Evernote for Educators

Evernote for Educators

Introduction Evernote is a tool that allows you to capture and store ideas, notes, photos, and more in a cloud-based environment. You can access your information anytime you have access to the Internet. The great thing about Evernote is that everything you add to your account is automatically synced to any device. This means that you can add items from your phone, ipad, Android device, or computer. Evernote can be used personally, and it is free. There are some fees associated with storage, but most people find that the basic storage levels in the free version are enough. There are school accounts available, also known as Evernote Business. These accounts require a fee. You can have your IT department help you with exploring that option. There is a lot you can do with Evernote. This guide will cover the basics: Account set up; there are three different ways to get an Evernote account: 1. Through a web browser 2. Through the mobile app 3. Through the application for your computer Taking notes, pictures, and more Sharing notes Organization Evernote app for handheld devices Feel free to skip over or skip to any chapter you wish. All of the materials mentioned, including lessons, articles, and more, can be found either in the appendix or in the materials tab of the video course. It s time to get started with this handy tool. i

1 Setting Up an Account Using the Website This chapter is intended to show you how to create a free Evernote account using a web browser and Evernote s website. Please note that there are three separate chapters on the three most common ways to access Evernote: 1. Through a web browser 2. Using a mobile app on your phone or tablet 3. Using Evernote s free software application that can be installed on either a Mac or Windows computer Feel free to skip to any of these chapters to find the one that matches how you plan to access Evernote when starting out. Getting Started Through a Web Browser 1. First, launch your browser and visit www.evernote.com 2. Click on the button that says Sign up 3. You can get a lot out the the free version of Evernote, so go ahead and click Continue under the word Free The steps listed in this chapter will be the same no matter whether you use a Mac or a Windows machine, and will appear almost exactly the same on Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox, and Safari. 2

4. Enter your e-mail address and choose a password for your new Evernote account that is different than the one you use for your e-mail account...you may wish to sign up for Evernote with a school e-mail account in order to keep your personal and professional lives separate. 5. Click on Register Congratulations you now have access to your new Evernote account! If you already have an account, you can simply click on Sign In. However, you may wish to sign up for Evernote with a school e-mail account in order to keep your personal and professional lives separate. 3

2 Setting Up an Account with the Mobile App In this chapter, you will find out how to set up an Evernote account through the mobile app. This chapter will demonstrate using ios and version 7.3.5 of the Evernote app. Feel free to skip this chapter if you aren t going to download the mobile app for a phone or tablet. Downloading the App 1. Go to the App Store on your ipad 2. Search for Evernote 3. Click on the word Free 4. Select Install 5. Enter your Apple ID Signing Up 1. Locate and launch the the Evernote app 2. Click Get Started 3. Enter your e-mail address to sign in to create your new account 4. Click next 5. Enter a password here; try for a different password than the one you use with the e-mail account you just provided 6. Click Create Account when you are done 4

A Glance at the App Interface Next, you will see an overview of each of the different tools such as: Text Camera Photos Reminders Lists Notes Notebooks You will also be presented with the option to upgrade to the premium version. Below that is a set of ideas to help you get started with Evernote. Remember that Evernote was designed for a wide set of uses, not just for educational use, so some of the tips may not seem helpful at first. See if you can imagine how these ideas might be altered and used in your classroom. The remainder of this course will focus on learning how to use Evernote through the webpage interface. The same basic functions described in the following chapters are also found within the mobile app, but the placement of the icons is a bit different. 5

3 Downloading Evernote to Your Download a version of Evernote to your computer to have access to Evernote offline and experience a different interface. Computer This chapter focuses on downloading the free Evernote application and installing on a Mac or Windows machine. The chapter assumes that you have already set up a free Evernote account using either the website or the mobile app. 6

Why Install Evernote on Your Computer? You can use any computer and web browser to access your Evernote account. Downloading the program onto your computer allows you to have access to Evernote offline. Also, the program has a slightly different look and feel, which you may prefer. Some features will load and perform faster. You can use any computer and web browser to access your Evernote account. Downloading the program onto your computer allows you to have access to Evernote offline. Note that if you plan to use Evernote in offline mode, you will be a bit limited in what you can do with the program. Downloading the Program 1. Launch any web browser on your computer 2. Visit www.evernote.com/download; the program will download automatically 3. Follow the directions on the screen to install the program on your computer, then launch the application to begin You can log in using the e- mail and password you set when using the Sign In button. Once you have signed in, you should see your account landing page. Some districts require that you go through the IT department before you download anything, so be sure to check with your school or district policy before getting started with this process. 7

4 Installing the Web Clipper Try out the web clipper, which allows you to save just about anything you find online to your Evernote account. The Evernote Web Clipper is a great way to save research, links, and basically anything you find online. This is a bookmarking tool that allows you to save all or part of a webpage, such as text, images, and links, to your Evernote account. 8

Think of this as a great way to quickly collect information to be read later. Your students can use it for their own research as well. Setting Up the Web Clipper In order to download the web clipper you will need to go to the following URL: Think of [the web clipper] as a great way to quickly collect information to be read later. Your students can use it for their own research as well. www.evernote.com/webclipper The link is also listed in the appendix. Next, find the green box on the screen and select the browser you like to use (Chrome, Firefox, etc.). Once you find your preferred browser, click on the green button. Next, you will see a small white box appear on your screen. This box lists details about what the clipper will allow you to do. After reading the information, click Add. 9

Next, you will see an even smaller white box that points out where the Evernote Web Clipper is on your toolbar and explains that you click on that icon to clip text and images from the Internet. Notice that a new webpage has also opened, which gives you information about using the clipper. There is a video, articles, and more information on how to use the clipper. Watch the short video to see how Evernote recommends using the tool. The Basics of Using the Web Clipper 1. Open any webpage; for example, you may open Lesson Planet and search for geometry shapes 2. Imagine you want to clip this page so you can collect the information for a unit you are planning 3. Find the web clipper icon in the toolbar and click it 4. If you haven t signed into the web clipper, you will need to do so now with your Evernote login name and password 5. Notice that a set of tools appears on the right side of the screen after you have signed in Clip Options Article: This shows you the full article Simplified Article: Gives you a more streamlined text experience Full Page: The entire page for that site Bookmark: Creates a bookmark link Screen Shot: Takes a picture of what you can see on the screen Practice With the Web Clipper Try one of these options so that you can look at the markup tools. Select Simplified Article so that you can use the markup tools 10

Once you are done with the [editing] tools, click Save. You can also share your markups with others. Select the highlighter first to highlight text on the page Select the marker tool to circle an area; you can also choose a color for your marker Try shape next and add an arrow to draw attention to an important part of the text Choose the text icon to type in text of your own a great way to have students interact with the text You can even add stamps, pixelate, or zoom in or out on the text or image Once you are done with the tools, click Save. You can also share your markups with others. See the final chapter of this guide for application ideas to add to the ideas you ve no doubt had while playing with these tools! 11

5 Menu Basics Now that you have created an account, installed Evernote, and installed the web clipper, it s time to take a look at what Evernote can do. Start by logging into your account. Main Menu On the left side of the webpage, you will see a gray column. This is your main menu. This menu can be collapsed and expanded based on your preferences. Click on the small triangle to the left of each menu option to collapse and expand each list and click on the arrow just to the right of the column on the bottom of the page to collapse and expand the entire column. In this column, you will see: Shortcuts Notebooks Tags Shortcuts You can drag notes, notebooks, or tags into this area to easily access favorite or important items. Notebooks See all of your notebooks listed here. In parentheses next to each notebook is the number of notes included. Notes are the notes you have created, and Notebooks are collections of notes think spiral notebook. 12

Click All Notes to see every note you have created, and create a notebook by clicking on the small triangle in the square to the right of the word Notebooks. Tags Organize your notes by adding tags. You can then view notes based on their tags. Most educators are fine with a free account; however, there are some interesting features provided in the premium service... Premium Note that you can also upgrade from a free account to a premium account. This option is available in the green toolbar along the top. Most educators are fine with a free account; however, there are some interesting features provided in the premium service, such as smarter search, upgraded security, presentations, and more storage. It does cost either $5 per month or $45 per year. Tips Provided for You On the right, just to the left of the gray menu column, you will see a note labeled Getting Started. Click on that note if it s not already selected to see tips and information about using Evernote. Feel free to explore these on your own. 13

6 Creating a Note It s time to create a your first note. To begin, look along the top of the webpage. Look for the plus symbol and the words New Note. This button is located near the center of the gray toolbar at the top of your screen. Creating and Editing a Note Select this button. You will see a new untitled note appear. Give a title to your new note. For the sake of practice, call this one EdTech Ideas. All you have to do to change the title is click the area where it says Untitled and type in your new title. Once you have clicked in the body of the note, you will see a toolbar show up at the top of the note with editing options. This toolbar is very similar to other word processing toolbars. For practice, put bullets in your note. Now type in your first idea, Research using the web clipper tool. And now you have created a note! Remember that Evernote is a cloud-based service, so you can access this note on an ipad or any other computer. 14

7 Creating a Notebook Creating a notebook is a great way to organize your notes. Think about themes these could be by topic or event. You could even create notebooks by student name. The great thing about creating a notebook is that you can share the entire notebook with someone else. 2. Find the Notebook s title and click on the downward-facing arrow at the right 3. You will see the words New Notebook pop up underneath the arrow. Select New Nobook 4. Next, you will see a small white box that says Create a New Notebook with a box that allows you to name your new notebook Evernote Notebooks To start, all Evernote accounts have one default notebook available when you create an account. Creating New Notebook 1. To create new notebooks, you will want to look at the menu bar on the left 5. Type in your title and then select Save You will now see your new notebook s name in the side menu bar under Notebooks. If you don t see it, check that the arrow to the left of notebooks is clicked to the downward-facing position so that all notebooks show. 15

If you already have notes in a notebook, you will see a brief description of each note, the date of each note, and the title of each note. Adding Notes to a Notebook In order to start putting notes into that notebook, you must click on the notebook. You will see the middle section appear along with the notebook name. If you already have notes in a notebook, you will see a brief description of each note, the date of each note, and the title of each note. To create a note in this notebook, click on the New Note button at the top-middle of the page. Notice how the middle section now shows the untitled note under the new notebook. Change the title from Untitled to Evernote and see how the title changes to reflect the changes you made. You can type into the body of the note to finish up. A short description will now show in the middle section. 16

8 Searching Searching and being able to find your notes is super important. With Evernote, you can search everything by the contents of the notes, including handwritten notes on paper or a whiteboard. Plus, you can search using tags that you put on your notes and even the attachments on the notes. How to Search To search, you will want to type a keyword into the search box at the top of the screen, called the search field. In the search field, you can choose to search one notebook, like the one you created in the previous chapter, or search all of your notes. If you want to search all your notes, be sure that you have cleared the search box of any tags by clicking the small X at the right. If you want to search a specific notebook, select it in your menu bar. Adding Tags It is helpful for search purposes to apply tags to your notes. These tags are a meaningful way to mark your note with a keyword. For example, if you have created a note on a conference agenda, you would want to tag it with the conference name, agenda, and other important information. To tag a note, click on the Info button at the top-right of the page. You will see the name of your note, the notebook name, and a place to insert tags. If you want to add a tag, click on the plus tag button. You can also add a tag by using the plus tag button above the formatting tools. Now you can type in a keyword that will help you find this note. 17

If you want to add a tag, click on the plus tag button. You can also add a tag by using the plus tag button above the formatting tools. This is a great way to help find your stuff; however, sometimes you can t remember keywords or the title of your note. That s okay. What you will want to try and do is remember something about the note. For example, if you did create a conference agenda note a couple of years ago, maybe you can just remember the name of the city where the conference was held. If that city name is in the note, Evernote search will scan through your notes, find it, and bring it up. Searching within Images and More One of the most amazing search tools within Evernote is the ability to search for and find notes that contain handwritten or typed text. This makes it really easy to search within a photo for text text you didn t have to type. 18

After you click Search, Evernote will pull up the note with that word in it, even if the word is handwritten. Imagine you just had a staff meeting, and you took a photo within Evernote of notes on the whiteboard. Later on, you want to look back at those notes. Type in one of the words that was on the whiteboard. After you click Search, Evernote will pull up the note with that word in it, even if the word is handwritten. It s a really powerful tool. There are some advanced ways to search as well, and if you would like to learn more about advanced search, also known as syntax search, follow the link in the appendix. 19

9 Sharing Sharing is a snap with Evernote. Simply follow a few basic steps. How to Share Sharing a Note Look at the top-left side of your Evernote menu and find the Share icon. Click on the icon and notice the drop-down menu that appears. You can share your note on any of the following services: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and e-mail. You can also share a link. Note that when you share, others will not be able to edit the note unless they sign up. Without an account, they can view this means they can see the note but not edit. Sharing a Notebook Sharing a notebook takes a few more steps, but it s well worth the effort. 1. Look at the far-left menu bar and find the drop-down for your notebooks; if the drop-down isn t visible, you will need to click on the arrow to the right 2. You will notice a number of options; select Share this notebook 3. A box will pop up that asks if you want to Share with Individuals or Create a Public Link 20

You can also set permissions as to what an individual can do; you can give a person view status, allow him or her to Modify, or even Modify and Invite Others Sharing With Individuals or the Public To share with individuals means that only those who you select to share will have access to the notebook, and public means that anyone with the link can read it. Individuals 1. Click on Share with Individuals; type in the e-mail address of those people with whom you wish to share 2. You can also set permissions as to what an individual can do; you can give a person View status, allow him or her to Modify, or even Modify and Invite Others 3. You can click on the box that allows those you are sharing with to preview the notebook without signing in 4. Type in a quick message to tell the recipients what the notebook is about 5. Click Send 21

When the person you invited gets the e-mail, he or she can preview and either log in or create an account in order to edit the notebook. Sharing is a great way to collaborate and give out information that could be useful to others. Public Link 1. To share a notebook to the public, click on Create a Public Link 2. You will see a URL that you can copy and then share with anyone you like Sharing is a great way to collaborate and give out information that could be useful to others. 22

10 Syncing Your Account Evernote automatically syncs all of your notes when Internet access is available. This makes it easy to transfer information from, for example, a desktop computer to a tablet. If you have limited cellular data for a phone or tablet, you may want to set up Evernote to sync when your mobile device is connected to Wi-Fi so that you don t use up your data on syncing. Tap the Account Info icon on the home screen and then toggle to Synchronize on Wifi only under Settings. This will stop your device from syncing through your data connection plan if you have one. Need to sync? You can sync your Evernote account any time by going to your account settings. Just click on Sync Now. For those of you who don t have a data plan to worry about, syncing will automatically take place when your device is connected to Wi-Fi. For those of you with data plans, follow the above steps and know that when you are connected to Wi-Fi, your account will automatically update as well. Syncing Options 23

11 Setting Reminders Setting a reminder in Evernote is a way to manage your deadlines. Think of it as a way to alert you to something that needs to be done. Set a Reminder To set a reminder, you will need to open a note. Look for the alarm icon, which is shaped like an alarm clock. Click on it and select a due date. After you select a date, you will see a reminder box titled Reminder Email that will ask you if you would like to receive an e-mail the day that the notes are due. Go to this box and select Yes. Evernote will alert you of any upcoming reminders via e-mail, and if you are using the app, it will give you and in-app notification as well as a badge on the app title. You will notice as you set reminders that the reminders will appear at the top of your note list. You can check these off when you no longer need them or if you have accomplished the tasks. Think of reminders as a way to associate things with the actual notes you are taking. You can check on the report, task, proposal, or grant and see the reminders and due dates that are associated with it. 24

12 Application Ideas Evernote is an effective tool for both teachers and students. Find some great ideas for everyone in this chapter. As you have probably noticed, there are many uses for Evernote in the classroom. This chapter will run through a few to inspire you. For more ideas, see the resources under the materials tab of the video course. The key for Evernote success is to use it the more you enter information, the more you begin to see how related information can be accessed and used. 25

For Students Web Clipper The web clipper is great for helping students analyze nonfiction, articles, poems, and other types of work. They can use the web clipper tools to annotate, highlight, and write comments. This is a great way to relate to and work with text. Many teachers have students use Evernote as an electronic agenda. They can keep a notebook for each of their subjects and put to-do items inside each notebook. Class Notebooks Have you ever had students keep spiral notebooks for their vocabulary, notes, and quickwrites? They could do just that with Evernote and also add pictures of their work, worksheets, experiments, and more right into the notebook. No more gluing and trying to keep all those papers organized! Electronic Agenda Many teachers have students use Evernote as an electronic agenda. They can keep a notebook for each of their subjects and put to-do items inside each notebook. Whiteboard Notes Another way to use Evernote is as a record of your whiteboard. Think of all the work you and your students do on the whiteboard. You can simply take pictures of brainstorming and notes and put them in a notebook with the subject and brainstorm title. Students who are absent or who wish to refer back to those notes can now have access to them. Class Slide Reference You can also upload your slides, from PowerPoint for example, to a notebook that can be shared with students for study and testing. 26

For Teachers Record Keeping Evernote is great for keeping a running record of student work. You can create a notebook for each student in your class, upload pictures, upload copies of their work, and keep running feedback in their notebook. This can be shared with the student and his or her parents or guardians. Projects and Trips Another great use of Evernote is to take pictures of any receipts you have for a project or field trip. Everything can be easily organized in a notebook labeled with that project or trip. Conference Notes Teachers can even create a notebook for a conference and then keep their notes, pictures, and receipts all in one notebook for that specific event. Then, they can share with other teachers when they get back. Reminders and Due Dates Create a note and set alarm for its due date. This can be something you teach your students a strategy they can use to stay organized or something you use for your own purposes at school. Class Highlight You can quickly share a class highlight with others via e-mail and still be able to come back and find it at any time. Tags for Reference Use tags that include the week of the lesson you capture, such as Week 2. You will have that as a reference for the following year. Tag Standards You can also use tags to highlight a standard. For example, take a photo of student learning as evidence of a standard and share what you did with your colleagues or administrators. To-Do List Create a list of to-dos before a major event like the first day of school and update it with any changes as you go. That way, you will have something to build upon the next year without needing remember exactly what you did and when you did it. These are just a few ideas. Once you start using Evernote, you will begin to discover a myriad of ways to put it to use in your life as an educator. 27

Appendix Chapter 1 Evernote www.evernote.com Chapter 3 Evernote Download www.evernote.com/download Chapter 4 Evernote Web Clipper www.evernote.com/webclipper Chapter 8 Using Evernote s advanced search syntax http://bit.ly/usfyek 28

Credits Rich Dixon (author) Director of Professional Learning - Lesson Planet MA- TESOL Multiple Subject Teaching Credential CLAD Certification Jennifer Gibson (author) Director of Content & Learning - Lesson Planet MA- Teaching and Technology Multiple Subject Teaching Credential Adapted to ebook by: Noel Woodward (editor) M. Education Single Subject Teaching Credential Karen Amling (editor) Based on the original EdTech Professional Development video course: http://www.lessonplanet.com/professional-development/courses/evernote-for-educat ors 29