New Zoom Feature: Immersive View

With the most recent update to Zoom, you are able to enable Immersive View. Though new to Zoom, this feature has been widely used by Microsoft Teams users. If you've watched the NBA or WWE during the pandemic, you have seen virtual crowds. Immersive View provides a similar experience. What it does is allow you to see your meeting attendees in scenes such as an auditorium or as pictures in an art gallery, just to name a few. Take a look at the gif below to see what it can look like in Zoom. 

Get started by opening your Zoom Desktop Client (Mac or PC). Click your profile picture in the top right corner. In the dropdown menu that appears, click Check for Updates. Follow the steps and update the Client to the most recent version.

Once updated, login to your Zoom account on the web. Go to your Settings and navigate over to the In Meeting (Advanced) section.

Scroll down to the section titled Immersive View. Click the toggle to turn on this feature.

The next time you start a meeting, click View in the top right corner. In the dropdown menu that appears, you will now see an option for Immersive. 

In the pop up window that appears, you will see different options for the Immersive View layout. You can arrange your meeting attendees like portraits on a wall (as seen below), in an auditorium, a classroom and more. Each layout has a number that denotes how many can be seen at once.

Below is a sample of what the auditorium layout looks like. 

If you're anything like me, you will be excited to try this new feature. Which layouts will you use? If you have any questions and would like a follow up, contact me via Gmail or Chat at ajuarez@techcoachjuarez.com. My book, The Complete EdTech Coach: An Organic Approach to Digital Learning, co-authored with my wife Katherine Goyette is now available on Amazon. Click here to purchase. It is published by Dave Burgess Publishing. Be sure to follow the hashtag #OrganicEdTech and #CVTechTalk for updates.

PowerPoint Slides as Virtual Background in Zoom

 

Do not readjust the visual settings on your computer. I am writing about PowerPoint. If you are reading this, it may come as a surprise to see me write about a Microsoft product instead of Google. That being said, although I specialize in Google, I aim to be device/platform/app agnostic. I actually use Microsoft Office pretty regularly for certain tasks, but Google is still my go-to. 

Not too long ago, a colleague of mine was tinkering with Zoom settings and discovered a new beta feature that allows you to set PowerPoint (Apple Keynote too) slides as virtual backgrounds. Google Slides is not an option yet. What this does is put your slides as the background when you share the screen and your torso in front of them. This creates an effect like you're on stage and your slides on the screen behind you. You can move a little bit horizontally as well as point to parts of the slide. Your body gets cut off from the screen if you rise or point vertically more than roughly one third of the way up from the bottom of the screen.

This feature, still in beta, is available on PCs and Macs using the Zoom Desktop Client app. You must have PowerPoint installed on the device. You students will need to also have the Desktop Client app on their Chromebooks, PCs or Macs. If using their mobile device to join your Zoom, they will need to use the Zoom mobile app and their mobile device must be a relatively updated model. Click here for a more detailed look at specifications from the Zoom Help Center.

Get started by having your PowerPoint slides saved on your computer. If you are like me and have all your slides saved in Google Drive as Google Slides, open the presentation, click File, hover over Download and click Microsoft PowerPoint. Your slides will be in your device's download folder as a PowerPoint presentation.

When your Zoom call has been initiated, click Share Screen.

At the top of the Share Screen window, click Advanced. 

In the new menu that appears, click Slides as Virtual Background. Notice this is still in beta so there will be updates to this feature in the near future.

Your computer's files will pop up. The example below shows what it looks like on a Mac. A PC will look different, but it will function similarly enough. Select the PowerPoint presentation you want to use and click Open.

The first time you try this, you will be prompted to give Zoom access to control PowerPoint. Click OK. 

After loading, your Zoom screen will appear with the first slide of your PowerPoint Presentation and you'll see your torso at the bottom of the screen. At the bottom middle of the screen, you'll see a control button that will allow you to move ahead and backwards through the slides.

You are able to move horizontally across the bottom of the screen. Your ability to stand or point vertically ends at about one third of the way up from the bottom of the screen. Going past will see you cut off.

I think this is such a cool feature. It allows you to really personalize your presentation and better connect with students. Now they can see you while you teach. This seems like something very trivial, but it does make a difference for those looking to connect with you. There are some limitations now, but this is still in beta and will likely improve greatly over the coming months. You can bet I will be downloading many of my Google Slides presentations as PowerPoint. 

If you have any questions and would like a follow up, contact me via Gmail or Chat at ajuarez@techcoachjuarez.com. My book, The Complete EdTech Coach: An Organic Approach to Digital Learning, co-authored with my wife Katherine Goyette is now available on Amazon. Click here to purchase. It is published by Dave Burgess Publishing. Be sure to follow the hashtag #OrganicEdTech and #CVTechTalk for updates.

Save Time During Synchronous Lessons: Paste Game Links in Chat

In distance learning, time is a valuable commodity. Some of my go-to synchronous activities include Quizlet Live, Quizizz Live Quiz and Quizlet Lesson. When you initiate any of these three activities, a game code is generated. Students must go to the game website and enter the code to join. That process isn't very difficult, but, in many situations, students take up to 3-4 minutes to join. 3-4 minutes during a 50-60 minute class period is a long time. Any way we can expedite the process is very helpful. 

Hiding in plain sight, the entire time, with all three of these activities, are game links. On the page you display for students to see the game code, you will see buttons to copy a game link. Instead of waiting for kids to navigate to the game website and enter the code, I simply paste the game link in the chat in either Zoom or Google Meet. Having kids click the link in the chat cuts the "game joining" time to less than a minute. Students have personally told me how much easier and faster it is to join these activities using this method. The screenshots below show how to generate the game links for each of the aforementioned activities.

Quizlet Live

To start, open the studyset and click Live.

Quizlet Live looks a little different in distance learning. You could set it up for groups to play in breakout rooms, but that would take a ton of setup on your part.  Due to the difficulties presented by distance learning, you will likely want to choose Individuals instead of Random Teams. This allows every student to compete solo.

Choose your mode of play. You can choose for students to match the definition to the term or the other way around. Sometimes it's good to do a few rounds of both.

When you arrive at the page that shows the game code, you'll see a Copy game link button at the bottom. 

When you click the button, you'll see a "Copied!" pop up notification at the bottom of the screen. This means the game link is copied to your clipboard.

Go to the chat in Zoom or Google Meet and paste the link. All students have to do is click the link in the chat and they are able to join the game in seconds rather than having to open a new tab, find the site and enter a code.

Quizizz Live Quiz

Start by opening a quiz in Quizizz. Click Start a live quiz and choose Classic.

Click Continue.

When you arrive on the page that displays the game code, click  the "or share via" button. This will open a pop up window with the game link.

In the pop up window, click Copy link. This will put it on your computer's clipboard. 

Head over to chat in Zoom or Google Meet and paste the game link. Like with Quizlet Live, all they have to do is click and they're in the game.

Quizizz Lesson

Similar to Quizizz Live Quiz, open your Quizizz Lesson and click Present.

When you see the game code, look to the top right of the screen and click Share a link.

In the pop up window, click copy link.

Just like with Quizlet Live and Quizizz Live Quiz, paste the game link into the chat of Zoom or Google Meet.

The process for each of these activities is extremely similar and not difficult at all. Pasting game links in the chat instead of having kids join with codes saves valuable class time in distance learning synchronous lessons. What apps and games do you love to use during synchronous lessons that similar functions to those above?

If you have any questions and would like a follow up, contact me via Gmail or Chat at ajuarez@techcoachjuarez.com. 

My book, The Complete EdTech Coach: An Organic Approach to Digital Learning, co-authored with my wife Katherine Goyette is now available on Amazon. Click here to purchase. It is published by Dave Burgess Publishing. Be sure to follow the hashtag #OrganicEdTech and #CVTechTalk for updates.

Virtual Office Hours BRB and Bathroom Signs

 

Coaching looks very different in a distance learning environment. Most of our coaching interactions take place virtually. A common coaching practice is on-call, virtual office hours. This is something I do daily. I am on-call for 2-3 hours at a time. During those hours, situations arise where I need to step away to assist a teacher or head to the restroom. When that occurs, what happens to colleagues who join the video call and I am not there? 

To deal with those situations, I created a slide deck in Google Slides called "Signage". This slide deck has slides, with built in timers, for when I am on a restroom break or away helping a colleague. This can be done if you are doing office hours or on-call help as a coach, admin or classroom teacher. The videos below show what my screen looks like when I am away. 

Once you've created your "away from the screen" slide, have open in another tab and share it just like you'd share your screen in a video call. Below, you will see how to do this in both Zoom and Google Meet.

Zoom

Google Meet

If you have any questions and would like a follow up, contact me via Gmail or Hangouts at ajuarez@techcoachjuarez.com. If you would like to unsubscribe from this blog, go to bit.ly/tcjinbox.

My book, The Complete EdTech Coach: An Organic Approach to Digital Learning, co-authored with my wife Katherine Goyette is due out in October/November of 2020. It will be published by Dave Burgess Publishing. Keep an eye out on this blog and on social media. Be sure to follow the hashtag #OrganicEdTech and #CVTechTalk for updates.

Simple Ways to Leverage "The Chat" in Zoom and or Google Meet

 

Back in the early days of the internet, and before the days of Twitter and Facebook, chat rooms were extremely popular for people to connect on the "Net" and to share ideas. As the internet has become more embedded into the classroom, the idea of a chat room developed a negative connotation as kids, more often than not, used it to discuss not academic topics. It was seen as a distraction.

These days, in a distance learning environment, "The Chat" has become an important part of the way we teach. "The Chat", whether you're using Google Meet, Zoom or another video conferencing tool, can be used in a variety of ways to break up the monotony of a lesson. As a frequent professional development presenter, I have used "The Chat" countless times in a session. It helps me gauge the needs of attendees on the fly and allows me to pivot as needed. A common expression amongst us in the presenter community is "drop it in the chat". This phrase is used to for mid-session CFU, sharing of presentation slides and more. 

Here are some of my favorite ways to leverage "The Chat" with students and adults alike.

                                                               

Attendance

Coming soon to Google Meet, and already a feature in Zoom, you can take attendance. A report can be generated showing all attendees. If you don't want to wait to generate the report after the video call, "The Chat" can help you do this. During a synchronous lesson on Zoom or Google Meet, I always build 5-7 minute blocks of time for students to work independently before reconvening whole class. Before independent work, I usually have them write questions or some sort of short reflection in "The Chat". While they work independently, I go through the chat and record students who are present for attendance purposes.

Exit Ticket

Before your synchronous video call lesson is over, have students reflect on what they learned, make a prediction about what's next or ask a question as an exit ticket. Have them write their exit ticket as a hashtag with rationale showing some real-life to content connections. You could make it into a contest where the top 5 or top 10 hashtags will get featured on the class website or in the next meeting. You are able with Zoom, Meet soon, to save a text transcript of "The Chat".

Microphone Issues

Often times, we will face issues with student microphones not working well or at all. Students who are not able to verbally respond, could use "The Chat". I frequently encounter this issue. Instruct students to not be afraid to message you in "The Chat" about such issues. If your lesson requires students to present, have them type what they would have said aloud in "The Chat".

Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Check In

With Zoom, not Google Meet, you have the ability for attendees to direct message the teacher in "The Chat" without the group as whole being able to see the message. Utilize this feature to have students privately check in on social emotional issues.

These are just some of the ways I like to use "The Chat". What are some of yours? I am curious to hear your innovative ideas for leveraging the "The Chat". Please share your ideas in the comments or, if you're reading this post in an email, respond to the email.

If you have any questions and would like a follow up, contact me via Gmail or Hangouts at ajuarez@techcoachjuarez.com. If you would like to unsubscribe from this blog, go to bit.ly/tcjinbox.

Use a Second Screen to See Your Students While Sharing Screen in Zoom

 

One of the most common questions I get asked is about how to see my students while sharing my screen on Zoom. It's not the easiest thing in the world to do, but it is possible. To pull this off, you will need a second screen. If you're not sure how to set up a second screen, please contact me and we can discuss options as it depends on your computer and the input/output ports. 

The way I do it is with an old monitor I had in my home office. This monitor has an HDMI input. My laptop is a MacBook Pro. At Walmart, for $30, I found a USB-C to HDMI cable to connect my monitor to my MacBook. Once connected, I adjusted the display settings to extend my screen.

When my students are in my Zoom meeting, I select Gallery View.  I share my screen and choose Desktop 2. When I share the screen, I can see my students in a column. This column can be stretched horizontally on my laptop's screen. This allows me to see the kids on the laptop and share my "lesson" screen on the monitor. 

What you see above is a countdown timer I displayed for students during some work time. On the laptop, I can see all my students while they are working. 

If you have any questions and would like a follow up, contact me via Gmail or Hangouts at ajuarez@techcoachjuarez.com. If you would like to unsubscribe from this blog, go to bit.ly/tcjinbox.

Setting Up External Speakers in Zoom and Google Meet

Since this whole distance learning adventure began, I have had the privilege of supporting hundreds of teachers who are learning to use Zoom and Google Meet. As teachers have gotten more comfortable with these tools, they have been taking more and more relative "tech risks".  Since they've been forced to work from home, many have invested their own money in new tech tools. A common purchase has been external, bluetooth speakers. Often times, the built-in computer speakers don't provide the sound quality to effectively participate in a video call with students and or colleagues. As more and more teachers have been making speaker purchases, I have received a number of requests for help enabling the speakers in Zoom and Google Meet. 

The images below shows you where to go to choose your external speaker instead of your default, built-in computer speakers when participating in Zoom and Google Meet. If using a bluetooth speaker, it must be paired and connected at that time with your computer to show as an option.

Change your speaker in Zoom (desktop client)

Change your speaker in Google Meet

If your external speaker is connected via bluetooth, it will appear in the circled list.

If you have any questions and would like a follow up, contact me via Gmail or Hangouts at ajuarez@techcoachjuarez.com. If you would like to unsubscribe from this blog, go to bit.ly/tcjinbox.