Managed iCloud Accounts

All teachers and students now have 200 Gb of free iCloud storage space available with 'managed' Apple accounts.  This is a big change from the 5 Gb that had been available for several years.

The tech staff will be signing in all K-4 students into their iCloud accounts on iPads ahead of the 18-19 school year.  All other students will be given login information.

As a staff member, you can choose whether or not you want to use this 'managed' account.
Please let me know if you need support navigating this.

Why use iCloud?

For classroom use, here is the best reason:  This allows all Pages, Numbers, and Keynote documents to be collaborative in the same way that Google documents are.

Also,

• This 'managed' iCloud account has 200 Gb of storage.   (The free accounts have 5 Gb of storage)
• Back up your school iPad or laptop.  (You may not want to back up Photos though)
• Synch files and projects between your devices (iPad, laptop, iPhone)
• Store files in iCloud to clear some space on your device.
• Open/edit Pages, Keynote, Numbers, and more on Windows/Android devices through iCloud.com.
• For our teachers using iPads, you will need to sign in to this 'managed' Apple ID in order to use the new Apple Schoolwork iPad application.  We have had great success with its use so far.

How to get started:

1.  Get your login information.  This begins with an email that includes a temporary password.

Even though this is a 'managed' account, only you will know the password that you create.  For your personal security, you can connect your account to your cell phone.  It means that you will get a text when your account gets signed in to a new device.  The G-N tech staff cannot look up any passwords, but can reset it to a new temporary password at your request.

2. Log in to your new iCloud account either by iPad or laptop:

Using a laptop: Go to System Preferences -> iCloud Sign in using your 'managed' iCloud username and password. The username will either be your Gmail address or something very close to it.  The password is temporary.  You will select your own password on your first login You will be able to select what type of files that you would like backed up.  I have everything backed up except my photos.  I especially like that my Desktop and Documents folders are automatically backed up.	Using an iPad: Go to Settings.  Tap in the upper left corner of your screen to log in. Here is how my school iPad is set up:
For staff members:  when you sign in, it will authenticate with your cell number.  This is for your personal security.  You will receive a text if anyone else tries to sign in with your account. After signing in, everything stored in iCloud may be accessed from your web browser at iCloud.com OR on your school device. Use iCloud Drive to view the files that have been backed up from your computer.  Add additional folders to upload any other files as desired in the same way you do with Google Drive.	There are many choices in deciding what is backed up to iCloud.  You may choose different settings that I did. Here is a continuation of the same page:

We are just scratching the surface with these directions.  Coming up yet will be directions on how to create collaborative iWork documents (Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and more)

This managed account will not let you log into iTunes for purchases, free applications, or iBooks.  You would still use your own personal Apple ID like you always have.  This will not affect Self Service either.  It will still be available.

Please let me know what questions you have.  I'm sure there is more I can do to clear up these directions.

Thanks

BG
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Common Questions:

I am signed in to a different iCloud Account.  Will I lose anything if I sign out of it and into this new account?

No.  You will not lose anything that is backed up on your computer.  You can check and see what is saved on that 'old' account by going to iCloud.com  If you have items saved there in iCloud Drive, you may download  them to your computer and then transfer them to the new account.  When you log in, you will see a screen that should look like this:

Can I purchase free or paid Apps with this Apple I.D?

No.  The stores (App Store and iTunes Store) are different than iCloud.  Purchased and free applications can be 'pushed' out using Self-Service.  If you 'purchase' free items or use your own money to buy an application, then you personally own the license for it.

For now, I would recommend using a personal Apple ID for the Store if you want to test out free items.

Google does this same thing.  With our school accounts, we have access to gmail and other Google products with school-owned accounts, but cannot purchase anything from the Google Play store.


Why is this account different that my school email address?

IF you already created a personal Apple ID that is your school email address, then it is already taken.  We cannot create another account that has the same login.  What you created is a personal account that will give you 5Gb of storage and may be used for purchasing.   This managed account is school-owned and will give you 200 Gb of iCloud storage.

IF there is already an account named firstname.lastname@grinnell-k12.org, then firstname.lastname1@grinnell-k12.org is generated instead.  Both are still connected to your school email address.

Click here to view a document created by Apple that describes with more details the difference between a personal account and managed account.


Will all of my documents be backed up?

Yes, sort of.  IF you have upgraded to High Sierra on your laptop, then you can select to have your entire Desktop and Documents folders automatically backed up to iCloud.

All Pages, Numbers, and Keynote projects can be set to automatically backed up.

All items in your Desktop and Documents folders may be also accessed on your iPad in the Files Application that looks like this:

Can I just use Google Drive instead to back up my files?

Yes.  You may download Google Drive to your computer at this link.  There will be a folder on your computer called Google Drive.  Anything in that folder will be automatically backed up.

You may select to have your Desktop and Documents folders automatically backed up to your Google Drive.  Look for the checkbox when you do your installation.

Keyboards for Kiddos

Here is an update to a post from 2018:

I would suggest the following iPad settings for your early learners:

I had some time in a Kindergarten classroom today and noticed a keyboard setting that you may want to adjust on your student iPads.  Students in this class were working on very nice presentations for a science lesson using Keynote.  They sometimes typed words that the iPad automatically changed, often in a very unhelpful way.

Phonetic spellings are an important part of the developmental process of young writers.  However, our student iPads may be set to 'fix' words, often changing a misspelling to a very different word with a very different meaning.

Here are a couple suggestions that you may want to consider on your student iPads:

There are many settings that can help student learning.  For little fingers that have troubles taking screenshots, I would suggest turning on Assistive Touch.  It may be customized in  Settings -> General -> Accessibility -> Assistive Touch.  This can be customized so that screenshot and many other tools can be completed with a single tap. To adjust your student iPads for your phonetic writers, go to Settings -> General -> Keyboard

Turn OFF Auto-Correction so that your phonetic spellers do not have their words 'fixed' by the iPad Prediction has been a surprisingly nice feature for students that are reasonably good spellers .  For most students, you will want to leave this turned ON. Split-Keyboard is a feature you will likely want turned OFF for younger writers.  It should also fix the odd feature that sometimes puts the keyboard in the middle of the screen. Enable Dictation is a speech-to-text accessibility feature that allows the user to speak words that will show up on the screen.  A quick Internet connection is needed for this to work well.  There is often a delay.  You may want to turn this ON.

Turn ON Assistive Touch

Navigate to the Internet

Navigate the Internet....

In creating meaningful lessons, we often have our students use web resources to access information.  Here are some quick ways to help direct your students to meaningful web resources:

Write it down.

I need to start with the obvious.  It does have its limitations though. This works when you're traveling to short url's like google.com or grinnelliowa.gov, but is not practical with most web addresses and also not with young learners. And notice that I didn't include "www." It's really not necessary any more.
Apple Classroom This already works on our K-4 iPads and will soon be available on teacher laptops for the iPads, as well. Tap on Navigate and send your entire class anywhere that is bookmarked already on your iPad. The Apple Classroom app should be installed already on your teacher iPad.  It is not needed on the student iPad.
Share Arrow   or   Sharrow This little command is usually used to Air Drop files, but in Safari can be used to also Air Drop a website.  It looks like a little square with an 'up' arrow in it.  It is a quick way to share digital resources. Share to an iPad, iPhone, laptop one at a time OR to an entire Apple Classroom class, if you have it set up.
QR Code These little squares are a really quick connection to web resources. You can quickly create a QR Code for any website.  I use qrstuff.com for all of mine. On an iPad, simply open the Camera App and point it at the QR Code.  Many teachers will either print this out or display a large version on their classroom projector from their computer.
ClassLink Many teachers have been using Symbaloo for several years.  It is a social bookmarking tool.  This has been used mostly in the elementary buildings.  Symbaloo has a really nice iPad App and can be easily customized. A new tool our District has subscribed to is called Classlink.  This can do everything that Symbaloo can, but will also auto-log a student into a password protected website.  This includes resources like BookFlix, Canvas, Google Classroom, and many more.  It has been used heavily this year with MAP and FAST testing at the elementary and middle school buildings. All of our K-12 students and staff already have a ClassLink account.  Send me a note if you would like to learn more about ClassLink.
URL Shortener I use tinyurl.com most often for this.  Some addresses that appear to be about 8 feet long can be quickly shortened to lengths that are easier to remember or type, if needed. I would use one of the methods above, if possible, instead.  No typing is needed then.  Use whatever means flows best in your classroom.  Do what you can to improve learning through engagement in a collaborative and creative environment.