Since early 2020, we’ve been navigating uncharted waters with distance learning (as if regular in-classroom-learning wasn’t difficult enough)…and though I can’t make it all go away, I do have a few simple tips to help transition to the world of distance learning.
There are two ways to use Biology Roots materials digitally: resources that are digitally enhanced for Google Slides, and traditional PDFs. Scroll down to read more.
I get many questions asking if my resources can be posted online. They are permitted to be posted online only in the event that they are securely housed in a password protected platform (i.e., Google Classroom, Schoology, etc.)
Biology Roots digital materials are available on Google Slides. How you implement the materials depends on which online platform you use for your classroom. For example, Google Classroom is pretty seamless, and Schoology has a Google Drive app. *Attention Canvas users- you are not permitted to publish Google slides of Biology Roots resources publicly to web, as this would be a violation of the DMCA.
If you do not have any online platform for your students to use, Google Classroom is now available to the public. All you need is a Google account to get started!
Digitally Enhanced Resources
We have made efforts to make many of our resources digitally available. Here is an idea of what a digital resource might look like on Google slides:
(the items found above are part of my Digital Ecology Interactive Notebook).
Not every resource is available on Google Slides. However, this does not mean that you can’t use them digitally! You can use PDFs on any platform. Simply upload the PDF to Google Drive or your platform of choice, and have your students add their own text boxes using Kami.
For example, you can still assign Biology End of Course Review to help students review what they have learned, and use the Kami app to add text boxes. Students can share it to the drive when completed. Here is a page from my EOC review using Kami online (the text box that includes the word “haploid” can be easily added by your students in the fill-in-the-blanks):
Here is more info about Kami: https://help.kamiapp.com/en/articles/2511497-what-is-kami I encourage you to use it with all my resources for online learning!
If the PDF includes the answer key and you must separate it, simply select the pages that you wish you include, and print as a new PDF using the “print selected pages” option. Please note that if you are unsure how to do this, it varies by my the program you are using. Here is an example of what it might look like (I use Preview):
Do you have any tips to share? Please let me know in the comments below, or contact me.
Wishing you and your loved ones good health. We’re all in this together.
Take care,
Vanessa
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