Tag Archives: google apps

Google Docs Keyboard Shortcuts

In a previous post I listed some keyboard shortcuts for Google Slides. Here’s a list of some Google Docs keyboard shortcuts for a PC that may help to speed up your work.

keyboard shortcuts google docs

Action	Keyboard Shortcut
Working with a Document
Open a file	CTRL + O
Insert a page break	CTRL + ENTER
Find	CTRL + F
Find again	CTRL + G
Find and replace	CTRL + H
Insert a footnote	CTRL + ALT + F
Find the word count	CTRL + SHIFT + C
Go to the beginning of the document	SHIFT + HOME
Go to the end of the document	SHIFT + END
Print a document	CTRL + P
Editing Shortcuts Common to Many Apps
Undo	CTRL + Z
Redo	CTRL + Y
Copy	CTRL + C
Cut	CTRL + X
Paste	CTRL + V
Paste without formatting	CTRL + SHIFT + V
Duplicate	CTRL + D
Select all	CTRL + A
Text Shortcuts Common to Many Apps
Bold text	CTRL + B
Italic text	CTRL + I
Underline text	CTRL + U
Insert a numbered list	CTRL + SHIFT + 7
Insert a bulleted list	CTRL + SHIFT + 8
Insert a link	CTRL + K
Increase font size of selected text	CTRL + SHIFT + >
Decrease font size of selected text	CTRL + SHIFT + <
Working with Paragraphs
Left align	CTRL + SHIFT + L
Right align	CTRL + SHIFT + R
Center align	CTRL + SHIFT + E
Justify	CTRL + SHIFT + J
Increase paragraph indentation	CTRL + ]
Decrease paragraph indentation	CTRL + [
Apply normal text style	CTRL + ALT + O
Working with Images and Drawings
Resize larger	CTRL + ALT + K
Resize smaller	CTRL + ALT + J

If I’ve missed any that you use and find handy, please let me know. To see a list of PC, Mac, and Chrome OS shortcuts for computer, android, Iphone and Ipad go to Keyboard Shortcuts for Google Docs.

Spanish Resources for Teachers

Are you teaching in Spanish? Do you have English Language Learners who need support? Is your classroom bilingual? Do you need quality instructional materials to engage students and help them succeed? Great news! TechnoKids Inc. has released a collection of technology projects in Spanish. These Spanish resources have lessons designed for elementary, middle school, and high school students.

NEW! Spanish Resources TechnoKids Technology Projects

The Spanish Bundle by TechnoKids Inc. is a collection of three of our most popular technology projects – TechnoToon, TechnoResearch, and TechnoCandy. Each technology project has a teacher guide, workbook, and resources. All instructional activities, materials, and assessment tools are in Spanish. The lessons have detailed instructions for Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides. They are ideal for a language learning program. In addition, they can be used to help students that are not yet proficient in English to succeed in a classroom setting.

Spanish Activities for Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides

The lesson plans in the Spanish Bundle use a project based learning approach. Students use technology to create a digital story, design a research card, and manipulate data to develop a solution. The Spanish activities blend technology skills with language arts and mathematics.

Spanish resources for teachers and students.

TechnoToon: Create a digital story using Google Slides. Combine images, text, and animation to produce an animated comic strip. Have students write the story in Spanish or use the Spanish worksheets to assist English Language Learners who need support.

View a digital story made using TechnoKids Spanish resources.

TechnoResearch: Design a Fun Fact Card using Google Docs. Research a topic and then organize information into an informative publication. Develop essential Internet research and word processing skills. Have language learners write the fun fact card in Spanish or have Hispanic students use the materials to independently follow instructions.

TechnoCandy: Boost candy sales. Analyze data using Google Sheets and then recommend a solution in a Google Docs report. Teach essential spreadsheet skills. Integrate technology into a language learning program or provide English Language Learners with Spanish resources to succeed in the classroom.

View a sample spreadsheet lesson in Spanish.

Computers and technology are valuable tools that can help students learn a language. Activities from the Spanish Bundle use Google Apps to provide meaningful tasks that encourage independence and make learning fun.

Explore Tool in G Suite for Education

The Explore Tool is in the lower right corner of any Docs, Slides, or Sheets document.

Google Apps for Education recently announced that it will now be known as G Suite for Education. Along with the rebranding, some other updates were made. Most notable for teachers, the Research Tool has been eliminated and replaced by the Explore Tool, which has some benefits and but also a significant shortcoming.

First, the bad news. Gone is the ability to add citations and footnotes directly into a document using the Research Tool. For teachers and students, this is an unfortunate setback. Being able to easily and quickly identify sources is an essential research skill. What used to be an onerous task, was made simple by the Research Tool. One click on Cite automatically inserted a citation and footnote. We hope that Google will reinstate this function soon. In the meantime, in my next post, I’ll include some online citation makers that create a citation with the click of a button!

The good news is that you can still search without leaving the document. Spending less time switching between apps allows students to focus on the assignment and its content.

In Docs, clicking on the Explore Tool offers three options: WEB, IMAGES, and DRIVE.

Enter a topic into the search box. WEB results include a title, URL, and short snippet summarizing the website. Clicking on a link opens a new browser tab.

Clicking on IMAGES offers a gallery of pictures related to the search term. To insert an image into the document, simply drag it where it is to be placed. It will, by default, be in line but text wrap can be changed by selecting the image and choosing Wrap text.
explore tool images

Selecting DRIVE looks in your Google Drive for files that include the search term.

If the Explore Tool is opened when there is already text in the document, instant search suggestions are given based on the contents. Google calls this ‘insight’ and it does seem to work quite well.

The Explore Tool is consistent in Sheets and Slides. In Sheets, use the Explore Tool to ask questions about data using words if you do not know how to construct a formula. Formula and formatting suggestions are offered based on the content of the spreadsheet. In Slides, the Explore Tool also offers design suggestions as well as search results.

The research recommendations, design tools, and insight capability of this new tool make it an effective and productive update to G Suite for Education.

Reflection Questions for Biography Projects

Biographies do more than inform readers about a remarkable life. These true life stories explain the contributions of a notable person. A study of a hero or famous figure provides advice and insight for life lessons. Biographies can offer motivation and inspiration as the reader makes connections to their own experiences. Reflection after reading or writing a biography provides further learning. History becomes more meaningful and relevant. As students consider the positive contributions of a successful life as well as the struggles, mistakes, failures and character flaws, they can find things in common with their own lives.

Biographies and You: Reflection Questions

After a biography study, students pick a question, discuss their insights with their peers, and write a short response.

How does the person inspire you to act?
How does the life of this person make you believe your dreams can come true?
What hope for the future does this person give to you?
What character trait does the person possess that you wished you had? Why?
What was the person’s secret to success? How can you apply this secret to your own life?
What can you do today as a direct result of the person’s contributions?
What emotions does this person make you feel?
How does their life story help you to understand a different viewpoint?
What change has happened in the way you think as a result of reading the biography?
What experiences did the person have that are similar to your own life?
What character traits do you share with the person?
What fact did you find most interesting about the person? Why?
Who do you know that is similar to the person? How are they the same?
What do you think would be different today if the person had not lived?
What celebrity should play the person in a movie? Why?
What does this person’s life tell you about the time in which they lived?
Why would you recommend this biography to another reader?
If you could talk to the person, what question would you ask?
Would you like to be the person? Why or why not?
Would you like to be the son or daughter of the person? Why or why not?

TechnoBiography is a project-based technology project in which students are guided through online research about a notable figure, write a personal history organized with headings, list contributions with a graphic organizer, and create a table showcasing artifacts. The completed Ebook is shared in Google Apps or Office 365 Online.