Faster, Friendlier Commenting With Mote

 @LisaBerghoff/@DanKim

I can remember getting papers back from my teachers and trying to decipher their comments. Yes, reading their handwriting was a challenge. They read and commented on so many papers that by the time they got to mine it looked like scribbles on the page. Most of  the deciphering had to do with understanding the meaning behind their comments. Often there would be just a word or two written in the margins and I felt like I needed a decoder ring to figure out what my teacher was saying about my work. If the feedback was supposed to help me learn and get better for next time, knowing what my teachers intended by their notes was incredibly important. In an ideal world we would be having ongoing conversations and conferences but that is so challenging with everything we need to get done in a day and the number of students we have in our classes.  There are also times when we would like students to comment on each others' work and hearing their voices would be so much more meaningful than simply text. We also know that they are more likely to give more feedback if they are talking and not just typing. 

Mote is a Google chrome extension that allows you to leave voice comments on Google docs, slides, sheets, forms, and gmail. The free version allows you to record up to 20 voice notes per month and you get 1 minute for each note. When you first add the extension and create an account, you will get a 30 day trial for the unlimited version. In addition to voice memos, the upgraded version of Mote also allows you to have a transript of the voice notes and can translate that transcript into many different languages.

Here's how you get started:

1. Go to the chrome webstore and search Mote

2. Click on Add To Chrome

3. You can click on the Mote extension icon to log in with your Google credentials

4. On docs, slides, sheets, forms, and gmail, look for the Mote icon and click on it to begin recording. Click it again to stop.

That's it!

Everyone who has access will be able to click on your voice comment to hear it.

Here is a quick introduction video to Mote:

Accessibility and Differentiation With Mote:

You might  have a student who struggles with typing or has stronger verbal skills, you can have them use Mote voice comments instead of typing.  Or, if you have a student who struggles with reading, you can leave them Mote voice comments to make sure they understand your feedback. You can also have students add the Mote Chrome extension and offer it as an option. Suggest to students that they try using Mote when they send gmail messages so the tone of their message is clearly understood. 

How will you use Mote? Want some help getting started? Let me know. I'm always happy to help.