Google Drive
Frequently Asked Questions
Trying to help your student with school work just got easier!
First thing first, what is Google Drive...
- an individual e-mail account
- a personal calendar
- a word processor and a collection of helpful templates
- a spreadsheet and chart maker
- a presentation program
- a drawing tool
- a storage space for your documents
All tools and files you create will be stored on the Internet rather than on any specific computer or server.
1. Why use Google Drive?
- can be accessed from any device or operating system
- saves automatically
- collaboration on documents
- document sharing
- going paperless!
- control of your share settings to protect your work
2. How does it compare to Microsoft Word or Pages?
Drive has all the same components but hosts additional add-ons that are not on Word or Pages. Drive also has the added benefit of saving automatically so, no more lost work!
3. Is my student's work safe?
4. How are teachers using Drive in class?
5. What is Google Docs? Slides? Sheets?
Google Docs
Google Sheets
Google Slides
Google Forms
Gmail
Google Draw
6. How can I monitor my student's work using Google Drive?
On Drive, you can see when documents were created, edited and by who! You can pull up a document that your student is working on or already submitted and see what time they were working on. Were they working late at night? Were they working during another class? You can use the revision history option (shown below) to see what your student has edited and when. If they are working on turning a rough draft into a final draft, you can use the revision history to monitor their progress and time spent on an assignment. This also allows you to restore to an earlier version of your assignment.
To access the revision history hold: Ctrl+Alt+Shift+G
7. How can Drive help my student with their research papers?
- Provide commentary on their work using comments (Insert > Comment, or Crtl+Alt+M)
- Track their revisions
- Track their time spent
- Drive saves automatically so there are no more "uh-oh" mistakes or computer crashes to ruin all their hard work!
- Drive can be accessed from any computer or device with the Drive App allowing them to work whenever they need to
8. Who can I ask for technology help?
STEAM Night Teacher Contacts
Your student can schedule one-on-one time with Mrs. Butler in the Library to receive help and tech support!
Ms. Cooney (Math) ccooney@sfschools.net
Mrs. Desantis (Art) adesantis@sfschools.net
Ms. Donnelly (History/Technology) tdonnelly@sfschools.net
Mr. Graff (Science/Engineering) pgraff@sfschools.net
Mr. Willoughby (Technology) rwilloughby@sfschools.net