#TechTipTuesday - When should I use paper?

As the month comes to an end, so does my mini series on assistive tools and practices to help reduce paper consumption in your learning spaces.

The last tip is one to help you determine "when should I use paper..."

The truth is there is no one right answer for knowing when to use paper or not to, rather, a method of asking yourself before you make copies: "Can I provide this digitally? Will something be lost in the process of going digital? Will something be gained?"

Your walls should ,of course, be filled with your learners creations, so print off their final copies, post their artwork, create fun idea walls.

The key is to reduce what you use a little more each time you go to use paper resources to help the environment,  yourself and your budgets.

Wednesday Wondering - Red Tape

A new week, a new wondering..

This week I am wondering about all the red tape in education.

It feels like the world of education is moving more and more toward democratic learning spaces and a leveled hierarchy , or at least it is talking about it. However the journey to the top of this hill seems riddled with red tape and bureaucratic processes. 

This week I am wondering what would happen if we all used a common lens to dismantle and remove some of this red tape in order to move forward. What if, with each decision we made we asked ourselves "how will this decision/action help our kids?"

What if we started and followed up our dialogs with teachers and faculty with this probing question? 
Would what you do each day change, would it stay the same?

Would love to hear your feed back, please leave a comment here on the blog, or send me a Tweet @TheTechSpec

#TechTipTuesday - Google Classroom Makin' copies

For those of you who have not yet experienced the awesomeness that is Google Classroom, it's time. 

This tool has much to offer any teacher, in particular since this month I am talking about tools to help reduce paper consumption, it only seems fitting to talk about Google Classroom Assignment options.


Once you've got your class all setup, learners added, and you are ready to launch your first assignment, be sure to pay close attention to the following function:

With this option you can assign a Google Drive File (document, drawing, slideshow, etc) and if you choose "Make a copy for each student" they will each receive their own individual file that they can then edit, change, or just read.

This is a great way to easily share files with them quickly and with ease. No more waiting in lines for the copier for you.

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