Groups in TeacherPlus Portal

TABLE OF CONTENTS


Your PlusPortals administrator can create pages and calendars for school groups, such as after-school clubs, athletic teams, and staff departments (math teachers, guidance counselors, or paraprofessionals).
Groups are comprised of group heads and group members. Group heads can be staff, students, and/or parents. Group members can be staff and/or students.
Your PlusPortals administrator determines what group members can see and do.


Group Heads

Group heads can add and remove group members and set e-mail permissions for group members. Groups heads also determine group page and calendar visibility, manage the content of group pages, and manage calendar events. See the relevant section below for details on group member, page, and calendar tasks performed by group heads:

 


Manage Group Members

 

View Group Members

As group head, you can view the members of your groups.

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.
     

The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. See the diagram and table below for a description of the Group Members tab.
     

Group Members Tab

A

Type the name of a member you want to search for and click Search. Click Clear Search to return to the full members list.

B

View the members list, including each member's APID and type (staff or student).

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

C

View information from members' portals, based on permissions set by your PlusPortals admin.

D

Navigate between multiple pages of members.

E

Select how many members you want to view per page.

 


Add Students to Groups

As group head, you can add students to your group in the following ways:

  • You can add all students in your school.
  • You can add all students in selected grade levels.
  • You can add all students matching specific demographic criteria.
  • You can add individual students.

Important: Only the PlusPortals administrator can add or delete group heads and staff group members. 

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.
     

The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. Click Edit Member List.
     

The Edit Group Member List dialog box appears.

Tip: To see a list of members, click View Member List.

  1. Add students using one of the methods described in the table below.

To

Do This

Add all students in your school

Click All Students.
Newly enrolled students are automatically added to the group.
 

Add students in specific grade levels

Click Students matching the below criteria, and then select the check boxes for the grade levels you want to add to the group.
New enrolled students matching the grade level criteria are automatically added to the group.
 

Add students matching specific demographic criteria

Click Students matching the below criteria, and under Students matching Demographic Criteria, select the demographic criteria students must match to be added to the group.

Example

To create a group comprised of all seniors reporting to Academic Advisor Beth Jones, select the students' graduation date (Grad Date) as the first demographic criterion, specifying that the graduation date must End With the year 2020. Select And to indicate the second demographic criterion, and then select Advisor, End With, and Jones.
 

Newly enrolled students matching the demographic criteria are automatically added to the group.

Important

The criteria for Students from selected grade levels and Students matching Demographic Criteria are processed separately. For example, if you try to create a group comprised of all seniors reporting to Academic Advisor Beth Jones by selecting the Grade 12 check box under Students from selected grade levels and Advisor, End With, and Jones under Students matching Demographic Criteria, all twelfth graders and all students who have Beth Jones as their advisor will be added to the group.

Students meeting both criteria are added only once.

Add students individually

Add the students to the Individual Students list using these steps:

  1. Next to Individual Students, click Add.
  2. Under Students from which grades, select the check boxes for the grade levels the students are in.
  3. Under Which Students, select the check boxes for the students you want to add to the group, and then click OK.

    Students added individually remain members until they are deleted from the Individual Students list.

Important: Only students added individually can be deleted individually. If you add students by grade level, you must delete all students in the grade level; or if you use demographic criteria to add students, you must edit or clear your demographic criteria to delete them. (See Remove Students from Groups.)

  1. Click Save & Close.

 


Remove Students from Groups

As group head, you can remove students from your groups. Students are removed from a group the same way they were added. For example, if you add a student individually, you must remove the student individually; if you add students using demographic criteria, you must edit or clear the demographic criteria to delete them.

Important: Only the PlusPortals administrator can add or remove group heads and staff group members.

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.
     

    The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.
     

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. Click Edit Member List.
     

    The Edit Group Member List dialog box appears.
     

Tip: To see a list of members, click View Member List.

  1. See the table below to delete members based on how they were added to the group:

If You

Do This

Added all students in your school at once

To remove all students, click Students matching the below criteria.

or

To retain some students by grade level while removing all others, click Students matching the below criteria and select the check boxes for the grade levels you want to keep.
 

or
 
To retain some students based on demographic criteria while removing all others, click Students matching the below criteria, and under Students matching Demographic Criteria, select the appropriate criteria. (See Add Students to Groups.)
 

Added students by grade levels

Click Students matching the below criteria, and clear the check boxes for the grade levels you want to remove from the group.

Added students matching specific demographic criteria

Click Students matching the below criteria, and under Students matching Demographic Criteria, edit or clear the demographic criteria that added the students to the group.

Added students individually

In the Individual Students list, select the check boxes for the students you want to remove, and then click Delete.
 

  1. Click Save & Close.

 


Set E-mail Permissions for Group Members

If permitted by your PlusPortals administrator, you can select who group members can send emails to.

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click a group.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. Under Select whom Group Members are able to send e-mail to, do any of the following:
  • To allow group members to email group heads, select the Group Heads check box.
  • To allow group members to email other group members, select the Group Members check box.
  • To allow group members to email the parents of student group members, select the Parents of the Students check box.

 


Manage Group Pages


Set Group Page and Calendar Visibility

If permitted by your PlusPortals administrator, you can allow only group members or all PlusPortals users to view your group pages and calendars, or you can hide your group pages and calendars.

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click a group.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. Under Visibility of Group Page and Calendar, do the following:
  • To allow only group members to see the group page and calendar, select the Group Members check box.
  • To allow all PlusPortals users to see the group page and calendar, select the All PlusPortals users check box.

Note: To hide the group page and calendar, clear the appropriate check box.

 

 

Add Content to a Group Page

As group head, you can add content to your group pages. This content includes a group summary, files, links, announcements, and alerts.

Access the Group Page

To access a group page, follow these steps:

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.

    The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.

    Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

    Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

     

  3. Click the Group Page tab.



Add a Group Summary

Follow these steps to add a summary that describes your group:

  1. Scroll down to the Group Summary panel, and click Edit.
  2. Click below the Text Editor and begin typing. (For details on the text editor, see Edit Content.)

Note: See also Edit or Delete a Group Summary.

 

Add Files

Follow these steps to add files to your group page:

Important: The file size limit for attachments is 50 MB.

  1. On the Group Page tab, scroll down to the Links and Files panel.
  2. Click Add File > My Computer, Google Drive, or OneDrive (Personal).

  3. Locate the file and double-click it.
    The Add File dialog box opens.

  4. Type a Description for the file. The description appears in the Links and Files panel.
  5. In the Select Folder drop-down list, do one of the following:
    • Select the folder you want the file saved to.
    • Click New to create a new folder, type a Folder Name, and then click Save.
  6. Click Save, and then click OK.



Follow these steps to add links to your group page:

  1. On the Group Page tab, scroll down to the Links and Files  panel.
  2. Click Add Link.
     



    The Add Link dialog box opens.
     

  3. Type a Description for the link.
  4. Type a Link Name. The description and name appear in the Links and Files panel.
  5. Type the URL for the link.
  6. In the Select Folder drop-down list, do one of the following:
  • Select the folder you want the link saved to.
  • Click New to create a new folder.
  1. Click Save, and then click OK.

 


Add Announcements and Alerts

You can add announcements and/or alerts to your group page using the following steps:

  1. On the Group Page tab, scroll down to the Announcements and Alerts panel.
  2. Click Add Announcement or Add Alert.
     

    The Add Announcement or Add Alert dialog box opens.

  3. See the diagram and table below for a description of the dialog box.
     

     

Add Announcement and Add Alert Dialog Boxes

A

Type a title and a description for the announcement or alert. The title and description appear in the Announcements and Alerts panel.

B

Type the dates you want the announcement or alert to start and stop displaying on the group page, or click to select the dates.

Only announcements and alerts that fall within this range of dates display.

C

Optional: Type the text you want to display for a link you're adding.

D

Optional: Type the URL for a link you're adding.

E

Optional: Attach a file.

Click to open the file, or click to delete it.

  1. Click Save, and then click OK.



Edit Files, Links, Announcements, and Alerts

As group head, you can edit the files, links, announcements, and alerts you've added to a group page.

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.


The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. Click the Group Page tab.

  1. Do one of the following:
  • If editing a file or link, scroll down to the Links and Files panel, and in the Links and Files drop-down list, select the folder that contains the file or link.
  • If editing an announcement or alert, scroll down to the Announcements and Alerts panel.
  1. Next to the item you want to edit, click .
  2. Make the appropriate changes, click Save, and then click OK.

 


Delete Files, Links, Announcements, and Alerts

As group head, you can delete files, links, announcements, and alerts from any group page you've created.

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.

The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. Click the Group Page tab.

  1. See the table below for options to delete.

To

Do This

Delete a link or file

  1. Scroll down to the Links and Files panel.
  2. In the Links and Files drop-down list, select the folder that contains the link or file.
  3. Next to the link or file, click .

Delete multiple links or files at once

  1. Scroll down to the Links and Files panel.
  2. In the Links and Files drop-down list, select the folder that contains the links and/or files.
  3. Select the check boxes for the links and/or files you want to delete and click Delete.

Delete an announcement or alert

  1. Scroll down to the Announcements and Alerts panel.
  2. Next to the announcement or alert, click .

Delete multiple announcements or alerts at once

  1. Scroll down to the Announcements and Alerts panel.
  2. Select the check boxes for the announcements and/or alerts you want to delete and click Delete.

 


Edit or Delete a Group Summary

As group head, you can edit and/or delete the summary for a group page you've created.

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.

The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. Click the Group Page tab.

  1. In the Group Summary panel, click Edit.

  1. In the Text Editor, highlight the text you want to edit or delete, and begin typing. (See Edit Content.)
  2. Click Save to save your changes.

 


Manage Group Calendars

Add an Event to a Group Calendar

As group head, you can add events to your group calendars using the following steps:

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.

The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. Click the Group Calendar tab.
  2. Click New Event.

The Event dialog box opens.

  1. See the diagram and table below to post an event to your calendar.

 

Event Dialog Box

A

Type a title for the event.

B

Optional: Type a summary that describes the event.

C

Optional: Type where the event is taking place.

D

Select the appropriate check boxes to make the event visible to Parents, Students, and/or other Staff. Clear a check box to hide the event from the corresponding user group.

Important: You must select at least one user.

E

Type a Start Date and End Date, or click to select a day from the calendar.

Type a start and end time, or click to select a time.

For an all-day event, select the All Day Event check box.

F

View the default category assigned to the group when it's created.

G

Select a color to be associated with the event category.

H

Select how often the event repeats (every day or once a week, month, or year); or select Never for a one-time event.

I

Optional: Attach a file to the event.

Important: The file size limit for attachments is 50 MB.

Tip: Click to open the file, or click to delete it.

J

Optional: Type the text you want to display for a link you're adding.

K

Optional: Type the URL for a link you're adding.

L

Click Save to save the event.

 


Edit and Delete Group Calendar Events

If you are a group head, you can edit your group calendar events or delete them from your group calendars.


Edit a Group Calendar Event

Follow these steps to edit a calendar event you've created:

 

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.

The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

 

  1. Click the Group Calendar tab.
  2. On the calendar, double-click the event you want to edit.
  3. For reoccurring events, click Edit current occurrence to apply your changes to only this occurrence of the event, or click Edit the series to apply your changes to every occurrence of the event.

     

    Tip: You can also edit an event by clicking Manage Events, and then clicking Edit next to the event.

     

  4. In the Event dialog box, make your changes, and then click Save. (For details on event settings, see Add an Event to a Group Calendar.)



Delete a Group Calendar Event

Follow these steps to delete a calendar event you've created:

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.

The Groups page opens on the group you selected.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

 

  1. Click the Group Calendar tab.
  2. Hover your mouse over the event you want to delete, and in the event title, click x.

 

  1. For reoccurring events, click Delete current occurrence to delete only this occurrence of the event, or click Delete the series to delete every occurrence of the event.

Tip: You can also delete a calendar event by clicking Manage Events, and then clicking Delete next to the event. When prompted, click Delete, and then click OK.




 

Export Group Calendar Events to an ICS File

You can export group calendar events to an ICS file using the following steps:

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.

The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. Click the Group Calendar tab.
  2. Click Export Events.

The Export Events to ICS file dialog box opens.

  1. For the events you want to include in the file, type a Begin Date and an End Date. Events falling within this range of dates are exported.
  2. Click Export.

 


Group Members

View Group Pages

If permitted by your PlusPortals administrator, you can view the pages for groups in your school.

Note: Information displayed on the group page is added by a group head.

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.
     

The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. Click the Group Page tab.
  2. See the diagram and table below for a description of the Group Page tab.
     

Group Page Tab

A

View the group summary.

B

Select a folder to view the links and/or files it contains.

C

Filter items by clicking , or change the order of items displayed in a column by clicking the column heading.

D

Open a link or file.

E

View details for a link or file.

F

Navigate between multiple pages of links and/or files.

G

Select how many links and files you want to view per page.

H

View announcements and alerts posted by a group head.

 


View and Print Group Calendars

If permitted by your PlusPortals administrator, you can view and print the calendars for groups in your school.

  1. On the Home tab, click Groups.
  2. Click the group you want to view.

The Groups page opens on the Group Members tab.

Tip: You can also access a group by clicking Groups on the User menu and selecting the group from the Select Group drop-down list.

Important: You won't see Groups if your PlusPortals administrator has disabled this option, you're not a member of a group, or no groups exist in your school.

  1. Click the Group Calendar  tab.
  2. See the diagram and table below for viewing and printing options.

Group Calendar Tab

A

Select the calendar events you want to view.

B

Do one of the following to edit your daily, weekly, or monthly calendar view:

  • Click Today  to view events for the current date.
  • Click to view events for the previous or next day, week, or month.
  • Click   to select a different day, week, or month to view.

C

Click one of the following calendar formats:

  • Day: View events for a selected day.
  • Week: View events for a selected week.
  • Month: View events for a selected month.
  • Agenda: View events in agenda format, which shows the details for each event.

D

Hover your mouse over an event to view details.

E

Print group calendar events in either agenda format or calendar format as follows:

  1. Click Print Events.
  2. In the PlusPortals dialog box, do one of the following:

To

Do This

Print events occurring within a selected range of dates in agenda format

Click Print Agenda View. For From  and To, type the date range for the events you want to print, or click to select the dates from a calendar.

Print events occurring within a specific month

Click Print Calendar View, and then click to select the month you want to print.

  1. Tip: To filter on a specific type of event, in the Filter drop-down list, select an event type. To print all events, click All.
  2. Click Print.
  3. In the upper-right corner of the screen, click Print to generate a print preview of the events.
  4. Select your printer settings, and then click Print.




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