the 'x' instead of the tab itself. This could be very bad! You may really need that tab and not remember how to get to the site you were on! Well, rest easy, my friend because Google has a solution to this problem. In the event you close a tab by accident, simply hit Ctrl + shift + T (though you don't need caps) and it will reopen the tab, along with browsing history so you can still go "back" if you need to. Handy tip, huh??

Ctrl + Shift + T (windows)

Command + Shift + T (Mac)

Monday, October 12, 2015

EdCamp Harrisburg

Ever been to an "Edcamp"? Well, if you have, you probably know the benefits of going and connecting with other passionate educators from around the area. If you have not gone, I highly recommend giving it some thought. Edcamp is like a "unconference," which means people show up for the "conference" and then decide what the conference will be about. In the morning, the "edcampers" discuss what sessions/break outs they want to have and who will help facilitate. It is not sit and listen to presenters the entire day. It is a come as you please, interactive day. For example, let's say there's a session on differentiated instruction. You can attend, listen and when you feel like you've had enough, simply move on to another session (perhaps GAFE or project based learning, for example.) What sessions will be offered will not be known until the day arrives, after it's been decided by the attendees. This is a great opportunity to learn and grow professionally. Also, it's a chance to connect and share ideas. AND, it's FREE! 
Door prizes, doughnuts, coffee, pop, food, etc. It's all free! 

Event Website
Click to Register for Edcamp Harrisburg (it's Free)

October 18th, 2015. Harrisburg South Middle School
Schedule for the day
8:30-9:30 - Breakfast/Mingle/Build Schedule -Come when you please... We just hope everyone is there around 9am
9:40-10:30 - Session 1
10:40-11:30 - Session 2
LUNCH  - Give aways and Game time! 
12:50-1:40pm - Session 3
1:50-2:40pm - Session 4
2:45pm - Wrap up/Reflect on the day

Tuesday, October 6, 2015

Spice Up Your Text Message Game with "Bitmoji"

Looking to add a little spice to your text messages? Feel like your texting game as gone bland? Well, maybe what you need is "Bitmoji." 
Bitmoji is an app for Apple and Android that gives you a ton of new emoji's. What's even better is that you can customize the emoji's to look like yourself! Once you edit how you look in the app itself, you can select bitmoji's to use in your text messages. There are a wide variety of bitmoji's so you are sure to find the perfect emoji for the situation. 
Here's how to do it:
-Go to App store and get "bitmoji." 
-Open "bitmoji" app and customize what you look like.
1. Go to "settings"
2. Go to "general"
3. Go to "keyboard"
4. go to "keyboards"
5. touch "Bitmoji--bitmoji"
6. Turn on "access allow"
7. Use it! In a text message, click on the icon (looks like a globe with lines) in the bottom left to access the bimoji's.