Google Term Glossary

With accessibility features, an emphasis on security, and easy to use features for learning, Chromebooks are secure, simple, and powerful devices that update automatically with easy access to all of the G Suite tools. You can also add your child’s school Google account to your Family Link profile, which allows for any digital ground rules you set to transfer over when they are on their Chromebook.

Google’s free, online set of communication and collaboration tools. This includes Classroom, Docs, Meet and Drive which enable teachers and students to connect, collaborate, provide and receive feedback. Your child can learn anywhere, anytime, on any device.

Classroom is where your child can find their assignments, grades and feedback, and communicate directly with their teacher. As a guardian, you can opt into guardian summaries to keep up with your child’s progress.

Meet is a secure video conferencing platform where teachers can hold class, record meetings, hold parent/teacher conferences or office hours, especially with distance learning, Meet has many features built in for accessibility, like live captions, and many features built for education. Meet can be used to recreate the experience of your child being in class to keep them learning.

Using G Suite tools like Docs, Sheets and Slides, your child can create documents, spreadsheets, or presentations that they can share with others, receive feedback on through comments, and edit in real time--with it all being saved automatically in their Google Drive

Forms are often used by teachers for creating quizzes, parent feedback surveys, or even field trip forms. Your child may also use Forms for in-class activities like creating a poll, or sending out a survey to their class.

Drive is your child’s virtual backpack, where they can hold all of their assignments, projects, and notes online. It saves automatically, can be shared with others, and is accessible from any device--all they have to do is login to their school Google account!

Each class in Google Classroom has its own calendar, which helps your child know when they have upcoming events or assignments. Teachers can also use Calendar to create appointment slots to meet with students, or hold parent-teacher conferences.

Teachers can create Sites that are the hub for their class--they can use them to share the curriculum students will be learning, class announcements, and post their class schedule so it’s easily viewable. You can also find announcement banners on Sites, specifically made to share updates with families and guardians.

Assignments give teachers a faster, simpler way to distribute, analyze, and grade students' work. This tool is different from Classroom because it provides schools the ability to access G Suite tools from within their learning management system, which is the software they use for classes and grades

Socratic is a homework help app, available on iOS and Android, where your child can use their voice or camera to ask questions on difficult or confusing concepts. It connects students to helpful educational resources such as videos or step by step explanations for when you’re stuck.

Lens allows you to explore the things around you in a new way by being provided details or actions you can take on the objects and photos around you. With Google Photos, or the Google app, your child can use this tool to dive deeper into their academic subjects and in contexts beyond school.

Google’s search engine can be used to help your child easily find information on their questions and deepen their understanding of difficult concepts or problems. When your student searches a homework problem, Search connects them to possible explanations and extra resources to figure out a solution. Search also has an Augmented Reality (AR) feature, where your child can use AR to look at body systems, animals, and more- all in 3D.

Read Along engages young children as they learn to read, helping them improve their reading skills while having fun with Diya, their in-app reading buddy who offers feedback in real time. Diya listens to your child reading aloud, supports them when they struggle, and rewards them with stars when they do well.