Published using Google Docs
Google Docs Tutorial.docx
Updated automatically every 5 minutes

Getting Started with Google Docs

Purpose

Understand how to use Google Docs in the classroom to create, share, collaborate and publish works.

In this tutorial sheet you will learn how to:

  1. Create a Google Account
  2. Create a New Document
  3. Save a New Document
  4. Rename a New Document
  5. Upload an Existing Document
  6. Basic Editing
  7. Tagging a Document
  8. Collaborating and Sharing a Document
  9. Revise and Add Comments to a Document
  10. Publishing a Document
  11. Copying a Document

Software Needed

Firefox or Internet Explorer
Ability to access Google Docs on the Internet

Overview

Google Docs is a free online program that allows users to create documents, spreadsheets and presentations online and share them with others for collaboration. This allows educators and students to share their work with others, collaborate on assignments, and save documents online for access at school or at home. In this tutorial we will focus on using the document portion of Google Docs. These same instructions can apply to the spreadsheet and presentation files as well.

 

Lesson 1: Creating a Google Account

In order to use Google Docs you will need to register for a Google account. If you already have one through Gmail then you can use the same login to access Google Docs. If you do not have a Gmail account you may want to consider signing up for one so you can also use the Gmail and Calendar feature within Google. Otherwise you can just sign up for a Google account with an email address of your choice and a password. (This type of account does not provide the use of Gmail.)

Note that while it's possible to view a document, spreadsheet or presentation without a Google Account (via an invitation), you'll need to create a Google Account to edit the document, spreadsheet or presentation, and to continue accessing Google Docs.


A Gmail account will get you access both to Gmail and Google Docs as well as the other free programs offered through Google.

Activity 1: Signing up with Google

1. Go to http://docs.google.com. If you haven't already signed up for an account you should see the screen below.

2. If you already have a Google account type in your email and password to sign in. Otherwise click on the Get Started button to sign up with Google.

3. Fill in all of the required form fields to sign up for the account, read through the Terms of Service, and click on I Accept. Create My Account. 

4. You will need to verify your email address you used to create the account by signing into it and clicking on the link that Google Docs sends you. By doing so you will be taken to a page that looks similar to the one below. Now you are ready to start creating, sharing and collaborating on documents.

 

 

Lesson 2: Creating and Working with a New Document

Now that you have created a Google account and are able to access Google Docs you can begin creating or adding documents to your account. In this lesson you will learn how to create a new document, save it, and rename it. You will also learn how to upload an existing document. We will be working with word processing files but the same steps can be utilized to create and upload spreadsheets and presentations.

 


You may want to have your students change their display names so that you can quickly identify the author of each document. Click on Settings and then change the Display Name field.

 

Activity 1: Creating a New Document

1. Click on New on the Menu bar and select which type of file you would like to create. For the purposes of this tutorial we will be using the Document option.

2. Google Docs will open a new window that will allow you to create a word processed document.

 


Here's a shortcut...

1. Control + S will also save the document

Activity 2: Saving and Renaming a New Document

1. In order to save your document you just need to click on the Save button. (You can also use the Save and Close button if you are finished working with the document.)

2. You can also chose File on the Menu bar and then Save. In either case it will save the file using the text at the top of the document as the file name.

4. Type in the new document name and click OK.

3. If you would like to rename your file you can go to File on the Menu bar and choose Rename.

Types of files that you can upload: Documents (up to 500KB) 

Presentations (up to 10MB) 

Spreadsheets (up to 1MB) 

Activity 3: Uploading a Document

1. In order to upload an existing document you just need to click on the Upload button on the Menu bar.

2. Then you will need to click on the Browse button and find the document that you would like to upload.

3. The path to your document will appear in the form field next to the Browse button. If the file is not on your computer but can be accessed via the web you can also type in the URL in the second form field. The third form field allows you to change the name before uploading. When you have completed these steps you will click on the Upload File button.

4. Your file should now appear in your main window.

Lesson 3: Working with your Documents

Just like in Microsoft Word you can copy, paste, bold, underline, italicize, and many other editing options. Although your editing options are not as comprehensive as a paid for program such as MS Word, you should find most of what you will need to create and edit your documents. This lesson will take you through some of the features that are available.

 

Activity 1: Edit Menu

1. The Edit menu has many different options available. Most of the icons that are used should look familiar to you. For example the scissors icon represents the Cut feature and the clipboard icon represents the Paste feature. Take some time to familiarize yourself with the different options that are available.

 


Keyboard Shortcuts within Google Docs can be accessed at the following link: http://docs.google.com
/support/bin/answer.py
?answer=66280

Activity 2: Insert Menu

1. The Insert menu also provides you with some options of inserting many types of objects such as images, links, comments, and tables. Take some time to familiarize yourself with these different options.

 

Activity 3: Spell Check

1. Google Docs does have a Spell Check feature. It is located at the bottom right hand corner of your document. Click on the Check Spelling link and it will highlight the words it considers spelled incorrectly.

2. If you click on the word a menu will pop up with suggestions on the correct spelling of the word. Choose which is correct to make the change or type in a change on your own.

 


Teachers should create a folder for each class to help organize the documents they will have access to.

Activity 4: Creating Folders to Organize Documents

1. On your computer you probably have some sort of organization to storing your documents. This usually involves folders and sub folders. In Google Docs you have the same option for organizing your files. To create a new folder simply click on New on the Menu bar and choose Collection. “Collection” is the new term for a folder in Google Docs.  You’ll get this pop-up:

2. Your screen will change to show you the new collection. The collection you’re in at the moment will be highlighted, and listed up top in the search bar.

3. Once you create your new collection, there are a number of menu options available.  You can create sub-folders, share an entire folder with someone (great for co-taught classes), and edit how the folder appears.

4. To place a document into a folder you will need to click on Home in the left navigation menu at the top of your collections to see all of your documents. Then choose the document you would like to move and drag it into the folder.  The name of the collection will appear next to the item’s name.

 


Please Note: In order to collaborate on a document the person you share the document with must have a Google Account. Otherwise they can only view the document.

Lesson 4: Sharing, Collaborating and Publishing a Document

A wonderful feature of Google Docs is the ability to share your work with others. You have many options to do this. You can give access to a document where the viewers are only able to read the document and not make any changes. You can also give access to a document where people can collaborate with you by making changes. You will be able to see the changes that each person has made to your document. In this lesson you will learn how to share your document with others and publish the final version.

 


Limits for documents and presentations: 200 combined viewers and collaborators. 10 people may edit and/or view at any given time.

There is currently no limit to the number of people with whom you can share a spreadsheet. However, only 50 people can edit a spreadsheet at the same time.

When you have students share their work with you, have them give it a common name.  I use the following format: period assignment title name – for example, “G DPizzuto UTPT Essay.”  That way, I can just drag and drop it into the appropriate folder on my Google Docs.

Activity 1: Sharing and Collaborating on a Document

1. You can do this from the main screen, or from inside a document.  If you are on your main menu, Click on Home in your left navigation menu to show all the items that you have in your Google Docs account. Select which one you would like to share with another. Then on the right side of the screen, click the Sharing-settings option:

2. The default is “private.”  If it is private, you can add email addresses at the bottom and invite others.  You then have two new options . Collaborators are able to view as well as edit any documents that you share using this option. Viewers are only able to view the document. They are not able to make any changes to the document. After selecting the Collaborator or Viewer option you will need to type in the email addresses of the people with whom you would like to share the document.

3. You can also change the settings, making your document public on the web (with its own address) or public for anyone with the link.  If you choose one of these options, you can then select whether you want people to be able to view or edit the document.

4. A window will pop up that will ask you to type in a message that will be emailed along with the invitation to access the document. Type in your message and click on the Send button.

5. Anyone that receives the invitation can then click on the link within the message to begin viewing and/or editing the document. They will need to log in with their Google Account in order to edit if they are a collaborator.

 

Activity 2: Revising a Document

The chance to revise a document while working on it is very helpful to both teachers and students. Teachers no longer have to wait for their students to turn in the paper before they get a chance to offer suggestions. A teacher can check in with a student's work online and offer suggestions for revisions or provide ideas for further development while the student is in the writing process. Below are some ideas on how you can utilize the Revision feature in Google Docs.

1. Follow the above instructions on sharing a document. Be sure your students include you as a collaborator on their documents so you are able to view and provide feedback during the writing process.

2. If you would like to to see who made what additions or changes to the document you need to click on File >> See Revision History.

3. You should now see all of the revisions that have occurred to that document.

You can also see who has collaborated on the document. By selecting a particular revision you can see what changes or additions that person made. Below, the revisions by Mr. M are in a lighter color.  I can opt to revert to this revision by clicking “restore this revision” on the right.

4. If you would like to add comments to a student's work you can do so without making edits to the document. Select the area that you would like to comment on and then go to the Insert menu and click on the Comments link. The shortcut for this on Macs is control-command-M. Then type in the comment you would like to leave. By doing this a student can read your suggestion and determine whether or not to make a change. It will not directly change their document.

When they publish their document as a web page, post it to their blog, or print it, the comments will disappear.  Note:  Comments are posted like a chat conversation – other editors can respond to your comment, and you can view the whole conversation by clicking the “discussions” button at the top right.  Only the owner of the comment can delete it


If you would like the document to be republished every time a change is made, be sure to check the box that says Automatically re-publish when changes are made 

Activity 3: Publishing a Document

Publishing a document means that you will be making it available to anyone via the Internet. Google adds your document to the Google Index so that if someone does a search on the topic of your document it may be accessed.

1. To publish your document you need to click on the Share tab on the upper right side of your screen and then click Publish to Web. A screen like the one below will appear.

2. Once you tell it to publish, you will get this option pop-up.  It gives you the link to post to your website, or an embed code for sticking your document into a page, where it can be viewable.  You can also share it through several social media platforms.

 

 

Lesson 5: Printing and Copying a Document

Once you have a final version of your document you may want to print it. Or perhaps you want to have a copy of the original document before others start collaborating on it. (Which you can also achieve through the revisions tab). This lesson will show you how to print your document and make a copy of it.

 


Please Note: Do not use the Print option in your browser's File menu. This will print the entire web page and not just your document.

Activity 1: Printing a Document

1. To print the document open it and choose the Print icon at the top left, beneath the file menu.

2. Make sure to do it through Google Doc’s print options – if you try to just print using your web browser’s print button, you’ll get a blank screen!

3. Keep in mind that things aren’t quite as they appear in Google Docs – margins might move a bit.  So, before printing, always do two things:

a.  Go to File >> Page Setup to set your margins and layout.

b.  Go to File >> Print Preview to open a new tab and see what your document will look like

Activity 2: Copying a Document

1. To copy a document you will need to open the document and then choose File on the Menu bar and Make a Copy.

2. A confirmation message will pop up. Click OK to continue.   You can also copy the document to your collaborators

3. The file should now be saved as "Copy of <Filename>"  Click the name to rename it.


Google Docs Support
http://docs.google.com/support/

Classroom Ideas:

Wrap Up:

As you can see Google Doc is easy to use and very useful when needing to share documents with others. The opportunities to use this program in your classroom are endless. From Buddy Book Shares to collaboration with another school on a particular topic, Google Docs opens the door to collaboration using technology. You may want to visit the Google Help Site for more information on how to use Google Docs.

http://docs.google.com/support/

Additional Resources:

Using Google Docs in the Classroom

OMS New Literacies Page, with Top Tools:  http://oms-new-literacies.wikispaces.com/Top+Tools+for+Teachers
Google Docs: Collaborating in the Classroom: http://www.google.com/librariancenter/articles/0703_01.html
Google for Educators: Classroom Activities: http://www.google.com/educators/activities.html   

Teaching Collaborative Revision with Google Docs: http://www.google.com/educators/weeklyreader.html

Similar Programs to Google Docs
http://www.zoho.com/
http://thinkfree.com/common/main.tfo