FAQs: Using Google Drive in the Classroom

Using Google Drive and other digital resources in the classroom is an amazing way to approach teaching, but at times questions can come up and you might be looking for answers! I know that before I even began using Google Slides, Docs, etc. with my second graders that I had a bunch of questions. Well, I gathered a few top questions you might have when using Google Drive in the classroom with your elementary school students and now you can have all the answers in one place!!

This is a common question, especially for folks who have never seen a resource for elementary students on Google Drive/in person. An easy way to get an idea is to look on Teachers Pay Teachers and search for “Google Drive” or “Digital”. Let me show you a few examples here though of the digital resources I have created!

Here you can compare some printables and a cut and glue activity from my paper and pencil Cause and Effect Pack with the Digital Cause and Effect. The highlighted blue areas on the digital version show moveable pieces that a student has just clicked and dragged to where they should be. Also don’t forget, if you’re hoping to use less paper, Google and Digital resources are paperless!

Yes, any Google Apps are accessible on iPads, tablets, and any device with internet including laptops, smart phones, and desktops!

Yes, Google Drive resources can be used in One Drive/Microsoft Classroom and many other top Ed Apps. It is not hard to export and download the resources to One Drive, and in fact if you end up purchasing one of my digital resources, zipped into the file will be a detailed guide on how exactly to do that! I learned a lot and the resource will be shared with you thanks to the amazing Danielle Knight from Study all Knight! Which platforms can you move your Google Drive teaching lessons to? Here is a list of the ones I know of:

One Drive/Microsoft Classroom
Seesaw
Nearpod
Edmodo
Padlet
Schoolology
Canvas
Notability
Pic Collage
Blackboard
EvernoteYES, they can! You just click on the print button like in the example below. Just a note, all my Google Drive resources and most that are from other folks are very colorful so have the colored ink handy if you want the print outs to come out like the slides/docs. If you don’t mind having them come out black and white, select that option when printing to save colored ink. Just a note, some digital activities will not work on paper, but many of mine will. Just cut and paste or write instead of click and drag or type.

Students will accidentally delete or change the size or orientation of moveable pieces, and other teachers have asked me if the moveable pieces can be locked in some way to prevent this. Unfortunately, nope. If they were then they wouldn’t be moveable. BUT as I mentioned in a previous blog post (Tips and Tricks for Helping Students Work in Google Drive), the undo (and redo) button is incredibly helpful. You will need to model moving pieces around and students will improve after they have tried it a few times, but you will always have kiddos accidentally enlarge, shrink, or delete moveable pieces. Undo solves my second graders’ moveable piece problems 99% or more of the time!