On Wednesday afternoon Google announced the release of a new feature in Google Slides. The new feature is the option to insert charts and graphs from Google Sheets. You can insert pre-existing charts from your Google Sheets or you can create a new chart or graph from scratch in your Google Slides. In the video embedded below I demonstrate how to insert a chart into Google Slides and how to modify the chart. Applications for Education Students could use the new charts feature to create representations of data they collected in a research project. They could also use the new charts feature to display representations of data found in the Google Public Data Explorer database. If you found this video to be helpful, visit my YouTube channel for more than 300 ed tech tools tutorial videos.  This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesHow to Use JoeZoo Express - A Google Docs Add-on for Grading WritingHow to a Create Google Spaces CommunityHow to Create a Biking or Walking Route Map in Google Maps 

This week the Google for Education blog published a post that most teachers probably scrolled right past because the first sentence referenced the Google Classroom API. I don't find fault with any teacher who scrolled past the post because most of us aren't developers and aren't going to be developing our own apps to integrate into Google Classroom. But I do want to explain why you might care about the latest update to the Google Classroom API. This week's Google Classroom API update lets developers build applications that can access assignments, grades, and workflow in Google Classroom. What this means for end-users (teachers and school administrators) is that we could soon see better gradebooks and reporting systems that will eliminate the need to manually transfer grades into or out of the gradebook in Google Classroom. The update Google Classroom API will also let developers create more seamless integration between their apps and Google Classroom. For example, GeoGebra now fully integrates into Google Classroom. That integration lets teachers add GeoGebra assignments directly into their Classroom streams and lets students submit to you via Classroom their work completed in GeoGebra. Watch the video below to see how that works. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related Stories4 Google Apps for Education Updates You Might Have Missed This WeekHow to Schedule Assignments & Announcements in Google ClassroomSoon You Will Be Able to Email Parents from Google Classroom 

On the last day of March Crash Course launched a new series of videos about physics. The series now contains seven videos on friction, integrals, derivatives, Newton's Laws, and motion. The playlist is embedded below. For some physics lessons that younger students might enjoy, take a look at NASA's Rocket Science 101. To use these Crash Course videos as part of flipped lesson try EDpuzzle, VideoANT, or VideoNot.es. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesWhy Are Airplane Engines so Big? - How Jet Engines Work #STEMGet Inspiration for Video Projects and Help a Non-profit at the Same TimeAnother Great Resource for Learning About Mount Everest 

theLearnia is a free service that I reviewed about four years ago when it was primarily a social network built around video lessons. This week I took another look at theLearnia and learned that the site is now focused on helping teachers create video-based lessons. On theLearnia you can create video lessons up to fifteen minutes in length. Your video lessons can be simple whiteboard style instructional videos or they can be videos based on slides that you either create on theLearnia or upload as PowerPoint files. I gave the service a try this afternoon. I simply uploaded a set of PowerPoint slides then hit the record button to narrate what was shown on my slides. theLearnia also provides tools for drawing on top of your slides and or writing additional text. Videos created on theLearnia are hosted for free and you can share your videos through typical social media channels and or by embedding your video into your blog or website. You can see my test video here. Applications for Education theLearnia could be a good way for teachers who already have a bunch of PowerPoint slides to turn those slides into flipped video lessons. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesA Crash Course in PhysicsGet Inspiration for Video Projects and Help a Non-profit at the Same TimeCreate an Interactive Video Summary of the School Year 

In August I am keynoting the Colleague 2 Colleague conference in Missouri. As a promotion for the conference, yesterday I was interviewed by the conference chair, Brent Zweifel. The video of the interview is embedded below. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriestheLearnia Offers a Good Way to Create Video LessonsA Crash Course in PhysicsWhy You and I Should Care About Updates to the Google Classroom API 

For the majority of readers of this blog the end of the school year is already here or will be here within a month. This is the time of year that I get a lot of requests for suggestions on digital portfolio tools. If you find yourself looking for a digital portfolio tool and or have colleagues asking for suggestions, take a look at the ten options featured in my PDF handout embedded below or grab the Google Docs copy. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesCreate QR Codes for Any Item in a Seesaw Digital PortfolioHow to Create a Classroom Blog on SeeSawSeeSaw Now Lets Students Draw and Talk on Items in Their Digital Portfolios 

While I was preparing my handout on digital portfolios I noticed a cool feature in FreshGrade that is perfect for the end of the school year. In your FreshGrade account you can quickly create video slideshows highlighting your students' best work. To do this simply sign into your FreshGrade account then under the reporting tab select create learning slideshow. Then to create the learning slideshow choose a student's name, choose up to ten images, and then the video slideshow is created for you much like the way that an Animoto video slideshow is created. Applications for Education FreshGrade's learning slideshows can be shared directly with your students' parents. This could be a great way to send home a positive note to parents at the end of the school year. Disclosure: FreshGrade is currently running an advertising campaign on FreeTech4Teachers.com This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related Stories10 Good Options for Creating Digital Portfolios - A PDF HandoutFreshGrade Now Offers an Android App for TeachersInterview With Colleague 2 Colleague 

Good morning from the temporary Byrne Instructional Media, LLC office in Connecticut. I'm working in Connecticut this morning because I'm down here to see the hooding ceremony for my friend of 20+ years who has just completed her Doctorate of Nursing Practice. Meanwhile back in Maine the lilacs in my meager garden have started to bloom. Hopefully, we don't get any more snow to cover them as we did briefly on Monday morning. Here are this week's most popular posts: 1. Create an Interactive Video Summary of the School Year 2. Great Tools for Creating Screencasts - A PDF Handout 3. More Than 100 Sets of Primary Source Documents for Students 4. How to Create a Biking or Walking Route Map in Google Maps 5. How to Create a Google Spaces Community 6. Geopedia - A Map & Wikipedia Mashup 7. How to Create an Interactive Series of Videos Spring and Summer PD Opportunities With MeOnly two tickets remain for the Practical Ed Tech BYOD Camp in July. Take a look at the online workshops I'm hosting throughout the spring and summer. The Practical Ed Tech Chromebook Camp is sold out! Email me to get on the waiting list. Would you like to have me speak at your school or conference?Click here to learn about my professional development services.  Please visit the official advertisers that help keep this blog going.Practical Ed Tech is the brand through which I offer PD webinars.BoomWriter provides a fantastic tool for creating writing lessons. FreshGrade is a great online digital portfolio tool. Storyboard That is my go-to tool for creating storyboards and cartoon stories.Discovery Education & Wilkes University offer online courses for earning Master's degrees in Instructional Media.PrepFactory offers a great place for students to prepare for SAT and ACT tests.FrontRow offers adaptive online ELA and Math practice activities.  Teach n Go is a comprehensive platform for teaching online courses.The University of Maryland Baltimore County offers graduate programs for teachers.Boise State University offers a 100% online program in educational technology.EdTechTeacher is hosting host workshops in six cities in the U.S. in the summer.Buncee offers a great tool for creating visual stories.  This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesThe Week in Review - The OverseersThe Week in Review - The Most Popular PostsThe Week in Review - Transitions 

Last week Google released a new product and updated some existing products that are of interest to teachers and students. Last Monday at the Google I/O conference Google introduced a new product called Spaces. Spaces is a service that lets you create small communities to share links, notes, and pictures. Take a look at my video about Spaces to see how it works. On Wednesday of last week Google added a new charts feature to Google Slides. You can now import charts made in Google Sheets and display them in your slides. You can also use and modify one of the new charts templates in Google Slides. My video here demonstrates how to use the new charts feature in Google Slides. Also on Wednesday of last week Google announced some updates to the Google Classroom API. The updated API could lead to more apps integrating with Google Classroom, not the least of which being improved gradebook options through Google Classroom. Learn more about these updates in the explanation that I shared on Thursday. Finally, Google announced that Android apps can now be developed and published for use on Chromebooks. Beginning in June end-users will be able to add Android apps to the Acer R11, Asus, Flip, and Pixel Chromebooks. Support for running Android apps on other Chromebooks will be added later in the year. The list of supported devices can be seen here. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related StoriesWhy You and I Should Care About Updates to the Google Classroom APIAdd Voice Notes to Pictures in Google KeepHow to Insert & Modify Charts in Google Slides 

If you teach any lessons about the Roman Empire, take a look at ORBIS from Stanford University. ORBIS is Stanford University's Geospatial Network Model of the Roman Empire. On ORBIS students can calculate the distance and travel times between 751 settlements in the Roman Empire. The calculations happen according to the modes of travel that would have been used during the time of the Roman Empire's greatest height. For example, I calculated the time and cost to travel by foot, wagon, and boat between Roma and Chalcis in March. The calculations include the cost of feeding donkeys along the way. Click for full size image.  Applications for Education While you could certainly have students use Google Earth to map distances between settlements in the Roman Empire, ORBIS is a step above that because students can calculate travel times and distances according the modes of transportation that were available during the Roman Empire. This post originally appeared on Free Technology for Teachers if you see it elsewhere, it has been used without permission.              Related Stories4 Google Apps Updates You Might Have Missed Last WeekThe Week in Review - The Lilacs Have ArrivedFreshGrade Helps You Quickly Create Video Slideshows of Your Students' Best Work