GradGopher.com has just Changed the Game for Saving Google Apps Data

By Guest Blogger Carlos from Grad Gopher

(P.S. This is NOT a paid post! I asked Carlos to write this for us because Grad Gopher is going to save you TIME and make sure you get all your DATA. It really is AMAZING.)

Our new, game-changing software GradGopher.com was built out of the frustration of teachers and students looking to save their information with no easy solution. GradGopher.com copies your Google Drive (Shared & Owned files), Gmail emails (with attachments), Contacts, and Calendar events to another Google account of your choosing and it only takes a minute to set up!

Unlike Google Takeout,

• GradGopher copies all the files shared with you! 
• GradGopher saves you a ton of time! 

“GradGopher literally saved me about 40-50 hours worth of manual labor. I can't say enough about this. It is really everything you hoped for and more.” - Colin Davitt

• GradGopher puts all your stuff in folders just like it was in your school account, all your organization is saved! 
• GradGopher works really fast! 

Forwarding emails can take more than a month to get all emails. Do you have that amount of time before your account is deleted?

• GradGopher makes sure you can continue to access your files on your phone or wherever!

Within a minute of setup, GradGopher will begin copying for you. Once the copy begins, you have complete freedom; you can close your browser, shutdown your computer, or even go in and out of the accounts if you want!

People are telling us that GradGopher is like magic, but actually it’s just thoughtfully designed software to help you move forward in your life without any hassles! :)

Here’s our “How it Works” video if you want to see it in action! 

If you have any questions, please follow and tweet at us twitter.com/GradGopher!

Like us on facebook: Facebook.com/GradGopher

Check out reviews from teachers, students, and IT admins: Facebook.com/GradGopher/reviews!

4 Other Essential Elements of Project Based Learning

Today I met with a great group of teachers embarking on implementing project based learning together. I shared this seminal article with them and we discussed their ideas. But AFTER I left their meeting, what I REALLY wanted to say hit me.

As you plan your projects, consider at least one element of project design that will get (and keep) kids interested BEYOND the 8 essentials . . .

1. Serve others in need with your project.

• Example: Students build a grocery store via donations to fuel the local food bank. In the process, they learn about pricing, inventory control, spreadsheets, and supply and demand.
• High school students create books about science concepts for elementary school students from poverty with no books in their homes. Each child gets a book.

2. Serve other students by teaching them something they need to know.

• Example: Everyone is reading this novel in English, but my team is responsible for teaching everyone about theme in this work of literature. If we do a bad job, no one will learn about theme. We’ll provide a tutorial, examples, and activities to teach everyone else in our class what theme is and how it works in this novel. Other classes who are also reading the book can learn from our work because it will be published online.
• Secondary students teach elementary students ___ through screencasts. (Fractions? Narrative Structure? Could be anything---maybe the winning team (see #3) gets to travel to meet the elementary school learners at the end of the project.)

3. Be a competitor.

• Each member of my class is on a team, and each of our teams are working on a project. The winning team gets to . . . (go visit another school with our cooperative counterparts as ambassadors, eat dinner at a restaurant with the teacher to celebrate, etc.)

4. Publish online (and get someone to see it).

• Create a blog on which to publish your classes digital endeavors, post pictures of paper masterpieces, etc. Then get friends, family, (whatever it takes) to comment on them from time to time. It’s very motivating for your work to be seen outside your school and sometimes even outside your country. Find a cooperating teacher and get her students to comment on your students’ work, then return the favor.
• Two of my favorite local teachers have created classroom Instagram accounts where their students’ work is published. Students, parents, teachers, etc. can favorite students’ work online. Teachers can use the accounts to provide directions for activities (like foldables). Thanks for the idea Brooke Lowery and Bridget Costello!