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School-wide Communication

Modified on: Wed, Nov 29, 2023 at 2:19 PM

The topics below describe your options for viewing school-wide communications and show you how to access school directories. 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

View All School-wide Announcements, Alerts, and Notifications

To view all school-wide announcements, notifications, and alerts, follow these steps:

  1. On the Master menu, click the School Announcements tab.
  2. Click either Announcements, Alerts, or Notifications.
  3. Click for a posting to view more information.

Important: You only see the School Announcements tab if your PlusPortals administrator has enabled it.

Tip: Customize the number of items displayed on the page by clicking . Use   to navigate between pages.



View New or Recent School-wide Notifications and Alerts

This topic describes the options you have for viewing new and recent notifications and alerts from your school.

View New Notifications and Alerts

You can view new school-wide alerts and notifications from your Home page or Class page. A number appearing next to the alert or notification icon indicates the number of new postings.


To view new alerts, click . To view new notifications, click .

Click to move forward or back through multiple alerts or notifications.

Important: By default, the number next to the icon disappears after you read the alert or notification. To continue to show the alert or notification as unread, clear the check mark in the Mark as read check box.


View Recent Notifications and Alerts

On your Home tab, you can view school-wide notifications and alerts posted in the last 30 days by scrolling down to the Notifications and Alerts panel.

Note: Alerts display in red to indicate a higher importance.

To view details for a posting, click. To open theSchool Announcementstab click.

 


View the School Directory

To view a directory of staff, parents, or students click the Directory tab on the Master menu.

Important: Your PlusPortals administrator controls your ability to see the Directory tab and the staff, parent, and student directories. In addition, the administrator can enable an opt-in/out feature that requires users to enable their own account to appear in the directory.

The following diagram and table summarize the Directory tab:
 


Directory Tab Overview

A

Switch between staff, parent, and student directories.

B

Find a staff member, parent, or student by typing their name in the search bar and clicking Search.

C

Search for a parent or student by student name, class, or grade level. If searching for a parent, you can also search by parent name.

D

To display a list of staff members, parents, or students by last name, click a letter next to Search by Alphabet.

E

Print the directory.

F

Browse directory pages.



E-Mails and Messages in TeacherPlus Portal

In addition to posting class announcements and alerts, you can communicate with students and parents by sending e-mails or messages.
To learn more, see the appropriate section below.


E-Mails In TeacherPlus Portal

You can communicate with school staff, students, parents, and groups using your portal e-mail. Your e-mails are delivered to the recipients' personal e-mail and portal e-mail.
See the following topics for e-mail tasks:

 

 

View E-Mails

You can view all your portal e-mails or just new ones.

All E-Mails

On the Master menu, click E-Mail & Messages or E-Mail to open the E-Mail tab.

Important: You will only see the E-Mail & Messages tab or the E-Mail tab if your PlusPortals administrator has enabled it.

The diagram and table below provide an overview of the E-mail tab.




E-Mail Tab Overview

 

A

 

Switch between e-mails and messages.

 

B

 

Compose or delete e-mails.

 

C

 

Display only recent e-mails or display all e-mails.

 

D

 

Search e-mails by subject or sender, or clear your search history.

 

E

 

Access your inbox, e-mail drafts, or sent e-mails.

 

F

 

View your Inbox, Drafts, or Sent Items folder. Click an e-mail to open it.

 

G

 

Filter your e-mails by subject, sender, or date sent or received.

 

H

 

Open an e-mail (   ), reply to an e-mail (), forward an e-mail (), or delete an e-mail ().

 

I

 

Access archived e-mail from previous school years.

 

J

 

Browse forward and back through pages of e-mails.

 

K

 

Select how many e-mails display per page.


New E-Mails

On the Home tab and Class page, you'll see a number next to when you have a new e-mail. The number indicates how many new e-mails you have. To view them, click .


By default, the number disappears after you read the e-mail.
To show an e-mail as unread, clear the check mark in theMark as readcheck box.



Send an E-mail from Your Portal

To send an e-mail to school staff, students, parents, and groups, follow these steps:

  1. On the Master menu, click the E-Mail & Messages tab or the E-Mail tab.

Important: You will only see the E-Mail & Messages tab or the E-Mail tab if your PlusPortals administrator has enabled it.

  1. On the E-Mail tab, click New E-Mail.
     
    The New E-Mail dialog box opens.
  2. See the diagram and table for a description of the New E-Mail dialog box.


 

 


New E-Mail Dialog Box

A

  1. Type the e-mail address for each recipient (To), copied recipient (Cc), and/or blind-copied recipient (Bcc), or click Add Recipients to select the recipients from a predefined list.

Important: Recipients in the To field only see their own names. Copied recipients are visible to all recipients. Blind-copied recipients are hidden from other recipients.

  1. Under Which Recipients, click the group the recipients belong to, and see the table below for the appropriate steps.

Note: You can select more than one group of recipients.

If You Select

Do This

Admin Users

Select the check boxes for the administrators you want to e-mail and click Next.

Teachers

Select the check boxes for the teachers you want to e-mail and click Next.

Students and Parents

  1. In Students from which Sections, select the check boxes for the class sections the students are in.
  2. In Which Students, select the check boxes for the students you want to e-mail.
  3. Next to Send Email To, click Students and/or Parents.
  4. Click Next.

Groups

  1. In the Select Group drop-down list, select the group you want to e-mail.

Important: You can only e-mail groups you belong to.

  1. Under Select recipients, select the check boxes for the recipients you want to e-mail.

Important: The recipients you see depend on the permissions set by your PlusPortals administrator and the group head.

  1. Click Next.

The Select Recipients  dialog box lists the recipients selected to receive the e-mail and identifies recipients with invalid e-mail addresses.

  1. Click OK.

B

Type a subject for the e-mail.

C

Attach a file to the e-mail.

Important: The file size limit for e-mail attachments is 10 MB.

D

Type the email, formatting the text and adding links and images as needed. (See Edit Content.)

E

Include an e-mail signature. (See Create or Edit an E-mail Signature.)

F

Save a draft of the e-mail. To view the draft, click Drafts on the left side of the E-Mail  tab.

G

Send the e-mail.

H

Return to the E-Mail tab without saving the e-mail.



Automatically Send E-mail Notifications

When you post content to your class page or edit existing content, you can send an e-mail notification to parents and/or students. After you save the content, click Send E-Mail Notification.
See the diagram and table below for descriptions of the e-mail notification options.


 


E-Mail Notification Options

A

Select the appropriate check box to send an email notification to parents and/or students.

B

Edit the subject line.

C

Format the text and add links and/or images. (See Edit Content.)

D

Edit the content of the e-mail.

E

Send the e-mail notification.

 


Reply to an E-mail

To reply to an e-mail, follow these steps:

  1. On the E-Mail tab, click for the e-mail you're replying to.
     

The PlusPortals dialog box opens.



  1. Click above the original message and type your reply, formatting the text and adding links and images as needed. (See Edit Content.)
  2. Click Send.

Tip: You can save a draft of your e-mail by clicking Save. To view the draft, click Drafts on the left panel of the E-Mail tab.

 


Forward an E-mail

To forward an e-mail, follow these steps:

  1. On the Master menu, click the E-Mail & Messages tab or the E-Mail tab.
  2. Click next to the e-mail you want to forward.
     

The New E-Mail dialog box opens.


  1. Click Add Recipients.
  2. In the Select Recipients dialog box, click a recipient group, select the check boxes for the recipients, and then click Next.

The dialog box lists the recipients selected to receive the e-mail and identifies recipients with invalid e-mail addresses.

  1. Click OK.
  2. To add your own message to the recipients, click above the original message and begin typing. (See Edit Content.)
  3. Click Send.

Tip: You can save a draft of your e-mail by clicking Save. To view the draft, click Drafts on the left panel of the E-Mail tab.

 

Create or Edit an E-mail Signature

Personalize your outgoing e-mail by creating a custom e-mail signature that you can format to include images, links, and/or tables. You can create or edit an e-mail signature when editing your profile settings or drafting an e-mail.

  1. On the User menu, click [your name] > Settings.

  1. Scroll down to the E-Mail Signature text editor.

  1. Type and format your e-mail signature, and then click OK. (See Edit Content.)
  2. Click OK again to acknowledge the update.

Note: To create an e-mail signature or edit your signature while drafting an e-mail, see Send an E-Mail.

 


Delete an E-mail

To delete e-mails from your Inbox, Drafts folder, Sent Items folder, or one of the Archived E-mail folders, follow these steps:

  1. On the Master menu, click the E-Mail & Messages tab or the E-Mail tab.

  1. Do one of the following steps:
  • To delete one e-mail, click.
  • To delete multiple e-mails, select the check box for each e-mail and click Delete E-Mail.

  1. Click Yes to confirm the deletion, and then click OK.

 


Messages in TeacherPlus Portal

You can communicate with an individual student and/or parent or an entire class and/or their parents using messages. Portal messages are sent to the recipient's portal.
See the following topics for message tasks:



 

View Messages

You can view all your portal messages or just new ones.


All Messages

On the Master menu, click the E-Mail & Messages tab or the Messages tab.


Important: You will only see the E-Mail & Messages tab or the Messages tab if your PlusPortals administrator has enabled it.

If not already displayed, click the Messages  tab. The diagram and table provide an overview of the Messages tab.




Messages Tab Overview

 

A

 

Switch between e-mails and messages.

 

B

 

Compose messages.

 

C

 

View your messages.

 

D

 

Filter your messages by name, date sent or received, or status (sent or received).

 

E

 

Open a message.

 

F

 

Reply to a message or delete a message.

 

G

 

Browse forward and back through pages of messages.

 

H

 

Select how many messages display per page.

New Messages

On the Home tab and Class page, you'll see a number next to when you have a new message. The number indicates how many new messages you have. To view them, click .


By default, the number disappears after you read a message.
To show a message as unread, clear the check mark in the Mark as read check box.

 


Send a Message to Students and Parents

You can send messages to students and parents, which they can view from their respective portals.
 To send a message, follow these steps:

  1. On the Master menu, click the E-Mail & Messages tab or the Messages tab.

Important: You will only see the E-Mail & Messages tab or the Messages tab if your PlusPortals administrator has enabled it.

  1. If not already displayed, click the Messages tab.
     
  2. Click New Message.
    The New Message dialog box opens.
  3. See the diagram and table below for a description of the New Message dialog box.

New Message Dialog Box

A

Type a title for the message.

B

Type your message, formatting the text and adding links and images as needed. (See Edit Content.)

C

Send the message to students, and/or their parents.

For parents, click All Parents or Only to Primary Parent from the drop-down list.

D

Select the check box for each section you want to send the message to, or select the check box for each student you want to send the message to.

  1. Click Send.

 


Reply to a Message

To reply to a message, follow these steps:

  1. On the Messages tab, click Reply for the message you're replying to.
     
    The Reply dialog box opens with the title of the original message displayed in Subject.
     
  2. Click above the original message and type your reply, formatting the text and adding links and images as needed. (See Edit Content.)
  3. Click Send.

 


Delete a Message

To delete a message, follow these steps:

  1. On the Master menu, click the E-Mail & Messages tab or the Messages tab.

  1. If not already displayed, click the Messages tab.

  1. For the message you want to delete, click Delete.
  2. Click Yes to confirm the deletion, and then click OK.

 


Student Course Requests

The topics below describe the PlusPortals course request process and the steps for writing course descriptions, recommending courses, and approving course requests.



Course Request Process

The process of creating, completing, and approving course requests follows the order described below:

  1. Your PlusPortals administrator creates a course request form and publishes it for students to view. The course request form may include course descriptions created by teachers and/or other staff members to help students select the appropriate courses. See Write a Course Description.
  2. If enabled by their PlusPortals administrator, teachers can recommend courses they teach to students. The course recommendations only appear in the students' course request forms if the recommended courses are offered to the students. See Recommend Courses for Students.
  3. Students complete their course request forms.
  4. Parents have the option of approving and commenting on their children's course selections.
  5. A reviewer, such as a teacher or staff member, reviews, approves, and sends the course request forms to the school administrative office for processing. See Review and Approve Course Requests.

 

Write a Course Description

You can create descriptions of the courses you teach, which students can read while completing their course request forms. Course descriptions provide students with more information to assist them in making appropriate course selections.

To create a course description, follow these steps:

  1. On the Master menu, click the Course Requests tab, and then click Course Catalog.
     

Important: You will only see the Course Requests tab if your PlusPortals administrator has enabled the feature.

  1. From the Displaying Courses from Active Year list, click the course you want to write a course description for.

Note: Only school administrators can add courses to the list.

  1. In the text editor on the right side of the page, type the course description. Using the text editor tools, you can format the text and add hyperlinks and tables. (See Edit Content.)
  2. When you are finished, click Save, and then click OK.

Tip: To edit a course description, click the course, make your changes in the text editor, and click Save.

 


Recommend Courses for Students

You can make course recommendations for students, which they can view while completing their course request forms. You can recommend courses for one student or for several students at a time.

Note: Your recommendations only appear on a student's course request form if the courses you are recommending are offered to the student.

Recommend Courses for One Student

To recommend courses for one student, follow these steps:

 

  1. On the Master menu, click the Course Requests tab.
  2. Click Recommendations.

    Important: You will only see the Course Requests tab if your PlusPortals administrator has enabled it.

  3. Click the student you're recommending courses for.
  4. Click Add Recommendation to see all the courses for the scheduling year.

    Tip: You can filter items in a column by clicking, or change the order of items in a column by clicking the column heading.

  5. Select the check boxes for the courses you want to recommend, and then click Next.

    The recommendations appear in the Courses list.

  6. To add a comment, click the course you want to comment on.
  7. Click Edit, type your comment, and then click Save.

    Note: When you click Edit, it's replaced with Save and Cancel.

    Tip: To delete a course recommendation from the Courses list, select the course check box, and then click Remove Selected Recommendation.



Recommend Courses for Multiple Students

To recommend courses to several students at a time, follow these steps:

  1. On the Master menu, click the Course Requests tab.

Important: You will only see the Course Requests tab if your PlusPortals administrator has enabled it.

  1. Click Recommendations.
  2. Click Batch Add Recommendation.

  3. Select the check box for the section the students are in.

  4. Select the check boxes for the students you want to recommend courses to.
  5. Select the check boxes for the courses you want to recommend.
  6. Click Next. 

 

Tip: To delete several course requests from the Courses list, click Batch Remove Recommendation. In the PlusPortal dialog box, select the section the students are in, select the students, select the course(s) you want to delete, and then click Next.

You can filter items in a column by clicking , or change the order of items in a column by clicking the column heading.

 


Review and Approve Course Requests

After parents approve their student's completed course request forms, you can review, approve, and send your students' course request forms to the school administrative office for processing. You can review and approve course request forms for one student or for several students at once.

Review and Approve One Student's Course Request Form

To review and approve the course request form for one student, follow these steps:


  1. On the Master menu, click the Course Requests tab.
    The Review Requests tab displays by default.
     

    Important: You will only see the Course Requests tab if your PlusPortals administrator has enabled it.

  2. In the Select Course Request Form drop-down list, select the form you want to review.
     A check box only appears next to a student's name if the student has submitted a course request form. After you review the course request form, the check box disappears.
  3. For the course request form you want to open, click .
    Courses display with check boxes or bullets next to them. Check boxes indicate the student can select multiple courses, while bullets indicate the student can only select one course.
     When a student requests a course, the check box or bullet next to the course title is selected (or filled in). Courses that display in blue have comments or have been approved.
  4. Click the arrow next to the course title to display parent and student comments.
     

    Tip: Click next to the course to view details about the course.

    Important: Review your school’s policy for approving course requests. Some schools only approve the student’s course request if a parent has also approved the selection.

     

  5. Select the Approved by Reviewer check box and under Reviewer's Remarks, add your comments.

    Important: Your comments are visible to both parents and students.

    Warning: Only click Submit when you're ready to send the course request form to the school administrative office. Once you click Submit, you can't edit the course request form.

  6. When ready, scroll to the bottom of the form and click Submit. To save the form without submitting it, click Save & Revisit Later.



Review and Approve Course Requests for Several Students

To review and approve the course request forms for several students at once, follow these steps:

  1. On the Master menu, click the Course Requests tab.
    The Review Requests tab displays by default.
     

    Important: You will only see the Course Requests tab if your PlusPortals administrator has enabled it.

     

  2. In the Select Course Request Form drop-down list, select the form you want to review.
     A check box only appears next to a student's name if the student has submitted a course request form. After you review the course request form, the check box disappears.
  3. Select the check boxes for the students whose courses you want to approve.

    Warning: Only click Approve All Selected Course Requests when you're ready to send the course request forms to the school administrative office. Once you click Approve All Selected Course Requests, you can't edit the course request forms.

  4. To approve the course request forms and send them to the office, click Approve All Selected Course Requests.


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