For our students, checklists can be used in many ways:
- Steps in a science experiment
- Self-monitoring of behavior
- Mastery of subject content and standards
- Tasks when composing and editing their writing
- Working through a math procedure
- And many more…
Typically we think of such checklists as printed paper documents that our students can mark on with a pencil as they complete the steps in their list. While that is perfectly fine, we can also take advantage of digital checklists. When done electronically, checklists can be collaborative, edited as needed, accessed by multiple people, and hopefully not eaten by the dog.
There are certainly a lot of mobile apps, web apps, web extensions, and websites that provide checklist tools. However, one creative way to make an interactive checklist is with Google Documents. I have always known that you can add a checkbox list to a Google Doc, but did not realize a neat trick you can do to make the checklist more interactive. Recently I learned this clever approach from Caitlin Christel, an attendee at one of my Google certification boot camps.
See below for how to use Google Documents to create interactive checklists for students.
Create the Checklist
First, begin by creating the checklist in Google Docs using the “Bulleted list” feature.
- Type out the items in the checklist, with one item per line.
- Select all the lines of items.
- Click the down arrow to the right of the “Bulleted list” icon in the top toolbar, and then choose the checkbox option from the pop-out menu.
- Alternately you can click “Format” in the top menu bar, then “Lists”, then “Bulleted list”, and then finally choose the checkbox option.
- This will place a checkbox at the start of each line in the list.
Mark off the Checklist
Now the student can mark off an items in the checklist as they complete them. This can be done by changing a checkbox to a checkmark at the start of any of the lines.
- Left-click one time on a checkbox, which will select the entire group of checkboxes.
- Now left-click one more time on the same checkbox, which will now just select the single checkbox you have clicked on.
- Now right-click on the same checkbox.
- This will pop up a window where you can choose a new bullet to replace the checkbox.
- Choose the checkmark icon.
- The empty checkbox will now be replaced with a checkbox, indicating the item has been completed.
- Repeat as needed for other checkboxes.
Post by Eric Curts. Connect with Eric on Twitter at twitter.com/ericcurts and on Google+ at plus.google.com/+EricCurts1
Very nice summary. What I would love to be able to do next is search for "unchecked" items. I don't think it's possible but thought I'd ask.
ReplyDeleteThanks!
You can use ctrl+f and type the item you would like to search for in the box that pops up. Hope that helps!
Delete@Anonymous (other) The OP is asking how to search UNCHECKED items, not everything in the doc. I would probably write an app to search specifically for bulleted items with the box symbol. See api's here: https://developers.google.com/apps-script/guides/docs
Deletethey've updated it, so now it's above the 6 in the tab stop.
DeleteThanks for this super set of directions. Just did learned this at a recent Google Summit, but your directions rock!
ReplyDeleteHow does this work for IOS? On my ipad I can create the checklist but I can't change the boxes to a check. I can't even select them. Right now I have to delete the checkbox and insert the check character.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
ReplyDeleteThanks for this. Unknown: in iOS use control and click
ReplyDeleteI can't believe that with all of the requests in forums for this feature that Google has yet to add it. It's such a foundational function for any doc.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe that with all of the requests in forums for this feature that Google has yet to add it. It's such a foundational function for any doc.
ReplyDeleteBig thumbs up for this! Very helpful!
ReplyDeleteI think this is too much work. So far I've just been using standard lists and using the strikethrough shortcut to show that they are done.
ReplyDeleteThanks you for writing this. You helped me improve my productivity rate.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much! Hey Google - you should add a checkbox option!
ReplyDeleteSweet! This is great! Thanks for sharing your knowledge!
ReplyDeleteSuper helpful. Always wanted to know how to do this, as I make "To Do" lists all the time. Thank You!
ReplyDeleteExcellent idea. However on my "more bullets" box there is no check mark available, even on the extended list. Would anyone know how to add the check box to the first list of symbols that pops up, as shown in this tutorial? Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing. It was very useful.
ReplyDeletewow! useful great job you have done we should learn such kind tick because of this is technologies world good job keep it up!Han Solo Leather Jacket
ReplyDeleteThanks for this tutorial, very helpful so I can keep my checklists in my Google docs!
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ReplyDeleteI'm having a problem where if I check off one thing it checks them all off - suggestions?
ReplyDeleteMorgan, I did the same thing.
DeleteClick one time on a checkbox, which will select the entire group (you already found this). Then click one more time on the same checkbox, which will now just select the single checkbox you have clicked on. Now you can right-click and select the check mark for that one item.
This approach actually worked for me a month or two ago, but now it doesn't. Did Google change something?
DeleteIn my hands, left-clicking once selects all boxes at that indent level. Left-clicking a second time selects a single box (so far, as advertised). But right-clicking on that single selected box re-selects all boxes at that indent level.
Will the checklist still work like this if it is downloaded to a PDF?
ReplyDeleteI second this
DeleteGracias, súper útil!
ReplyDeleteHere is very useful blog with some good advice's abot tracking applications
ReplyDeleteHow about if i do more checkbox in a line?
ReplyDeleteI was searching for any addone for google docs to have the checklist system. Never thought this. Anyway, it's a good idea. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteSuch a great article, it's exactly what I need. Thank you! :-)
ReplyDeleteThis was really helpful. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteRock on! This is fantastic!
ReplyDelete