Getting Started with ParentSquare

Your one stop shop for everyting you need to start using your PS account.

Created by Scott Aten, November 26, 2024

As you all are aware of by now, we will be transitioning from Remind to ParentSquare. We believe you will find this tool user friendly and provide you with more accurate parent contact information. With any new tool there will be a little bit of a learning curve, but I have tried to break down the tasks into manageable parts that will make this transition smooth for you.

Introduction
ParentSquare has created a short 5 minute video that provides a "Navigation Basics Overview". This is a great place to start and will get you familiar with the overall interface of Parent Square.

Quick Start Guide

The tasks listed below are common things you will do in ParentSquare. This list can serve as a reference for you in the event you forget how to do something.

Login to your ParentSquare account. (click "Sign In with Google") - if you are unable to sign in please complete a technology help desk ticket.
Renaming Classes in ParentSquare - the names given to classes in ParentSquare come from ProgressBook, but you can change the display name making it easier to know which class is which in your lists.
Creating posts. - useful for sending a message to your entire class. Posts will show up in a parent's feed making it easy for them to find the info again when they need it.
Create a direct message - send messages to individual parents or groups of parents.
Add a co-teacher or aide to your class - note it also talks about how to add room parents, but check with your building principal before you do it. The directions work the same for adding another staff member.
Create a group - You will already have your classes in ParentSquare, but groups give you the ability to create a subset of students. Groups can also be helpful for after school groups or clubs. Note we believe we can get athletic teams created automatically for coaches (more info to come on this).
Training Resources for Teachers - ParentSquare has created a self-paced training module that provides opportunities for hands on practice if you feel you need additional support. Note you will need to sign-in to Parent Square before you can view this article.

When to use a Direct Message Vs a Post?

Below is some guidance and best practice for teachers and group managers on when to use direct messages versus a post.

Think of direct messages (DM) as as the message app on your phone. It is meant for short conversational back-and-forth chats. Think of posts as emails meant for informational messages that allow formatting options such as bold, underline, tables, bullets and more. Both DMs and Posts allow private replies.

So how do you decide to use Posts vs DMs? Answer these questions and look at suggested use cases.

Is this an informational message for the entire class? -- use a Post
Example "I hope everyone had a restful week off! We’ll be going on our field trip this Wednesday! If you have not turned in your permission slip, please do so by tomorrow."
Is this an ask for the entire class? -- use a Post
Example "We will be having a hot chocolate and holiday cookies party on Thursday. Please sign up or comment to let me know if you can donate an item."
Is this a conversational message to your class where you'd like to start an individual (bcc) or group conversation with everyone? -- use a Direct Message
Example "Hi, I would like to know how I can support your child best when it comes to learning math. Any ideas or suggestions or things I should know that work best with your child?"
Is this a message that is not meant for the entire class but for individual delivery to each recipient? -- use a Direct Message (recipients will not know that the message was sent to others.) - Example "If you are receiving this message your child is receiving an award at Friday's assembly"
If this message is meant for just one person or a family? -- use a Direct Message
Example "Charlie is a star of the week! This means that we get to highlight him this week and learn new things about him."
Do you think new families and users added to the class or group after you have sent the message would benefit from seeing the message? -- use a Post and not a DM. With Posts, new families will have access to their student’s class post feed for the entire school year, even before they joined the class.

Customizing your account

Below are a few things you can do to your account.

Add a photo and other profile information to your account
Set your notification settings (works the same way for parents too)
Set your office hours Let people know the best times they can reach you via Direct Messaging.
Access your class directory See parents and students who are connected to your class.

Hopefully the information above will get you started using ParentSquare as your communication tool with families. Note that Canvas is still appropriate for communicating assignment and grade information to families. At this time there is no ParentSquare connection to Canvas like there was for Remind, but we are hoping that is added soon.

If you would like me to come and help you please feel free to schedule me to come and assist you. I am always ready to come help.

[Green Technology Training Center]

[Click here to go to the YouTube Channel]

For more helpful information and the archive of previous posts, look for items in the menu to the left.

Green Local Schools

Tech Integration Team

Google Docs Document Tabs

Organize your lengthy Google Doc with Document Tabs!

Created by Scott Aten, November 1, 2024

Recently Google added a new feature to Google Docs called Document Tabs. You may have noticed when you open a new Google Doc there is an icon in the left margin.

If you give this little icon a click you will see you now have th option to create "document tabs" within the doucment itself. Think of it like a notebook with many different pages. The process will look something like this...

As you can see it is very easy to do and it essentially give you a new blank doc every time you create a new document tab. There are a lot of practical uses in the classroom. Here are a few ideas:

Organize notes for a class.
Create a class notebook where each student adds their content on a specific tab.
Breaking down large document into more managable pieces.
Presentation of data in its own area

You can also add some visual organization to the tabs by adding an emoji in front of the title.

The emoji can be added by clicking the three dots to the right of the tab title. Here is a link to a Google Doc that I made that has Document Tabs added. Feel free to add your ideas on how Document Tabs could be used in the classroom on the "Ideas" tab in this document for everyone to see.