 |
| Dude. This thing is awesome. |
The Chromecast itself is not much bigger than a thumb drive, maybe about the size of your first thumb drive in 2004. It plugs directly into your HDMI, and gets power from either a USB on the back of your TV or projector, or it can also just be plugged into an electrical outlet.
Setup was pretty simple. You set the Chromecast up through your Chrome web browser on your computer, tablet, or phone. Chromecast allows you to cast any tab you have open in a browser to a TV or projector. It also allows you to project YouTube, Pandora, Netflix and other Chromecast enabled apps. I don't see much use for that in the classroom yet... but maybe I down the road. The projector in my classroom just happened to have an unused HDMI port, and a USB. Many projectors built after 2009 will have the same.
When I first contacted my district about using a Chromecast, they told me that the primary function of the device was for personal use, and they didn't see much of a classroom purpose. I kept hounding until I got one.
Why is it the best addition to a Chromebook Classroom that I've seen so far?
In the middle of a lesson, project, or discussion I can have a student cast the tab they have open onto the screen wirelessly from their seat. Once students install the Google Cast Extension, they can click a button and cast their screen. From the time I say "Billy, cast your screen," to the time that Billy's screen pops up on our projector is about 8-10 seconds. Is having Billy cast his screen from his seat somehow better than coming up and plugging in? I seem to think so.
 |
| Chromecast Extension |
Here's the deal. When I first got Chromebooks, I went to Amazon and bought a $25 connector so that I could project the Chromebook to my projector. (My wired connections in the room are VGA, so I needed an adaptor. The HDMI isn't wired in my room, that's why the HDMI was available for the Chromecast) The $25 connector doesn't do a great job. The picture is jumpy, and grainy. With the Chromecast, the picture is HD, awesome, and oh yeah. The thing only costs $35 bucks. Totally worth it.
We have a TV in the entry way of our school. My principal is going to get one for there, and now we have a teaching space that any student Chromebook can access for a meaningful discussion. I find getting kids out of the room is helpful at times, but we don't always have a space to present our finding. We end up going back to the room for the "meat and potatoes" part of the lesson. Now we can do that wherever there is an HDMI input.
So in review:
- If you have Chromebooks
- If you have an available HDMI input
- If you have $35
Buy one, get it set up, and let me know if you think its as awesome as I do.
Any fears of a student misusing the cast ability to display something inappropriate? Seems that this might be an issue especially in middle and high school.
ReplyDeleteI suppose that could be an issue... But isn't there always that risk? Maybe I'm sheltered in elementary school, but it seems to me that we should stop focusing on telling kids what not to do at the cost of doing awesome things.
DeleteI don't anticipate it to be an issue in my classroom because I have set up those expectations. If there are any issues, I'll return and report.
The big potential issue is kids casting to classrooms that are not their own. So long as they're on the network, they'd be able to cast. We'll kick that dog when it comes in the yard.
My question is...do you need the $25.00 connector and the $35.00 chromecast both?
ReplyDeleteDepends on what you want on your projector. If you want your exact screen, you're going to need the converter. If you just want to cast one tab at a time you can get by with the chromecast. It is slightly limited, but a whole lot easier to connect.
Delete"We should stop focusing on telling kids what not to do at the cost of doing awesome things." Excellent!! I am stealing that and quoting you!
ReplyDelete