The aim here is to have everything you and the students need for the lesson all in one place. This cuts down on wasted time handing out bits of paper and looking for materials. You can create a teacher version which also includes notes for you - ie the teacher half of the double plan.
Classroom without Chromebooks
Set up a Slideshow (Google or PowerPoint) which includes all components of the lesson. You can include:
- a Do Now slide which can be on when students enter
- pictures, diagrams, maps etc.
- links to useful websites
- any videos you want to use, embedded in the slides
- tasks to be completed in the lesson
- include interactive questioning with Plickers (or try Google Slides Q&A feature).
- Exit ticket
And there’s more…
Use the speaker notes section to add your double-plan teacher notes. If you are using a laptop to present, you can view these on your screen, while students only see the slide.
Classroom with Chromebooks
In addition to all of the above, when the students have Chromebooks available, use Google Classroom as the place where you have everything in one place: task sheets, weblinks, notes, videos, etc.
You can include your presentation in the assignment you create in Google Classroom (so students can refer back to what they missed).
Other tips:
- If you use a question for your Do Now, use “Move to Top” so it is the first thing students see when they open the classroom; also use this to get the various components in the right order.
- Provide a template for handing in written work when you set up an assignment, even if it is a blank document or slide; this has the advantage that students don’t have to remember to hand in, and also you can check what they are doing and make corrections (in suggesting mode) while they are working (remember CFU).
- If you have teacher materials that you specifically do not want students to see, use Save as Draft; that way you will easily find your materials in the correct classroom. This is also a useful way to store extra activities that you may want to assign to specific students for enrichment, and a place to store ideas for future use.