Gmail Labs are something that often go unnoticed because they are somewhat hidden and hard to find unless you are looking for them. A word of caution about Gmail Labs. These features can be killed off at any given time with no warning so try to not get too attached to any of them. One of my favorite Labs is called Canned Responses and it has been around for a long time. This nifty feature is a breeze to set up,  it’s super easy to use, and it will probably save you time. For it to work you need to enable the lab as shown in the top diagram. Once it is enabled you will compose an email that is a typical response that you find yourself sending over and over again. Think about how many times you email your office hours or have to remind students about your homework or extra credit policies.

The bottom diagram shows you the steps for how to create and save a canned response. Once you save a response you are ready to go! In order to use a canned response simply click the reply button on an email, then select the dropdown arrow on the lower right corner and select called responses and select the one you want to use.

Applications for Education 
By using canned responses, teachers are modeling digital age work and learning which is an essential skill for all teachers and students.