Set Up

Set Up can be challenging. If you are experienced with Google Slides nothing here will be new. If you are a Google Slides novice this may seem like a lot to do. It is. Once. Once you have all your links in place you're set.

Step 1: Copy all the files to your Google Drive.

While you technically can directly link your students to the files on my website, you shouldn't. In many cases districts block connections to outside Google Drives. I end up getting dozens of requests for access from your students and I literally can't help them. I can't grant access even if I wanted to. The problem isn't me, it's your network. So, instead, I recommend using the Copy link on each file which puts one into your Google Drive which they should be able to access.

Step 2: Get your links

Find the first level file in your Drive then right click on the file and select Share (not Get Sharable Link). Click on the box that says "Get Link" and then click the button that says "Copy Link." (You may also need to change the drop down menu to "anyone with link" depending on your network defaults.) That is the link you will use to update your slides. Well, almost the link. You'll make one change first in step 3.

Step 3: Change your links to presentation links

If you follow step 2 Google Drive, by default, will give you an edit link that looks like this:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zUD1gA-YWjvoblmjvYeP2CZJkdc_gewiv-UPda54g/edit?usp=sharing

This is an EDIT link which is not what you want to provided to your students. Instead, delete the word edit and replace it with present.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zUD1gA-YxjvoblmjvYeP2CZJkdc_gewiv-UPda54g/present?usp=sharing

This type of link will ensure that the Slide Show automatically is in presentation mode when students click your link. It makes it feel much more like a game and less like a Google Slide reading activity. This the link format you'll use for step two.

Step 4: Provide your students with your links

The links to other levels within the game are currently linked to go to MY Google Drive. If you keep them this way you risk running into the network block issue I mentioned earlier.

You have two options. First, you can avoid this step entirely by giving your students direct links to each level and deleting the link on the slides completely. When I have this in the past I made a Google Doc with each level link and then just provided students with the link to the shared Doc. They will have to exit the game at then end of each level (by hitting escape) and then use the link to the next level. This works and is the easiest method. It, however, is not as cohesive a game experience.

The second option is to go through each level file in YOUR Google Drive and update the links. To do so, find a slide with a link to another level. Usually, this will be the last slide of any level. The starter level often has multiple links to update however. Once you've found a link, click on it and click the pencil icon that pops up. Paste your link (preferably with the Present tag) into that box and select Apply.

This way you only need to provide your students with the presentation link to the first level. I do this through our Learning Management System PowerSchool. Google Classroom or Canva would work the same way. You could also email the link to the students.

You and your students are now ready to play Time Warp!