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Insta Canvas and O365

Canvas and Microsoft: A Formidable Team! (no pun intended)

Insta Canvas and O365

Canvas and Microsoft make an incredible team! There are so many things you can do.

Canvas and Microsoft have worked together to connect within Instructure’s Learning Management System, Canvas. They come together in many different areas for a quite seamless integration. Here are some of the options you have when working with Office 365 and Canvas:

Access OneDrive from Within Canvas

Both students and staff have the ability to connect their OneDrive accounts with Canvas. Select the Microsoft OneDrive option from your course navigation. Then insert your Microsoft Office 365 credentials to sign into OneDrive within Canvas. Once the connection is made within one course you should have access from within all courses.

Sign into OneDrive
 
Add a Collaboration Document for a Group of Students

As a teacher, create collaborative documents for students. You can control who has access and be able to monitor their work right from within Canvas. Document types that can be shared include Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. Learn more here: Create an O365 Collaboration as an Instructor.

collaborations

 

Submit an Assignment from OneDrive

A student has the ability to submit a Canvas assignment from his/her OneDrive. When submitting for a file upload, Microsoft OneDrive is an option students can choose from once they have their account connected. Once OneDrive is selected they will see a list of their folders and files from OneDrive. They simply need to navigate to the file they need and select it. Learn more here: Submit an Assignment from OneDrive

submit assignment
Create a Cloud Assignment (Template for Students)

You have the ability, as the instructor, to create a cloud assignment for your students in Canvas. This allows you to create a file template for students to complete. Add a file from your OneDrive as a template. Students will click on the file within the assignment, and it will create a copy of that file in the students’ OneDrive accounts. They can complete the assignment and turn it in once they are done. The file will live in their OneDrive so that they can revisit it as needed. Learn more here: Create a Canvas Cloud Assignment and Submit a Canvas Cloud Assignment

 

Create a OneNote Class Notebook

You can create a OneNote Class Notebook from within Canvas. Doing it from within the LMS will automatically enroll all your students to the notebook and build their personal Section that only you and they can access. Open the course you wish to add the notebook to. Then click on the Class Notebook option in your course navigation. It will prompt you to log into OneNote and start building your notebook. Once that is complete, the notebook will enroll your students and build out the sections. The notebook will then be accessible. Learn more here: Class Notebook add-in for OneNote

class notebook
Integrate Canvas and Microsoft Teams

You have the ability to integrate Canvas with Microsoft Teams. While some of the options for each can overlap, such as submitting assignments, the integration allows you to add Teams meeting information to Canvas’ calendar. This can be very helpful as students can then focus on their Canvas calendars only when working within a course. Learn more here:  Canvas and Microsoft Teams

teams

Ideas for Implementation

Do you need more information and support with the Canvas and Microsoft integration features? Reach out to EdtotheMax Team to discuss resources and training!
Paul Twitter

Contributor: Paul Wagner

Paul is a Digital Learning Coordinator for a school district near Houston, TX. He oversees the instructional programs his district supports.

Follow Paul on Twitter: @pwagnerlcisd

Insta PPT Designer

Fight PPT Presentation Block with the Designer Option

Insta PPT Designer

Use PowerPoints’ built-in designer to help guide you as you build your presentations.

We have all been there…the dreaded PowerPoint presentation predicament! You are working on a presentation, and your content is there. You just cannot find the right “feel” for the presentation design. Fear not! PowerPoint’s built-in designer is here to help. It will provide you with a number of different options to organize your content in a pleasing way for you and your audience.

As you get started…staring at that blank slide…select the Designer option at the far right of the Home tab. It will open a pane on the right side of your window. It may be blank now, but all you have to do is add something like an image.

designer 1

 

Once that initial image is on the page your Designer pane will explode with options on how you can organize your content. Scroll through all the possibilities to find something that speaks to you and will, in turn, speak to your audience.

designer 2

 

It’s not just for images. You can also insert items such as Icons or Shapes. The Designer does not judge! It wants to help you with everything!

designer 3

 

If you get deep into the presentation and then remember you need to incorporate a color scheme, don’t worry…Designer has your back. Select your Design, or color scheme, and Designer will update your existing slides to match that scheme. Move through different design options to find that feel you are looking for.

designer 4

Ideas for Implementation

  • It’s not just great for you…your students can greatly benefit from this tool. They are able to see what good design and accessibility looks like.
  • Start your initial discussion on presentations highlighting Designer so that your students have a grasp of what it is and what it can do for them.
Paul Twitter

Contributor: Paul Wagner

Paul is a Digital Learning Coordinator for a school district near Houston, TX. He oversees the instructional programs his district supports.

Follow Paul on Twitter: @pwagnerlcisd

Insta Teams Annotate

Annotation Tools in a Teams Video

Insta Teams Annotate

You can now annotate over whatever you are sharing on your screen in Microsoft Teams.

Microsoft Teams now has the functionality that allows you to annotate over anything you screen share during a call. You have the ability to choose whether only you as a presenter can annotate or if anyone in the call can collaborate.

When you start your share, you MUST choose to share the screen. The annotate function does NOT work with a window share. Once you start the share you can access the annotate features through the toolbar at the top of your screen. Select the pencil icon to begin

Teams Annotate 1

 

A pop-up window will display prompting you to decide if only you can annotate or if anyone can contribute.  Once you have started annotating, you can select the gear icon to change your decision as far as who can annotate.

Teams Annotate 2

 

The toolbar has a number of options. Some of my favorites are:

  • Place a sticky note on your screen to share thoughts.
  • Use the shape tool to encompass items.
  • Use the pen and highlighter tools for quick annotations.
  • The select tool can help you manipulate the background.
  • Use the delete option to delete a specific annotation or all annotations at one time.
Teams Annotate 3

 

You can see here how the annotation tools can draw your attention to areas of the screen.

Teams Annotate 4

Ideas for Implementation

  • Using the annotation tool will greatly help keep students engaged and is a great way to include them when working online.
  • Record your call so that students who cannot make attend can watch the recording later with your annotations to help with understanding.
Paul Twitter

Contributor: Paul Wagner

Paul is a Digital Learning Coordinator for a school district near Houston, TX. He oversees the instructional programs his district supports.

Follow Paul on Twitter: @pwagnerlcisd

Insta flaticon

Create Icons, Logos, and More with Flatiron.com

Insta flaticon

Create icons, logos, and more at https://www.flaticon.com/.

Flatiron.com is a great website with lots of free options to create resources. You can search for icons, interface icons, animated icons, logos, and stickers. There are a ton of templates available within the site.

To get started, go to the site. You will need to create a free account. Then:

  1. Choose the option for the type of resource you are looking for.
  2. Search for a keyword to narrow your results. In this example I am searching for “presentation”.
  3. You will see that there are 36,848 results from my search.
  4. You can then use the additional features to further narrow your search.
  5. All results are displayed at the bottom of the screen.
fi1

 

Hover over one of the results to have options display:

  1. Add the resource to your collection.
  2. Copy the resource to the clipboard.
  3. Download the resource to your device.
  4. Select the resource to open it in a viewing window for even more options.
fi2

 

When the viewing window opens you will see a larger version of the icon displayed.

  1. View different versions of the icon below the display.
  2. Choose to download, add to your collection, or share the resource.
  3. Choose to edit the icon if you want to make changes.
fi3

 

The editor allows you to make a variety of changes:

  1. Change the color, size, placement, or shape of the icon.
  2. View your changes in the display window. You also have the ability to reset the image.
  3. Once again you can save to your collection or download the image.
  4. Exit the editor when you are finished to return to the previous window.
fi4

 

Icons and logos are a great way to draw attention to your content and to keep your end user on-track as they progress through a process or learning experience.  Utilize this free tool to kick your content up a notch!

Paul Twitter

Contributor: Paul Wagner

Paul is a Digital Learning Specialist for a school district near Houston, TX. He oversees the Learning Management System for his district.

Follow Paul on Twitter: @pwagnerlcisd

Insta Bulk Email

Send Bulk Emails with Outlook Mail Merge

Insta Bulk Email

Use Mail Merge and Outlook to send a bulk email so that separate, personalized emails are sent to end users.

You have the ability to use Microsoft Outlook and mail merge to send bulk emails to a large number of users. This is useful so that you can reach a large number of end users while still being able to personalize the message.

From your contacts, select the contact group you want to send to, then select Mail Merge.

mm1

 

A window will popup:

  1. Choose whether you want to send to all contacts or selected contacts.
  2. Choose a New Document to send from, or choose existing document if you already have your email template saved to a Word document.
  3. Select OK.
mm2

 

Your Word document will open:

  1. Add your template if you need. Then place your cursor in the location you wish to personalize the email.
  2. Select Mailings from your menu
  3. Select Insert Merge Field.
mm3

 

Add the field(s) you wish to insert into your mail merge. In most cases the options you will want are first name and last name. Be sure to put a space between your fields to separate the first and last name. You should then see your inserted fields display on your template.

mm4
 



mm5
 
  1. Select Preview Results to view an example of what will be sent. Make any adjustments you need to your merged fields and template.
  2. When you are ready, select Finish & Merge > Send Email Messages.

mm7
 

Another popup window will appear.

  1. Fill out your Subject Line.
  2. Choose which records you want to send to from the contacts selected.
  3. Select OK. Individual emails will be sent to each contact selected.

 

mm8
Paul Twitter

Contributor: Paul Wagner

Paul is a Digital Learning Specialist for a school district near Houston, TX. He oversees the Learning Management System for his district.

Follow Paul on Twitter: @pwagnerlcisd

Insta Email and Accessibility

Email and Accessibility

Insta Email and Accessibility

Like any form of communication, you must consider your end user when constructing an email. Check out these guidelines, and learn about Outlook’s accessibility checker.

Like any form of communication, you must consider your end user when constructing an email. The ultimate goal is to make the email visually pleasing and accessible for any person to view. Here are some tips to consider when constructing an email:

Utilize the Subject Line

The first thing your end user sees is the subject of your email. Be concise, but be sure you let your end user know what the email is about…short and sweet.

Color Can Be Your Enemy

For anyone that is color-blind, changes in color actually cause more harm than good. Keep your background clean and white. Stay away from any type of pattern as it is a distraction. Keep your font black to ensure you have a good contrast.

Text Size, Spacing, and Font Type

An ideal font size is 14, but do not go lower than 12 pt. 16 pt is actually ideal for mobile devices. Also, be sure you have proper spacing between lines so that they do not blur/blend together. Font type should also be on your radar. While some fonts may be “pretty”, they are often much harder to read. Stick with sans serif fonts as they are easiest to read.

Use Emojis Wisely

It is OK to use emojis, and in many cases it draws attention. You should never replace a word with an emoji, however. Always be clear in your message.

Add Alternative Text for Your Images

Many people with disabilities block images from loading in their emails because it causes issues with screen readers. If you choose to use images, adding alt text to your images allows a screen reader to “see” the image.

Utilize Outlook’s Accessibility Checker

Outlook Online has an accessibility checker built into it. You can check any email you send in a couple easy steps.

After you have written the email, select the ellipses below your draft and select “check for accessibility issues“.

Check Accessibility 1

 

Outlook will run a quick check and present you with any issues it finds. Below the issue will be a “fix it” button. Select it to start updating your email.

Check Accessibility 2

 

 

Check Accessibility 3
 

When all of the issues have been addressed you can choose to run another check to be sure nothing is missed. You are then ready to send.

4heck Accessibility 1
Paul Twitter

Contributor: Paul Wagner

Paul is a Digital Learning Specialist for a school district near Houston, TX. He oversees the Learning Management System for his district.

Follow Paul on Twitter: @pwagnerlcisd

Insta GIFs in PPT_

Create GIFs in PowerPoint

Insta GIFs in PPT_

Create a GIF in PPT that can be inserted into presentations, web pages, and more!

GIFs are kind of a big deal…for fun AND for instruction. When you think of GIFs you mind initially goes to all the funny animations flooding social media. Did you know GIFs are also great for instruction!

via GIPHY

Create a quick tutorial that can be posted pretty much anywhere you can add an image or provide an engagement piece leading to introducing a new concept or prompt. I know, I know…not ANOTHER tool to learn. Well…you don’t need a new tool. Create it in PowerPoint following these steps!

First, set up your slides to include your information. Then be sure to add any animations and transitions you want happening in your GIF.

When your slides are ready, select File>Export>Create an Animated GIF. Then steer your attention to the following options:

  • Quality Level: The default is Medium. Remember the higher the quality the bigger the file size.
  • Seconds to Spend on Each Slide: Select the MINIMUM amount of time you want to spend on each slide. If you have animations happening that go over your minimum setting, it will NOT cut the slide off. This setting is for a minimum amount of time a slide will appear.
  • Slides: The default is to include all slides. You can change this if you need.
    Create GIF: When your options are set, browse to where you want to save your file and name it.

Your GIF is now ready to be inserted wherever you have the need.

PPT Animated GIF
 
Ideas for Implementation:
  • Use shapes in PowerPoint to create GIFs for prompts or introductions.
  • Insert screenshots to highlight a process you want students to follow.
Learn More: 

 

Paul Twitter

Contributor: Paul Wagner

Paul is a Digital Learning Specialist for a school district near Houston, TX. He oversees the Learning Management System for his district.

Follow Paul on Twitter: @pwagnerlcisd

Insta Edge Math Solver

Trouble with Math? Check out Edge’s Math Solver!

Insta Edge Math Solver

Trouble with Math? Student or parent, check out the Math Solver option built into Microsoft Edge. It provides answers, shows steps to solve the problem, and links to tutorial videos.

The Math solver is already built into Microsoft Edge, so there is no install. Simply select the ellipses in the upper-right of the browser, hover over More Tools, and select Math Solver. A window will open on the right side of the browser.

math solver 1

 

Choose whether you are going to select, or snip, the math problem (if the problem is online) or type it in manually.

math solver 2

 

If you choose to select the problem that is online, the screen will have a gray hue over it. Click and drag to select the problem. Then choose Solve.

math solver 3

 

The Math Solver will not only provide an answer, it will show you the steps on how the problem was solved so that you can see and learn how to complete the next question yourself. It will also show you a graphed solution if appropriate and recommends video tutorials so that you can learn more.

math solver 4
 
Ideas for Implementation:
  • Use it to check your work.
  • Find tutorials for both students and parents trying to assist with homework.
Learn More: 
Find more information in this Microsoft Blog Post
Paul Twitter

Contributor: Paul Wagner

Paul is a Digital Learning Specialist for a school district near Houston, TX. He oversees the Learning Management System for his district.

Follow Paul on Twitter: @pwagnerlcisd

Insta MS Bookings

Organize and Manage Appointments with MS Bookings

 

Insta MS Bookings

Use Microsoft Bookings to help organize and manage appointments on your Outlook calendar.

One of the most dreaded questions, “When are you available to meet?” This question alone can disrupt your day, causing you to dive into your calendar – start to list out days and times you are available – keeping your fingers crossed hoping those suggestions work for the person asking. Let’s prevent these situations from ever happening again, start using Microsoft Bookings!

bookings 1

Microsoft Bookings is a service in Office 365 where you create a calendar and set your available times. Your Outlook Calendar is linked to your Bookings calendar, only offering your available times. Create specific meeting choices and receive an email notification at the moment a meeting was scheduled. Easily share a custom link to your calendar for anyone to start booking meetings with you today.  Check out this overview from Microsoft: 

 https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/business/scheduling-and-booking-app.

Use Bookings with anyone. You can adjust a setting allowing for people out of your organization to access your Bookings calendar or restrict your Bookings calendar for only people in your organization. Bookings is extremely user friendly to schedule a meeting and create your custom Bookings link. Post your Bookings link on a website or include it in your email signature. Inserting the link in an email signature is a great way for people to have quick and easy access to your link. If you are scheduling meetings with others, create a Bookings calendar and share your link. You will start saving time and filling up your calendar with organized meeting times that you didn’t have to create!

Check out a preview of what your end users will see.

Bookings 2

Ideas for implementation:

  • Share availability with coworkers for general meetings.
  • Hyperlink the Bookings link in your email signature and everyone can easily access your availability and schedule a meeting with you.
  • Teachers can create a Bookings for parent-teacher conference day. The Bookings link is shared with parents, seeing all available times for them to schedule and meet with the teacher.
  • Create a Bookings calendar for scheduling an event. Volunteers can view available times to work for an event, choose an available time and book their working time. The event organizer will have a populated calendar with scheduled shifts for each volunteer.

Learn More:

Aaron Sweet Image for Post

Contributor: Aaron Sweet

Aaron Sweet is a former Math teacher with 7 years of experience and 3 years as a Technology Integration Coach in Newark, NY. He works with students, teachers, and administrators in the district to support with all technology needs.

Follow Aaron on Twitter: @AaronSweetNYR

 

Insta Org and Stream Content w Stream

Organize and Deliver Content with Microsoft Stream

 

Insta Org and Stream Content w Stream

Create engaging videos with Microsoft Stream, organize videos in Channels, and share them with your students via links or through Teams.

stream logo

Microsoft Stream is a great tool in Office 365 that allows teachers to record videos, organize these videos in channels, and share these videos with students. Stream has a built-in screen recording feature, allowing teachers to record up to 15 minutes of video. After videos are either recorded directly through Stream or uploaded, teachers can then organize groups of videos in specific Stream channels. Channels can be created with specific themes such as subject, unit, lesson, or topic. 

Teachers can easily share individual videos or channels with a link or Stream channels can be shared as a tab within Microsoft Teams. All videos saved in Stream can only be viewed by members of that tenant. Videos cannot be shared publicly, allowing teachers and students to create and share videos securely within their school district. 

All videos in Stream will automatically generate a transcript, allowing students to easily follow along and get clarification of what is being said throughout the video. Transcripts are timestamped and text is searchable.

Stream Gif

Ideas for implementation:

  • Science teachers can create custom, how-to videos for proper use of science lab equipment. These videos can be shared with individual classes or across the entire department and district.
  • Schools can upload videos to Stream that include personal identifying information that should not be made public. Videos saved in Stream are only accessible by staff and students.
  • Staff and technology departments can create technology tutorials that can be easily accessed by everyone in the district. Professional development and specific supports can be quickly created and shared.
  • Stream allows students to create their own videos and share them with teachers and peers, making Stream an amazing tool for assessments and projects. Teachers and peers can offer feedback in the comments of the video.

Learn More:

Aaron Sweet Image for Post

Contributor: Aaron Sweet

Aaron Sweet is a former Math teacher with 7 years of experience and 3 years as a Technology Integration Coach in Newark, NY. He works with students, teachers, and administrators in the district to support with all technology needs.

Follow Aaron on Twitter: @AaronSweetNYR

 

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