Blogger

Think about the purpose for your blog - check out this document we wrote last year regarding the purpose for different tools: Our Digital Toolbox.

Basics of Blogger

Embedding albums, images and slideshows

Embed a video

Customising your Blog

Backgrounds, Templates & Banners:

Blogger Candy (uses HTML code)
Cutest Blog on the Block (uses HTML code)
Blogger Templates (uses XML download file)
Shabby Blogs

Widgets:

Feedjit - see where your blog visitors are located and what pages they are going to
Map Loco - see where you blog visitors are located
Twitter Feed - live twitter feed
Social Network Feed - get a feed from various social media sites (e.g. facebook, twitter)
Text Giraffe - Create logo's, etc

Photo Sharing
Picassa Web
Picture Trail
Photo Bucket - create photo slideshows

LC2 Blog

Google Sites

Access Google Sites by finding the apps control panel:

Examples of Google Sites:

eLearning at HPPS Site

Learning Common 2 Learning Site

Teacher Dashboard

Teacher Dashboard provides an instructional management layer on top of Google Apps, giving educators a snap-shot view of student activity across Docs, Sites, Blogger and Calendars.

Getting Started 

To access Teacher Dashboard, first log into your Google Apps account.
In a new tab, open the following: Hobsonville Point Teacher Dashboard
Save this to your chrome browser: Bookmarks>bookmark this page
You'll be asked for approval to link your Google Apps account with Teacher Dashboard.
Once you OK this approval, you'll see your classes on the home screen.

Organising your Dashboard
When you open a class in Teacher Dashboard, you see all of your students along with any items they have shared with you through the class folder.
There are a few additional options that allow for grouping and sorting on this screen.

Sorting 

Allows you to sort the way you see students on your dashboard (e.g. first name, last name, group).


Class Group Setting

Allows you to set up colours and names for groups in your class. Click on the colour to the left of each student to organise your groups.

View Docs & Filter

The drop down menu allows for you to view more than 3 docs (up to 25) on your home screen. The Filter search box allows you to quickly call up items that may have a specific title.

Smart Copy Wizard - How to use it

Share docs with the whole class, or a group of students, with just a few clicks.

Teacher Dashboard Tools & Features: Hapara's how to's tutorials 

Calendar

Google Calendar

We use the Calendar app to keep up-to-date with all the goings on at HPPS.

You will need to enable by pasting the ID into your calendar where it says: Add a colleagues calendar
Marketing: visitors, whole school events, courses, etc.
Marketing Ops ID: marketing@hobsonvillepoint.school.nz

General Operations: add any trips, school-wide organisation, events to this calendar that you think should be shared with colleagues. e.g. swimming, observations of kids, courses, trips.
Genreal Ops ID: hobsonvillepoint.school.nz_irj15jv6kdjqe8i1vte8suf8ok@group.calendar.google.com

Manage your Calendar including your subscriptions:

Settings cog>settings>calendars

From here you can unsubscribe, control sharing and more.

Labs
Like with gmail, you can check out the Labs (experimental options to add to your calendar)
Try these options by clicking Enable: Event Flair, Jump to date, event attachments & hide morning and night.

To add calendar to your iPhone:
Settings>Mail, Contacts, Calendars>Add Account> Google

Appointment Slots
Using Appointment Slots
How to create appointment slots

GAFE Quick Overview

Google What?

Chrome

Download here

Google's internet browser

- use the URL bar as a google search

- multiple users: You can create multiple user accounts, where bookmarks, apps, extensions, themes and browser settings for the user can be personalised. This can be useful for having different environments for personal and professional accounts. Click here to find out how to set this up.

- Chrome Store: apps that you can run on your desktop

Synergyse Google Apps Training

Interactive in-app training for Google Apps - specifically Gmail, Calendar & Sites. This is a chrome extension which will access your google account and set-up within the app required.

Gmail

Organising your Mail
Make your mail work for you by creating different filters and rules for incoming mail. Click here to see how to create this.

Drive

Connect more apps in your drive account by exploring the apps available.
Create>connect more apps>connect

Enable the voice comments app from your drive account
In drive dashboard: create>connect more apps>voice comments>connect

To organise find the drop down menu beside the folder you want to edit.
Here you can:

• Change the colour of the icon
• Share whole folder with other people
• Move folder somewhere else (move to)
• Rename folders
• Remove (delete folder)

Calendar

• Add other people's calendars
• Browse interesting calendars
• Explore labs (find under the settings menu) e.g. event flare, hide morning and night, event attachments, jump to date.

Some Other Apps:

Sites
Youtube
Google +

Developing your PLN

Virtual Learning Network 

NZ Educational 'Twits' to follow

Educational Hashtags to follow

Blogger

Migrate Blog from Wordpress to Blogger

Import and Export Blogs

1. Set up your Blogger blog, if you don't have one already

2. Back up your blogger blog.  If you haven't created any posts yets, skip this step

• On your Blogger page select "Design"
• Select the "Settings" tab in the left-hand sidebar
• Click "Other" at the bottom of the list of options.  
• Look for the Heading towards the top of the page "Blog Tools"
• Click on "Export Blog"
• Click on "Download blog"
• Save the file in a folder on your hard drive.

3. Go over to Wordpress and open the dashboard (my blog>blog admin)

4. Select Tools>export 

           Select options that relate to what you want to export

5. This will download a file - take note of the file name

6. Use this program to convert the file to a xml file Wordpress2Blogger Converter

• This will download another file - note the name of this file so you can search for it when prompted

6. Go back over to blogger>settings>other>import blog

7. Follow instructions (you may need to search for the xml file when prompted)

8. Import Blog - imported posts will be merged with any current posts, sorted by date.

Blog Widgets

Create and embed to your blog using the HTML code.

Clustr Maps

See where your traffic comes from using your blog URL address.

Live Traffic Feed

See where your traffic comes from and what pages specifically they are reading.

Select the free option.

Chrome App

Tab Cloud

Do you often have multiple windows open when working on a project, then need to do something so you leave the window open for days, when you are ready to come back to it? Tab cloud allows you to save any window session and restore it at a later date.  As this is on Chrome, you can open this saved session on any computer you are signed into.