Gmail in the Classroom

I believe there are many beneficial uses for gmail in the classroom such as using it for communication and organization.  Our school has set up groups for teachers to easily communicate with others.  We have groups already made for our teams, grades, explore, associates and school wide.  This saves time from having to type each contact in individually.  I have also created groups for my different classes (science, PLTW, homeroom) and clubs (robotics) so I can communicate important deadlines coming up and reminders for students.  I think it may be beneficial to create a group for parents of students in each grade level as well in the future.  As far as labels and folders go I think these are also important for teachers to use because I get so many emails daily and they certainly help me keep those organized for future use.

Our school also uses google calendar to reserve computer labs and carts and also remind us of important meetings (PD, IEP, etc.).  

Finally,  I would like to utilize google docs more so students can collaborate easily on group projects and simultaneously work together.  This would cut down on project time and save paper, which I am all for!