Chromecast

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We have been investigating the use of classroom technology that might help reduce the dependency on Windows PCs. We also wanted to utilise Chromebooks better and enable teachers to wirelessly present to the classroom projector or screen. We wondered whether we could adapt a standard, consumer Chromecast device for use in the classroom. After some trial and error, we eventually found a good way of connecting Chromecasts to the College network in a secure and easily accessible way.

This screencasting service will allow:

  • Wireless connection to the screen – no need to fiddle with cables;
  • Casting from Chromebooks, tablets, and phones;
  • Cast just one Chrome tab or your entire screen.

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Grammarly

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Grammarly helps you write mistake-free and with ease.


You may have already seen or heard of Grammarly, it’s a regular advert on some websites and they’ve recently started TV adverts too.

It’s a spell and grammar checker for your computer, mobile or internet browser.

As you type, Grammarly checks your text for hundreds of common and advanced writing issues. The checks include common grammatical errors, such as subject-verb agreement, article use, and modifier placement, in addition to contextual spelling mistakes, phonetic spelling mistakes, and irregular verb conjugations. Grammarly also provides synonym suggestions to make your writing more readable and precise. With Grammarly, you can write online with confidence.

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Google Keep

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Google Keep is a simple note-taking and list-making app that updates instantly on all your devices.


Google’s useful note-taking app Keep, a competitor to apps like Evernote, is an incredibly easy application to use and hosts many benefits.

Keep has great functionality, you can keep text or image notes, create task lists with checkboxes and set reminders. With reminders on task lists, you’ll always remember to complete your job list.

Check out the video below which shows how easy it is to create a list, how quickly it syncs between the desktop site and the mobile application and then how to tick items off of the list.

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Cold Turkey – Writer

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We’ve seen how to use Cold Turkey and the benefits of it, they also have a great tool called Writer that locks down your computer to just a basic word processor either for a certain amount of time or until you hit a set typed word goal. If you’re procrastinating and blocking the internet doesn’t quite work for you then consider Writer and lock your PC down until you hit your word count.

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Cold Turkey

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Want to limit your use of technology? Give Cold Turkey a try.


If you struggle to stop yourself from checking Facebook or Twitter when you should be revising then you might need to go Cold Turkey. This is a great app for Android, Windows and macOS that allows you to lock down your phone or computer so you don’t get distracted. The basic version of Cold Turkey is free.

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Royalty Free Stock Images

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Copyright laws around what images can and cannot be used can be confusing, especially since most photos on Google Image search are not allowed to be used elsewhere. You should not just go on to Google, search for a photo and take it off any random website you want.

We regularly use a number of different websites to get free, high-quality images to use on our blogs, website, and presentations. These images are purposefully put on to these websites by the owners for anyone to use for free. There really are some nice people out there.

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Adobe Spark

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Adobe Spark is an online and mobile design app that allows you to create social graphics, short videos and web pages with ease.


You can use Adobe Spark to create graphics, web pages, and videos in minutes.

To start using Spark, go to spark.adobe.com just sign in using your college email address and password. If you’ve already signed into Google G Suite you shouldn’t have to login again.

Adobe Spark enables you to get great looking results quickly. The three tools, Post, Page, and Video, cover most content types, removing the technical barriers and getting you straight to the result. Students will like using this as they can create great looking graphics, pages, and videos without worrying about the tools they are using. Teachers will find this useful for creating presentations, flipped learning videos and eye-catching images for Google Sites, without spending much time on production.

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