Five Ways to Use Google Slides for More Than Just Slideshows

Having my slideshows all in one place on Google Drive has been really helpful to me. More importantly, having a cloud-based tool that students can use to make their own presentations has also been really valuable as a way for students to demonstrate their own learning. However, that is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to using Google Slides in the classroom, and even more importantly, using Google Slides outside the classroom walls.

Here are five different ways you could use Google Slides with your students:

1. Graphic Design

Did you know that you can change the size of your slides? All you have to do is to click on "file" > "page setup" > "custom" and then set the dimensions you want. Need an 11" x 17" poster? You can make it in slides! Need students to create an infographic with certain dimensions? Create the right size in Slides and share it as a template in Google Classroom!

2. PDF Booklets

Helping students publish can be difficult. There are a bunch of different options, but most of them require logins, and on top of that, they often don't allow students to completely customize it. However, students can create their own booklets in Google Slides and then download it as a PDF. This means they can customize their document however they want, save it as a PDF, and then post it anywhere they want.

3. Videos

Having a slideshow to present is great, but what if students aren't going to presenting in front of the class? Fortunately, Slides addresses this problem by allowing students to publish a video that will automatically play through their slides. To do this, students just click "file" > "publish to the web" > students will set the time for each slide > "publish" and they'll get a link for their video. From there they can share that link or embed their new video anywhere they want. I have found that this is great for embedding intro Google Sites and letting them display their work publicly.

4. Backchannel Chats

When we give lessons in our classrooms, we typically ask students to respond to questions, and as we all know, generally the same students who like to talk will answer. This doesn't allow us to really gather relevant data from every student in the classroom. Backchannel chats are a way to allow the quiet students to respond to questions or share ideas in a less publicly intimidating way. To present with a backchannel chat in Google Slides, click the little arrow next to the present button. From there, select the "Presenter View with Q&A" option. 

Once it is set up, students can join and respond to or ask questions, and those responses can be voted up or down by other students. You can view these while you present, or you can save them and come back to them later.

5. Flipped Lessons

While there are a number of different ways to flip a lesson, Google Slides provides you a slightly different way to do this. While most flipped lessons focus mostly on the video, Slides allows you to set up a few different slides with different activities and videos on each slide. I've found that this creates a way for me to template my flipped lessons with the same organization of an in-class lesson. I just assign this in Classroom, make a copy for every student, and then they turn it in when they're done.

Other creative ways to use Google Slides in the classroom? Let me know in the comments below!