What's New in Google - March 2020

Catch up on everything new in G Suite for Education from March 2020, and see great ideas and resources!

Below is the recorded video from our March 2020 Google User Meeting, along with the meeting agenda and all the awesome resources and G Suite updates from the summer months. This includes 24 new Google updates and 48 Google resources for your class.

The monthly meetings are hosted by the Google Educator Group of Ohio, but are open to anyone from any location. The purpose of these meetings is to:

• Connect Google-using educators
• Share the latest Google Apps news and features
• Provide tutorials, demonstrations, and how-to’s
• Share best practices of how Google Apps is being used within schools
• Ask questions and get answers

The video from the meeting is recorded and available for later viewing for those who cannot attend or connect live. See below to view the recorded video, agenda, and all the resources from the March 2020 meeting:




Note: If you would like to see each of the agenda items with links directly to those spots in the video, open the video using the YouTube link below and then click “Show More” below the video.

 YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-RPLzNszZQ

You can view the full Google Document agenda with links to all the Google Apps updates from the last month, as well as all the resources covered in the meeting in the Google Doc linked below.

 View the agenda - Google Document link

Agenda details

Upcoming Events

• Create Conference - June 4, 2020 - https://createconference.net/
• Akron3T 2020: Teach Tech Transform Conference - June 16 and 17, 2020 - www.akronschools.com/3T - Call for proposals due April 10th
• SPARCC Educational Technology Conference - Friday, August 7, 2020 - http://conference.apps.sparcc.org/ 
• Ideastream Education Technology + Learning Conference - November 12, 2020 - Cleveland - Call for proposals due May 15th
• Global GEG Staffroom: Mental Health Matter - Sign up here for future sessions - Join in here - Resources - Sunday: 3pm EST, Tuesday: 5:30am EST, Thursday: 9am EST

What's New in G Suite

February 2020

• 2/5/2020 - Changes to multiple inboxes in Gmail starting February 20, 2020 - Resource Link
• 2/5/2020 - New admin controls for third-party app backups in Google Drive - Resource Link
• 2/6/2020 - Google Maps is turning 15! Celebrate with a new look and features - Resource Link - Resource Link
• 2/6/2020 - Google removes Androidify avatar maker from Play Store and shuts down website - Resource Link
• 2/11/2020 - Edit your new Google Sites faster with a revamped Settings menu - Resource Link
• 2/14/2020 - Get a better overview of meetings with visual timelines in the Meet Quality Tool - Resource Link
• 2/18/2020 - Smart Compose in Google Docs now generally available (Not available for G Suite for Education or for personal Google accounts, although Beta program available) - Resource Link
• 2/18/2020 - Autocorrect now available for Google Docs on web (Not available to G Suite for Education) - Resource Link
• 2/19/2020 - Refine search results in Gmail faster with search chips - Resource Link
• 2/19/2020 - View out of office information in more places on Gmail for web - Resource Link
• 2/25/2020 - Google Contacts on the web regains ability to quickly ‘create multiple contacts’ - Resource Link
• 2/26/2020 - Google Earth officially adds Firefox, Edge, and Opera support - Resource Link

March 2020

• 3/3/2020 - Extending Hangouts Meet premium features to all G Suite customers through July 1, 2020 - Resource Link
• 3/3/2020 - Accessibility improvements for Google Docs - Resource Link
• 3/4/2020 - Google Assistant can now read web pages aloud to you - Resource Link
• 3/9/2020 - Fix images to a certain location on a page in Google Docs - Resource Link
• 3/9/2020 - Experience the new Google Groups, launching in beta - Resource Link
• 3/11/2020 - Set custom table ranges for charts in Google Sheets - Resource Link
• 3/11/2020 - Chrome OS to get native app for printing and scanning documents - Resource Link
• 3/11/2020 - Sort and filter cells by text or fill color in Google Sheets - Resource Link
• 3/17/2020 - Google Translate app adds live Transcribe feature - Resource Link
• 3/17/2020 - Google Search adds sorting for dictionary definitions by topic - Resource Link
• 3/19/2020- Hangouts Meet improvements for remote learning - Resource Link
• 3/20/2020 - New Google Assistant command helps you keep up hand washing - Resource Link
• 3/26/2020- Create pointers to any file or folder in Google Drive with shortcuts- Resource Link

Show and Tell

• Connecting Remotely - Ideas for Reaching Students Individually from Home - Resource Link
• The Spotlight Effect - Resource Link
• Screencastify for Remote Teaching - Resource link
• Video Series: How to Use Google Classroom (7 short videos) - Resource link
• Video Series: How to Use Google Hangouts Meet (6 short videos) - Resource link
• See Everyone with the Google Meet Grid View Extension - Resource link
• G Suite Pro Tips: How to organize your emails using Gmail labels - Resource Link
• The Suite Life: 4 tips for a more manageable Gmail inbox - Resource Link
• Earth View - a collection of thousands of the planet's most beautiful landscapes, seen from space - Resource Link
• Teach from Home - central hub of information, tips, training and tools from across Google for Education - Resource Link
• Learn@Home - learning resources and content for families from Google - Resource Link
• 3D Animals in Google Search on mobile - Resource Link
• GEG Meet up at OETC - Photos
• GEG collaborative Notes - Resource Link
• Inbox Zero - Resource Link
• Missing Assignments - Resource Link
• New Phone, Who Dis - Resource Link
• Enabling Distance Learning with G Suite and Chrome - Resource Link  - Slide Deck
• Data Studio Webinar - Resource Link
• Nod - Nod allows team members to send real-time reactions to presenters and speakers during meetings on Google Meet - Resource Link
• Tactiq - Capture the important conversations without losing focus from writing notes - Resource Link
• Classroom Guide for Parents - Resource Link
• COVID-19 Digital Lesson Templates - Resource Link
• Away Message - Resource Link
• Remote Learning Help Page - District help page for Google and Remote Learning - Resource Link
• Meet Attendance - Resource Link
• Google Meet tutorial - Resource Link
• GEG Community - Resource Link
• e-learning - Resource Link
• Google Expeditions - Resource Link
• Check ins - Rubber Duck - Cat - Baby Yoda

(For more community submitted resources from the meeting, see the agenda document.)


To see the schedule for upcoming Google User Group meetings visit:

 Google User Group schedule - https://sites.google.com/view/geg-ohio/monthly-meetings

Post by Eric Curts. Connect with me on Twitter at twitter.com/ericcurts