Gmail in the Classroom

My situation is a little unique as I can a School Improvement Consultant and really don't have a classroom, but wanted to share how I see teachers using Gmail and how students (my daughters in particular) interact with Gmail.  
I remember about 5 years ago how proud the girls were that they were given a school gmail account.  Along with this address came the responsibility on acceptable use.  Students soon realized and become accustomed to emailing teachers to ask about details that they might have forgotten, to see if they could come in early the next day to get caught up on things, to let teachers know that they were out sick and would appreciate knowing what they missed....the list goes on and on.  
Gmail also quickly became an instant communication link between school and home. Teachers were emailing to let us know the details of an upcoming competition, confirming conference times, or just checking in to let us know how our child was progressing.
How do I use Gmail as a Consultant?  To email my Instructional Coaches the latest and greatest finds, to chat with a colleague from Northwest AEA regarding the logistics of an upcoming DA visit, to send out a group email to my Mentors and New Professionals, and...the list goes on and on.
In engaging with tools embedded within this module, I learned that gmail has some cools features that I didn't know about!  I LOVE having my calendar on my gmail!

I also have a unique situation in that I am currently taking this class for substitute certification.  I have been a Nutrition teacher in the classroom through Iowa State University Extension.  I can certainly see the value of Gmail in the classroom as I would have discussed with the teacher the opportunity to set the class up as a group and send the important training materials home via email as well as the folders they were being handed.  The translation feature would be fabulous as many of the classes I worked with had parents who did not speak English.  They would have been able to contact me directly with questions that I would be able to answer.  The other plus for this would be that the district requires all correspondence handed out to be translated in 3 languages.  I could use this rather than hire an interpreter to help me with this.
I see lots of possibilities and look forward to using this to communicate with my Confirmation group.