How to Create Digital Portfolios

Portfolios are great for a number of reasons. They can document a students learning in your class and show how they’ve progresses. Student portfolios can serve as a record for the parents, which are great to have come Open House or conference time. Below are some apps that can help a teacher keep student portfolios.

1. Google Docs: A simple way for a student to create a portfolio. The student simply creates a new page for each unit or chapter. The student can include typed reflections on their learning or a picture of an assignment or project.

2. Seesaw: The digital portfolio app. Seesaw allows the teacher to pose questions in which students should respond. Students can simply journal their learning or attach their work in a number of ways. In Seesaw, students can add text, voice, video, or attach a document. And, when all is said and done, the teacher can add student work to the class blog within Seesaw.

3. Google Slides: Google Slides is not just a presentation app. Among its variety of uses, Slides can be used as a keeper of daily learning. Ask students to use one slide per day or designate a number of slides per unit or chapter. Have students to title slide relevant to their learning. They can insert pictures, text, shapes, and lines to make their portfolio stand out from the others.

4. Google Drive: Have students keep all of their Google and non-Google work in a folder in their Google Drive. Then, ask them to share the folder with you.

5. Book Creator: Have students create a book that showcases their learning. If you’re using iPads or Chromebooks, Book Creator is a great way for students to keep a record of their learning. Ask students to create a book for each unit or chapter. Or have students create a book for the semester, where each chapter is divided by chapter or unit. They can insert examples of their work through different types of media such as photos, sounds, and drawings.

6. Blogger: In much the same way as keeping a website about their learning, students can blog about their daily learning. Use a blogging platform such as Blogger to have students blog about what they’ve learned in class that day. Ask them to provide evidence such as pictures of their daily work or projects.

7. Google Sites/Adobe Spark Page: Using a website builder such as Google Sites or Adobe Spark Page, students can create a website where they store their learning. They can create a new page for each part of their learning, inserting video, pictures, or simple text that can be easily accessible by parents and teachers.

8. Recap: Using Recap, students can keep a diary of the learning process throughout the unit. Ask student to record their daily learning by video recording themselves or, if they so choose, to type out what they’ve learned.

9. Evernote: Use Evernote to record student learning. Have students create a notebook for each unit/chapter. In it, they can insert pictures, attach a file, record audio, or simply type what they’ve learned. Then, at the appropriate time, have them share the notebook with the teacher.

10. Google Keep: If you’re a die hard Googler, use Google Keep. In much the same fashion as Evernote, students can create a new note for each unit or chapter. Include an artifact from that unit as a note. Include a photo, recording, or drawing.