Tips for Using Google Classroom for Girl Scouts

As we navigate the new school year under COVID conditions, we also navigate new ways to connect and engage our girls in Girl Scouts. I love technology, there’s so much that it can do to help us connect better, but I know that it’s not everyone’s strength. I hope that this guide will help you navigate Google Classroom to keep your Girl Scout troop organized this year.

Why Google Classroom? It’s easy and everything I already do is in the Google platform. Gmail, Docs, Forms, Files, you name it. It all connects seamlessly and using your Gmail address; no duplicate accounts or logins needed.

Yes, that means you need a Gmail email account set up. Most of my parents and girls already have Gmail so this part was easy for us. Don’t have a Gmail account yet? Get started here: Set Up a Gmail Account

I have a Gmail account, how do I set up Google Classroom? You can do this from a Desktop, Tablet, or Smartphone.

From Desktop:

From Phone or Tablet, you can download a Google Classroom App from the App Store! It’s free and you’ll just need to log in using your Gmail address. Here’s the link to the app on Apple.

Once you find Google Classroom you’ll need to set up a new classroom just for your troop, service unit, or group! The examples I’m showing you are from desktop but you can do most of the same tasks from your phone or tablet!

Once your classroom is set up you can edit your classroom!

A: Class Code – This is a unique code that you will ONLY share with your Girl Scout Troop. Once people you invite will have access to your classroom, this is how you keep it safe and private!!

B: Streams – This is the homepage of the classroom and will show a summary of the most current information.

C: Classwork – This is the section that I find the most helpful! I’ll share more on this soon!

D: People – This will show you who is in your classroom, who the students are, and who the teachers are! You can also add people here!

E: Add a theme or cover photo! We added a picture of our girls here!

F: Make an announcement or share something here that is not part of the classwork!

Here’s an example of how we have our classroom set up.

When you select “+ Create” you can create Topics, Assignments, Materials and more. You’ll see that we’ve created “Topics” for Schedule & Activities, Girl Corner, Parent Corner, Leader Corner, and Files. I don’t connect my Google Calender here because I use it for personal scheduling, but you could!

Underneath each “Topic” you’ll see “Assignments.” You can see when a student (or parent) has completed an assignment too!

Each of the attachments can be added by uploading a document, connecting a document from Google Drive, or by adding a link (like in our surveys and workshops).

The view as a student is slightly different, here’s a screenshot of an assignment from the student (or parent) view. Once they complete the work they can “Mark as done” or “+ Add attachment” if there’s something to actually submit.

From here it’s just a matter of setting things up however they will best work for your troop. I’m sure we’ll learn more tricks and tips along the way but these are the basics of setting everything up.

Do you use Google, Gmail, Classroom, or Drive for your Girl Scout troop? Share a tip with us in the comments. Questions? Ask in the comments or email theecochic@gmail.com and I’ll be happy to help.