Frequently Asked Questions
What is a School Information System (SIS) vs a Learning Management System (LMS)?
Our District Student Information System (SIS) is PowerSchool. An SIS is where the District stores information regarding contact information, scheduling, and more. This is the place that teachers post grades and where you can find report cards. For our secondary students, teachers use PowerTeacher (part of PowerSchool) to post assignments that will be graded and may share a link or information about the Learning Management System that they use.
A Learning Management System (LMS) is a platform that gives teachers a place to connect with their students. It is a digital hub where materials such as lessons, videos, links, handouts, and other resources can be shared by the teacher. Students can then access these materials, follow directions outlined by their teacher(s), and submit work digitally.
Elementary LMS: Google Classroom || Secondary LMS: Google Classroom
Although we know that there are times when students are asked to use multiple platforms by different teachers, we find that our students are able to work within more than one platform and that this exposure to various platforms will promote technological flexibility.
Currently, Google Classroom and PowerSchool are not synced up by class. This is something being evaluated for the future if it is deemed to be accurate and appropriate.
What are Digital Lessons through Google Classroom (LMS)?
What is Classroom? It's a workflow platform that integrates easily with the Google Suite for Education apps (Docs, Drive, Slides).
How to access it: Classroom can be accessed when signed into the Chrome browser on a personal computer.
How does Google classroom work? Visit the Classroom tips page to learn more.
Google Classroom Guide For Parents in Multiple Languages:
Albanian I Arabic I Bengali I Chinese I English I French I Haitian-Creole I Russian I Spanish I Korean I Urdu
How I can see if my child is turning in their work?
If you log in to their account, there is a link for "View your Work" in the upper left side of the classwork section. Clicking this link will show a list of all assigned work for your child and what the status is for each assignment. Learn more from this guide to viewing work in classroom.
Parents/Guardians can receive a summary email, either daily or weekly, if they are linked to the student in the Google Classroom. The email will show a list of the work assigned and submitted. In order to receive the email summary, the teacher will need to "invite the guardian" from the Google Classroom by adding their email address to the appropriate student.
How do you find teachers comments or corrections for individual assignments in Google Classroom?
If the class notifications is turned on, your child will receive an email if comments were made or a grade was given. If you are not receiving the email notifications, go to the "View your work" page in the upper left side of the classwork section. Click on the assignment that was graded and see if there are any comments displayed on that page.
Is there a way to get a notification when an assignment is submitted?
Parents/Guardians can receive a summary email either, daily or weekly, if they are linked to the student in the Google Classroom. The email will show a list of the work assigned and submitted. In order to receive the email summary, the teacher will need to "invite the guardian" from the Google Classroom by adding the guardian email address to the appropriate student.
Students can click on the link for "View your work" in the upper left side of the classwork section. Clicking this link will show a list of all assigned work for your child and what the status is for each assignment. This is a good way to confirm that the assignment is turned in.
Also, Watch this guide on adjusting the classroom notification settings
How are assignments submitted in Google Classroom?
Watch this guide on submitting work in Google Classroom
Check out the Turning in Assignments link for step by step directions
How do I get access to the classroom (app) on a phone?
Everyone can access Google Classroom on a phone or tablet device if the proper apps are installed. From the app store, install Chrome, Drive, and Classroom (Docs / Slides / Sheets are also good to install). Log in to Chrome first, then open Drive and next Classroom to make sure they are all syncing properly.
If you are getting the Google Classroom "access is denied" message on iPhone or other device, try logging into Google Chrome or Drive first. Chrome and Drive are the "main" apps that you need to be logged in before opening the Classroom app. It is recommended to log out of the google apps before adding a new account. Log in to Chrome first, then open Drive and then Classroom to make sure they are all syncing properly.
Why are the video's posted in Google Classroom from different places?
The source of the video is left up to the teacher. Depending on if the video was made by the teacher or linked to from another resource will determine the way the video will play back. Sometimes you may need to go to EdPuzzle to watch the video, other times you may be able to play the video right from the classroom.
EdPuzzle is a website that teachers use to upload, edit and add related questions to a video lesson. The answers to the questions can be seen by the teachers in the EdPuzzle teacher accounts.
Who controls the workload for the classroom?
Generally, the teacher(s) of the class controls the amount of work that is assigned. If you feel that there is not enough work or too much work, reach out to the teacher(s) of the class. There might be different sections of the class that contain alternate topics.
How can we confirm that the work being sent is received?
(ex. Edpuzzle and non-google platforms)
Students can click on the link for "View your Work" in the upper left side of the classwork section. Clicking this link will show a list of all assigned work for your child and what the status is for each assignment. This is a good way to confirm that the assignment is turned in.
If other websites are being used, you should refer to the assignment instructions to see how the assignment should be turned in. If it is an EdPuzzle, it saves your progress through an assignment as you go. Once an EdPuzzle is finished the results are saved for the teacher to view, it doesn't automatically update in Google Classroom. You may need to go to the assignment and click "Mark as done".
What is EdPuzzle?
Edpuzzle is an app where teachers can create interactive videos for their students.
How to use it? Edpuzzle assignments will be shared via links from teachers in Google Classroom. Students should sign in with their Google accounts. Use the "Sign in with Google" button when prompted to log in.
When the EdPuzzle video plays there will be pauses for the student to answer questions about the content. The child's progress and the answers to the question are saved as they go.
What is Google Meet?
Meet is Google’s online conferencing tool. Teachers and students can “present” their screen, use audio, and/or video to connect.
How do I access it? The way that students will access Google Meet will vary based on the learning pathway that is being used by the teacher. Some pathways include:
Going to https://meet.google.com/ and inputting the code given by the teacher
Accessing the link or nickname provided in Google Classroom
An email from the teacher with the link or meeting nickname
Using the Meet app and signing in with @plainedgeschools.org credentials
What are screencasts?
A screencast is a recording created by a teacher that shows their computer screen or self teaching a lesson or reviewing material. These videos are then posted to the learning management platform (Google Classroom) or someplace else for the student to access. These lessons are considered asynchronous and can be accessed “on-demand” by students.
Screencastify is the software that teachers generally use to create a screencast.
What if I need help or technical support?
For technical, account-related, or instructional issues with one of the platforms listed above, please contact the teacher who assigned the work.
What is Buncee?
A Buncee is a set of slides that may contain engaging activities, resources, and content. In addition to teachers creating Buncees to share with students, students can create Buncees to show what they know!
How to access: Teachers will share Buncees via links on their learning platform. Students can create Buncees by signing in with their @plainedgeschools.org Google account at: http://www.plainedgeschools.org/for_students/Buncee
How do I opt-in to text alerts?
Communication between school and home is extremely important at Plainedge Public Schools. To provide valuable ongoing correspondence, the district utilizes the School Messenger system to deliver emails, phone calls and text messages with important information about events, school closings, safety alerts and more. Your email address and phone numbers have been added to our system based on your registration packet and parent portal updates. However, in order to participate in text messages, you must indicate your willingness to receive messages to your phone. The process is simple and only takes a few seconds to complete.
Simply text “Y” or “Yes” to 67587
Click here for more information
You will want to repeat the opt-in process for any wireless numbers that you wish to include.
How do I clear cache and browser data?
The Importance of Clearing Cache and Cookies. ... Your browser tends to hold onto information, and over time it could cause problems with logging in or bringing up websites. It's always a good idea to clear out the cache, or browser history, and clear cookies on a regular basis.
Chrome
To learn more about clearing your cache in Chrome, visit Google Support.
On the browser toolbar, click the Chrome menu icon.
Select the More Tools link.
Select the Clear browsing data link.
In the data drop-down menu, select the time range where you want to clear browsing data.
Select the Cookies and other site and plug-in data and Cached images and files checkboxes.
Click the Clear Browsing Data button.
Safari
To learn more about clearing your cache in Safari, visit Apple Support.
In the Safari menu bar, click the Safari option.
Click the Clear History link.
In the Clear drop-down menu, select the time range where you want to clear browsing data.
Click the Clear History button.
Firefox
To learn more about clearing your cache in Firefox, visit Firefox Support.
In the Firefox menu bar, click the Firefox option.
Select the Preferences link.
Click the Privacy tab.
Under the History heading, click the clear your recent history link.
Select the Cache checkbox.
Click the Clear Now button.
How to change zoom and font size on a Chromebook?
If you find that everything is just too small all the time, you’re going to want to zoom in system-wide. This will include all web pages and system settings, but unfortunately doesn’t affect the file manager or things like the wallpaper picker. That said, it should still help since it covers 95% of where you likely spend your time.
First, click on the system tray in the bottom right corner—there is where the clock, Wi-Fi, battery, and user icons are shown. From there, click the Settings icon (the cog).
Scroll all the way to the bottom, then click the “Show advanced settings” button. Then scroll a bit more until you see the “Web content” section.
This section has two useful entries: Font Size and Page Zoom.
Font Size: If you’re just looking to increase the fonts across the system and leave everything else alone, use the former—there are a handful of options here, ranging from Very Small to Very Large. Pick your poison.
Page Zoom: This works exactly like the zoom settings we looked at earlier, but instead of just working on one page, it’ll use this setting on all web pages (and the Settings menu). Use the drop-down menu to set your preference.
That’s pretty much it. It’s worth noting that if you change the zoom level on a system-wide basis, the magnifying icon will not show up in Chrome’s omnibox like it does when you do so on just one page. You can, however, still use the shortcuts to further change the zoom settings on specific pages.
How do I sign into IXL?
Now Plainedge will be using Clever to sign into IXL.
In the past we would use the district provided username and password to sign into IXL (try the Google account login)
The username should not include the @plainedgeschools.org