Hello and welcome! In the Spring of 2020, we were suddenly put on digital learning and one of the wonderful things to come out of this time is the digital classroom (AKA the Bitmoji classroom). I didn't have time to really explore it until the summer, but now that I have, I want to ensure that it is fully ready to go in time for the 2020-2021 year, whether we are in the classroom or online. This page is dedicated to the resources I use to make my classroom and a few tips and tricks. To read in depth about what I am doing and how I'm using it, visit the digital learning page of this site. 

My Basic Set up and Resources

Here is the basic classroom I built! Below is a list of quick links to things I referenced when building it. I have also listed specific links to resources for posters, my bitmoji, and more in sections below!I used my own artwork to create the "monster" students in this image and I will likely use my own artwork throughout my digital classrooms. 

Experience the digital classroom below to see all my favourite resources!
  • Bitmoji Resources
  • Poster Resources
  • Google Search Tips
  • Google Classroom: Teacher Edition
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  • Bitmoji app for Android or Apple
    You must create your bitmoji on a mobile device, but you can then log into Bitmoji from chrome and add images to your site there. 
  • Mrs. Kreft's TikTok on making a Bitmoji signature
  • You can search for images while in Google Slides! Click (insert) then (image) and then (search the web). 
  • Make sure your images are free to reuse. When searching from Google's homepage, open the advanced search options and click "free to reuse" under license options. 
Join me for a task a day way to get your Google Classroom up and running! Codes below:
Classroom 1: w7irshl

Building a Digital Library

I am not 100% sure if others have built these before me and as I look for more ideas, I will certainly link to them. This thought occurred to me while thinking about how we may be teaching next year. If we have digital classrooms, why not digital libraries! I am going to be writing posts on the digital learning page about how I am using these, but I have attached two screenshots below with some quick tips and steps I took to set them up. 
This is the opening slide to the digital library! I followed the exact same steps as I did above to build my classroom, but I focused on things I might find in a library. Some helpful searches were:
  • bookshelf
  • beanbag 
  • wooden desk/large desk
  • reading posters
  • stack of books
Here are the basic steps to build this type of page:
  1. open a blank google slides page
  2. make the background the colour you want.
  3. Add a picture of an empty bookshelf. 
  4. Insert a shape. I chose the rectangle, but I will vary between that and a rectangle with round edges.
  5. Size it to fit into the shelf and the width you want.
  6. Fill the background with a colour.
  7. Insert a text box. Go ahead and write the title of the book/story. Give it the font you want. 
  8. Turn the textbox 90 degree so the text is sideways and size it to fit into your book. This may require playing with font size. 
  9. Hyperlink the title to the desired reading.