12 Days of Google Tips: Tip 8 - Google Docs the @ menu (aka Smart Chips)


Tis the season of giving and I've been inspired by my PLN and a certain holiday song to share some Google Workspace Tips that I've either discovered or rediscovered in 2021. To be precise, the plan is two share 12 Google tips in addition to any other posts I am inspired to complete during the month of December. I will link other 12 Days of Google posts at the end of each post for your reference. 

Today I wanted to share my eighth tip connected to the @ menu now available in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. 

"A quick and simple way to add rich elements to your content, the universal @ menu makes it easy to preview and read relevant documents, find associated meetings and stakeholders, add tables and images, and more, directly from Google Docs." (Google Why it matters)
Have you noticed that when you create a new Google Doc, it now starts with the phrase "Type @ to insert"? If you are like me you may blow past this every time and never even seen it in your existing documents.


When Google first introduced "smart chips" I have to admit that I wasn't too interested. I didn't think that I would use this feature very much. I liked that you could tag people if you were working on a collaborative document, but I didn't see myself using the embedded files or the Google Calendar events featured. 

My interest in exploring the @ menu increased when Google added additional features available if you scroll through the @ menu.  (Most of these are also available in the "Insert" menu.)
  • Lists (Checklist, Numbered list, and Bulleted list)
  • Media (Image, Tables, Drawing, and Chart)
  • Dates (Several Formats)
  • Headings
  • Page Components (Page numbers, Page count, Header, Footer, Footnote, Break, Watermark)
  • More (Horizontal line, Table of contents, Bookmark, Equation, Special characters, and Link)
(Image Source)

I still have some exploring to do, but I imagine that once I get the hang of the @ menu it will be much more efficient than the traditional insert menu.  

Bonus
Have you made use of the Google Side Panel in Docs, Sheets, and Slides? It is a great way to bring multiple Google resources together. Here are ideas on using some Google products side by side. 
  • Use Google Keep to add images or commonly used text to a file. You can also create a Keep note or list connected to the file.
  • Use Google Maps in slide decks to share locations and maps with students.
  • Use tasks to set reminders and to do items.
  • I also love the connected to the Google Workspace Marketplace that is connected to the tool that you are using. 

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