Google Drive Organization
Feeling overwhelmed by all the docs, sheets, and slides shared with you in Google Drive? Where is that one file you need? How on earth do you keep this all organized? Take this class to help you become a Google Drive organization master!
Resources for Today's PD
Drive Learning Center - Google's own training and help site for Google Drive
BVSD EdTech Google (Drive) for Educators (this site was up-to-date as of February 2020, but may not be added to or updated)
From IT Tips and Tricks (November 2019):
The Priority page in Google Drive will help you stay focused and find the files you need much quicker. That’s why it’s up there as one of our top features (as well as the amazing search functionality!).
This resource was created by Daniel Laman and may be a bit out of date, but the Tier 1/2/3 system is still relevant, even with all the updates made to Google Drive.
Welcome!
This page is dedicated to helping you get the most out of Google Drive. There will be two sections on this page - how to organize your own Google Drive, and ways to incorporate Google Drive in your classroom with your students.
Organizing Google Drive
There are three tiers of organization I would recommend for you, depending on how much of your time is spent on Google Drive.
Tier 1 - Do nothing
The advantages to this are that it takes no extra time on your part, but that Google Drive remains a mess, and somewhat difficult to navigate.
If you choose this method, you will want to get VERY good at searching for files. Here are a few tips:
Know how to navigate through your drive, including your Starred, Shared With Me, Recent, Trash, and All Items sections
Know how to search for files, based on the author, the file name, or some text contained within a file.
Know how to use the advanced search.
Tier 2 - Use a naming system
The advantages to this are that you name everything anyway, so it just takes a little more "brain-space" to come up with a naming system that works for you:
Important information to have in your file name - which class it is for, what school year it was used in, what type of document it is, and any other relevant information.
EXAMPLE: 2014-08-17 - 7th Grade Language Arts - Rubric - Utopia Final Project
EXAMPLE: 2013-2014 - 7th Grade LA - Parent Emails
With these examples, look at how many useful details you put in there to search for!
Think about the types of documents you deal with regularly. If you include the word "rubric" with every rubric, "model" with every model, "assessment" with every assessment, think how easy they would be to find!
If you decide to use this tier of organization, all the stuff in Tier 1 can help you as well.
Tier 3 - Create folders to organize your files
The advantages to this are that you have a starting place for where a file "might" be. The disadvantage is creating a series of folders that works for you, but isn't "too" organized. Get a system, keep it simple.
On my Google Drive, I put every file into one of seven folders, as seen in this image:
In my Centennial folder, for example, I have folders for my preps each year, and in those folders are student work, and files that related to those classes.
If you use this system, it is still advised to name your files with as much information as possible, and to know how to search for files.
Searching Google Drive
I wanted to find the "nuts and bolts" document from this year, to read it. As you can see in the search box, I typed in "nuts and bolts" and it looks like the top document is what I am looking for. And, just in case I wanted to compare, there's last year's as well. But why did all these other files show up as well, even though they don't have the words in their title?
Great news! Google Drive searches inside the files as well. So the nuts and bolts are referred to in several files, and knowing this can help us find our files faster!
Using Google Drive With Your Students
If you have students use Google Drive at all for work in your classroom, you should consider having them create a student folder for all the work they do in your class. The advantages to this are that you have one place to go to for each student to check out their work in progress or as a final grade, you don't get an email every single time a student shares something with you, and you can keep your own Google Drive organized more easily!
Here's what the students should do:
At the home level of their drive, have them create a folder, and have them name it something that will be easy for you to find.
What I've had my students do is name their folders "SUBJECT: Last Name, First Name" (example: LA: Laman, Daniel).
Have them select this folder by checking the box to the left of the folder, and clicking the "Share" button at the top.
Each of these folders will show up in your Google Drive under your "shared with me" section, or your recent section. You can select all of them at once, and put them into a folder for just that specific class or period.
Now you can browse to their folders any time to see what they've been working on, to grade something they've handed in, or leave comments.