GAIN - Drawing

I really enjoyed Google Drawing and felt like it could be an affective tool in the classroom. I felt like the program was easy to use and the functions easy to find. It features real time collaboration, students can chat as they work, and export their projects into different files, like PDF's. There are so many different projects I can think of to do with students with this type of program, but I felt it would be very useful in lesson plans. I reviewed the lesson plan for elementary school students provided on the link. I thought the lesson plan had great ideas, but I could see where it may be difficult for some students that do not have a lot of computer experience. It may be that the teacher would need to pair students with partners that have more experience so that they can help them. I am a college student that has little computer experience and I understand the frustration that comes with using tools you are not familiar with, with little or help, or clear instruction. When students are frustrated, they shut down and do not learn. The lesson plan in this sections had great math activities that aligned well with the CCSS listed on the plan. This would be a great tool to teach vocabulary, shapes, and other geometric lessons. Students could easily collaborate or use tools the teacher creates and shares.

Using the Drawing feature, teachers could create activities that align well with many CCSS. Graham mentioned many of these ideas in the book Google Apps Meets Common Core. Math, as mentioned above, is a great subject that this program could align with, as well as reading or even history. Geometry in particular could be enhanced by letting students experiment with shapes and design, manipulating them and using related vocabulary as prescribed in their standards. Students could use the Drawing tool to brainstorm and organize information they read for writing assignments or other tasks. History standards could be matched by creating timelines, charts, graphs, interactive designs that describe a historical time, or even create animations. Moreover, students could use this program to create drawings, etc. that help the teacher know what they have learned and would be a great assessment tool. All of these items could be kept, saved, and used to create a portfolio for assessment at the end of the year. The possibilities are endless, but this tool could be helpful for teachers to help students be successful in the classroom.