15 Ways to #WorkWonders with Microsoft Office. Share yours #edchat

Most educators use Microsoft Office every day but don't unleash its power. Here are 15 ways you can #WorkWonders with Microsoft Office with links to ideas.

You have until Monday to snap a picture of how you #WorkWonders and send it to me on Twitter or Instagram. As I announced Tuesday, the winner will receive a Surface 2. (See Tuesday's post for full details.)

#WorkWonders from around the US are pouring in on the official #WorkWonders website so feel free to browse their entries to figure out what you want to share. Microsoft Office is something many of us have been using every day for twenty years or more. Why not celebrate the coolness?

I opened my first box with Microsoft Word in 1987 and it has been there like a close friend ever since. After I show you an example of a graphic I made in PowerPoint, let's dig deeper into Microsoft Office with some cool free resources.

How I #WorkWonders Using PowerPoint

Below you can see the 20 Questions from Chapter 2 of my new book Reinventing Writing. I created this in PowerPoint using Smart Art.

If you're curious, I added the numbers by inserting text boxes. The arrow is a symbol and I found the check icon from a site with free clip art. Many people don't realize, there are guides to help you align everything in PowerPoint, too or you can hold down control and click the items you want to align and use the alignment buttons.

In this example, you see the 20 questions we should ask about any technology tool before using it in our school. I created this for Chapter 2 Reinventing Writing and the publisher and I liked it so much, we kept it in the book.  Because it is so easy, PowerPoint is my go-to tool for making graphics of any kind and I teach this to students.

More ideas…

15 Simple Ideas of Ways to Work Wonders with Microsoft Office

Don't let this limit your imagination. I've also given you examples and websites if you want to know more ways to #WorkWonders. Try one of these and snap a pic!

1. Do you collaborate with peers on documents using Office 365? Grab a screenrecording of how it works or take a pic. (See these great tips for collaborating in Office 365.)
2. Have you created a screencast for your students using PowerPoint Office Mix? Share the video.
3. Do you create cool rubrics using Excel? (You can make and download them at Rubistar or use this tutorial.)
4. Do you use Excel for data analytics or charting? (If you use a screen snip, remember to blur out anyone's name that might show.) Did you know Microsoft has a Data Analysis Toolpak that is a pretty cool add in.
5. Have you written or created something lately to share with others using Microsoft Office?
6. Do you have a cool hack or trick that you use almost every day in Office that will help other educators? (Loved the recent Lifehacker 6 Tips on Better Formatting in Microsoft Word.)
7. Do you take notes with your students in One Note? Do you share your lesson plans or other items in One Note? (See this extensive One Note Tutorial at udemy that you and your students will love.)
8. Do you take notes with others for a class in One Note? (Did you know this tool is free to download?)
9. Do you share papers or edit collaboratively with your students, teacher, or professor?
10. Do you have a cool way you use PowerPoint to teach and engage students? Grab a picture or share a screencast? (Have you seen the Pinterest Boards with free PowerPoint templates for teachers?)
11. Have you already created or shared something cool that you're doing with Office almost every day?
12. Do you connect and talk live with collaborators while you're writing or creating documents together?
13. Do you create infographics or charts using Powerpoint? (Most of my graphics for my new book Reinventing Writing were created using Smart Art and Tables in Powerpoint and saved as a tiff or png — see below for an example.) Share those charts and what you did.
14. Do you have your students create newsletters in Publisher? (Have you see the new Publisher templates online?)
15. Do you have your students use SmartArt to compare things, create Venn Diagrams or make infographics?(See these Smart Art Tutorials and Tips)

You have until Monday to share how you #WorkWonders using Microsoft Office. Grab a quick screenshot or picture (as I did here) of something you've created and send me the pic via Twitter or Instagram right now. You could win a Surface 2.

[button href=”http://bit.ly/1lQtjOu” primary=”true” centered=”true”]See Official Contest Rules[/button]

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a “sponsored post.” The company who sponsored it compensated me via cash payment, gift, or something else of value to edit and post it. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I believe will be good for my readers and are from companies I can recommend. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.)