Play Youtube Videos Without Ads or Recommendations

 

Have you ever been leery to play a Youtube video in class or share them with students because you are afraid of the chat comments, ads, and recommendations that come along with showing it? 

There's a simple solution, simply copy the URL and put a "-" between the "t" and "u"in the address (see example below). Sharing and/or clicking this new link will display the videos without ads, recommendations, and comments that you have little control over. It's a safe way to show videos in the classroom on the fly. Of course, it is always recommended that you preview all videos for appropriate content. However, since we cannot control Youtube's algorithm, you can use this trick to view view Youtube videos safely. 

Here's an example. See the DASH?

https://www.yout-ube.com/watch?v=-XjND2ZXNjU

Another trick is to add the videos to a Google Slides presentation. You won't get any ads or comments. My experience indicates you might get recommendations, however, so test it out yourself first. 

The Best Collection of Templates I Know Of

Matt Miller, a teacher and edtech leader, has developed some wonderful resources over the years under the moniker Ditch That Textbook. The movement originated as a way to move teachers and students passed the textbook to higher-level DOK activities. 

Last week, I shared out a shared folder of his graphic organizers. He has many other amazing resources he shares freely with educators. Check them out here! They are easy to modify as needed and assign to your students. They are a huge time saver and definitely worth a look.

Celebrate Student Success with Confetti Cannon

 

Here is a fun Chrome Extension to celebrate student achievements in class. Simply install this extension and hit the extension button on your toolbar to fill up your screen with confetti. I suggest you pin the extension to your bookmarks bar. 

The install page has a warning about it being no longer supported. However, the extension works fine and will continue to work for the foreseeable future. 

Click here to install the Confetti Cannon Chrome extension here: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/confetti-cannon/dminbokeajnkkikeiepfhlgijfjjmdkf

Add a Password to a Google Form Quiz

Here's a clever use of the data verification feature in Google Forms to add a password to a Google Form quiz so students don't start the quiz until you are ready.  Post the quiz right away. Announce the password in class. You can even change the password after the class enters the quiz so that you can use a different password for each period (e.g. middle school). 

This tip comes courtesy of Dr. Jordan Cotten on TikTok. If you are not following teachers on TikTok, you are missing out. Let me know if you have questions. Maybe I can do a workshop on this soon. 

@cottentechcoach Great option and so many reasons to put a password on a #google form 🔥🔥 #teachers #teachersoftiktok #teacherlife #teacher #edutok #edu ♬ Peaceful Mind - neozilla