July is here, and with it, summer vacation! But, before you kick back and relax, taking some time to wrap up this year’s affairs will help set you up for success in the next school year. Here are some great ways to wrap up your school year with Google.

Organize your Google Drive

Consider creating a main folder for the school year with several subfolders within it. Those folders can be set up by subject, unit, class period, or student. Creating a standard naming convention will help keep things uniform and easy to locate and search for. Choosing a color for your old files will help give good quick visual, too.

Since there is no official Google archive, consider creating another account to designate as your “archive.” Then, you can share the folders to that account, set that account as the owner, and then remove it (using the scary trash can) it from your active Google Drive. This will prevent those files from showing up when you search your drive, which is great. Note: Transferring ownership of files can only be done with other accounts in the same domain.

Take it to go with Google Takeout

If you are leaving your school, and you want to take your work with you, consider using Google Takeout — no Tupperware or menus needed!

To do this follow the directions below:

1. Navigate to Google.com/takeout
2. If you aren’t already logged in, you will need to log in to the account you want to download data from.
3. Click “Deselect all” to deselect all of the Google tools. Select only the data you want to include. I suggest doing this only for Google Drive. While you can download other data, such as Gmail, the procedure for moving it into a personal account varies.
4. Click “Next step” to continue.
5. Choose how you want to export your archive. If you opt for email of a *.zip file (compressed file format), the file will be sent to the account you created the archive for. You would then download it to a computer, unzip it, and then upload it to your personal Google account. Alternatively, you can add Google Drive content directly to other cloud storage services such as Dropbox or OneDrive.

Wrapping up Google Classroom

If you use Google Classroom, it is important to wrap up that up as well. It is recommended to name the class with a naming convention and then archive the class so it doesn’t appear on you dashboard. But don’t worry — you’re able to reactivate the class after it is archived if you ever need to.

To archive your Google Classroom:

1. First log in to Google Classroom.
2. Next, identify the class you want to archive.
3. Click the three-dot menu in the upper right hand corner of the class tile.
4. Select and click “Archive.”
5. The class will disappear from your class dashboard.

If you ever need to retrieve an archived class, here’s what to do:

1. Go to the hamburger menu in the upper left hand corner.
2. Select archived classes from the menu.
3. Find the class you want to restore.
4. Click the three-dot menu on the class tile.
5. Click “Restore.”
6. The class will now appear on you class dashboard.

Don’t forget Google Calendar!

It’s also a good idea to clear your calendar at the end of the school year so you have a clean and uncluttered view of everything for next year. Here’s how you do it:

1. Open your Google Calendar.
2. Find the class you want remove from view.
3. Click the three-dot menu next to the class.
4. Click “Hide from view.”

We hope trying out some, or all, of these tips to wrap up your school year with Google will help you get organized and enjoy some much-deserved time off. Have a great summer!

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