Chrome Extension: "Printfriendly and PDF" Clear the clutter!

Chrome has a great extension called "Print Friendly and PDF" which helps clean up articles you find online. For example, the Huffington Post has lots of great articles about a wide variety of topics. It's like an online newspaper. However, when using Huffington Post, there are always tons of ads and other non-related content at the bottom that both clutters the article and exposes kids to things we might not want them exposed to. So, Chrome the rescue! With this extension, while viewing the article, you click the extension button and it bring up the article in a new window to manipulate it. You then go through the article and click unwanted material and it will delete it from the article, leaving you with a crisp, clean article that your students can read and use. You can then email it, print it, or get the PDF. Also, it is all Free!

Click Here for link to Chrome Web store

Unlimited Legos, for FREE!

Screenshot of Build with Chrome

One of the best things we can say to a student is, "Go build something." This allows them to get creative, get hands-on, and get thinking. The problem is, building something takes materials and with so many students, it's tough to get the supplies we need due to cost. Fortunately, there is this awesome thing called "Google" and they love education and work hard to provide things that help our students learn. Google has a product called "Build with Chrome" which gives your students an unlimited amount of legos that they can use to go build whatever they want! It's free and it's just waiting to be used. Visit the link below. Click "start building" and play around with the tool. You can switch pieces, colors, zoom in, zoom out, pan around, etc. Students can save/publish their work if they sign in with google, or they can just take a screen shot of their product if you do not want them to sign in. 
Application for Education: Have students build something just for fun. Have students build something that relates to what they are learning about: a building in ancient Rome, a scene from a story, a result of a science experiment, an explanation of a math concept. Have students build something, take a screenshot, then add text to give explanation/caption to their project. If you allow your students to log in, they can choose a "plot" on the map of the US and build. This capability gives the students the opportunity to build with each other and make massive building plots. Don't underestimate what students can do and build with legos!  Use Build with Chrome and let the creativity flow! 

Build with Chrome

Memorial In-Service

Edpuzzle: Get more out of videos! With Edpuzzle, you can add dimensions to the video that allows the students to hear you explain things, answer questions, and create their own video experience.  Don’t just have your kids watch a video, make it an enriching learning experience.
Full Edpuzzle Tutorial


Quizizz: A great quiz option to add to your arsenal. Like the popular Kahoot!, Quizizz allows you to involve the entire class in a multiplayer battle of knowledge. However, unlike Kahoot!, Quizizz allows you to assign it as homework so the challenge can continue outside of your classroom.

Build with Chrome: Let kids build with Legos.

Chrome Browser Extensions

Chrome Extensions I use

So why choose Google Chrome? I use Chrome exclusively because of the speed of browsing and because of some very helpful "extensions" provided. Here is a few of the Chrome extensions that I use and have found to be very helpful. This are located in the Chrome webstore.  Once added to Chrome, they appear as little icons in the top right area of the Chrome Browser. To get these extensions, which are free by the way, search the following:

"Sticky Notes-just Popped Up"-this is a virtual sticky note that you can use on your computer. Great for jotting down ideas while you are browsing. If you add a message to your virtual sticky note and close it, you will not lose the content of that sticky note.

"Split Screen": This extensions allows you to split your screen so you can see two screens at once. This is a helpful extensions if you are getting sick of switching back and forth between two things. This also allows you to take notes in one half, while browsing in the other half. 

"Awesome Screen Shot": This extension allows you to take a screen shot of what is on your screen, either the whole screen or just a region of it. It also allows you to make marks on it, such as arrows, blocks, circles, and text. Helpful if you are trying to explain how to do something on your computer or internet. 

"Symbaloo": If you are using symbaloo for your bookmarking needs, then you definitely need to get the Symbaloo extension for Chrome. This allows you to quickly and efficiently add websites to your symbaloo account.