How to Comment on Student Google Docs & Spreadsheets

Google Apps allows for robust sharing, so multiple students and teachers can edit a document at the same time. Google Apps also makes it easy to comment, rather than edit on a document. These comments work similar to the commenting feature in Word.

Commenting on Google Docs

In order to comment on a student's Google doc, the student must first share their document with you. (Learn more about sharing in my post on Making a Google Docs Template.)

Once you access a student's document you can insert a comment wherever your cursor appears. If you select a block of text, a highlight will appear around the selected words, indicating a comment.

1. Select text or place cursor where you want the comment
2. Go to Insert > Comment
3. Write your comment and press the blue Comment button
4. Reply to other comments (or your own comment) by typing in the box below the comment and pressing reply.

Discussions in Google Docs

This video explains how you can use the comments to have a discussion on your Google Doc.

Commenting on Google Spreadsheets

To add a comment to your spreadsheet, follow these steps:

1. Click the cell where you'd like to insert a comment.
2. Choose one of the following methods to insert a comment:
1. Right-click the cell and select Insert comment.
2. Go to the Insert menu and select Comment.
3. Use the keyboard shortcut Shift-F2.
3. A yellow comment box appears with your username.
4. Enter the text of your comment.
5. To save your comment and close the comment box, click another cell in the spreadsheet or press Enter.
6. An orange mark will show in the top right corner of the cell where you inserted the comment.
7. To view a comment after it's been inserted, hover your mouse over the orange comment indicator. Click the comment box to keep it visible on the screen or to edit the comment.

Some of these directions were pulled from the Google Support Site.