Google Extensions to Improve Your Workflow

Part of being an effective teacher is to be a productivity strategist. It could be as simple as identifying tasks that you can automate like Schedule Send emails on Gmail or spending additional time creating resources so you can reuse them for next time. As teachers are spending more time on their work computer/online, I’ve compiled a list of Google Extensions to streamline teachers’ workflow. The list below is in alphabetical order:

Awesome Screenshot

We all know how important visual images are for communication. Sometimes they’re more effective than a block of text. While taking screenshots is a built-in function in most operating systems, Awesome Screenshot allows you to take a screenshot of an entire page. I love using it because it allows me to take photos of an entire page instead of a snippet of a page.

The above video shows how Awesome Screenshot scrolls the entire page to indicate that it is taking a screenshot of the whole webpage. After the screenshot is taken, you have the option of editing the image before saving it on your computer.

Bitmoji

Bitmojis are uniquely created cartoon versions of yourself. The database contains a multitude of images where your character says catch phrases or does a certain action. Examples:

I remember when Bitmoji first launched, it was being used heavily in elementary school teachers, now a variety of teachers are using it to add their faces in a virtual classroom. The extension allows for an easily accessible Bitmoji menu where you can Right Click + Copy Image and the Bitmoji can be inserted anywhere, like Google Slides, Google Docs and even Gmail!

Black Menu for Google

Without opening up an additional tab, this extension gives you access to the following Google Tools and more!

• Search

• Mail

• Drive

• Calendar

This minimizes the need to open up more tabs, therefore reducing the workload on your computer. Not sure if you have a meeting scheduled? You don’t have to open a new tab and go to Google Calendar, simply click on the icon and select Calendar, without leaving your current tab you have access to your calendar.

Classwork Zoom

Don’t let the name fool you, this extension has nothing to do with video conferencing. Instead, it provides you a closer look of how students are performing on Google Classroom. If you collect homework on Google Classroom, then this extension provides a one-stop-shop for you to view how much time students are spending on an assignment and if they are contributing fairly on group work. 

OneTab

Do you find yourself opening up 30+ tabs and hear your poor computer fan going off? OneTab helps you save all your opened tabs into a single one and you can reopen them if you want. It boasts that it saves 95% of your computer memory but it also has the added benefit of decluttering your browser. This is particularly useful as the more tabs you have open, the more illegible they become on chrome which is a problem for ease of accessibility. Most teachers use OneTab to share resources with students. If you want the students to go to a list of websites, OneTab allows the teacher to share the link to a single tab. When students open the link, they’ll have access to all the opened tabs that contain all the websites that they need to go to. No typing, no multiple clicking, just a simple single click, and students have access to all the necessary sites.

Sir Links A Lot

As a teacher who needs to share various resources across the Google Workspace (Formerly G Suite), this extension is helpful for creating Force Copy links easily without having the teacher to go into the URL and editing. It also creates links for Preview-only or Template documents. It creates links to convert any Google Workspace file into a PDF and it’s a handy tool without too much editing or workaround from the teacher. Simple button clicking and the link to share is copied on the teacher’s clipboard.

QR Code Generator

QR codes are great if you want your students to access the resource on their mobile devices. Most phones nowadays have a QR code scanner built into their cameras, so a link automatically pops-up. Make sure you are on the webpage that you want students to access, click on the icon and a QR code is automatically generated. You can copy it or create an HD version of it if you want it to be printed out. This extension reduces the need to search for a standalone QR code generator website, and copying and pasting web links.

I’ve tested a bunch of QR code generator Extensions and this is by far the simplest and hasn’t failed me yet.

Using Extensions

Keep in mind that the more Extensions you have installed on your browser, the slower it will be as Extensions take up memory space. Make sure you give it a go with these Extensions and see which ones you like. It’s a good practice to occasionally do a spring cleaning of your Extensions to free up space for new ones. 

If there’s any additional extensions that you use, I’d love to know. I’m hoping to keep adding more extensions onto this page.

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