Technology & Tips

Navigate to Park Day School’s unique DreamBox login web address (URL): https://play.dreambox.com/login/wawg/parkds. (Bookmark this for future use.)

The school DreamBox login page will open. The student should then enter their username and password. Find username and password guidance here.

For additional help with DreamBox, please see:

• https://support.dreambox.com/s/article/How-Students-Log-In-to-DreamBox-on-a-Computer-School-Account
• https://support.dreambox.com/s/article/How-Students-Log-In-to-DreamBox-on-an-iPad-School-Account
• For more information on DreamBox Learning, visit the Resources & Support Center – HTTP://www.dreambox.com/support

1. Download the Learning Ally Audiobook App and log in.
2. Add books and start reading! Watch this video with your child to review how.
3. Use this Family Information Packet to find book recommendations, device requirements and a user guide.
4. Your student can then log in with the username and password. Find username and password guidance here.

Lexia:

1. To use on a computer, go to www.lexiacore5.com. To use on an iPad, download the free Lexia Core5 Reading app from the App Store. (Compatible device and internet access required.)
2. The first time your child uses Core5, you may need to enter the teacher’s email. Your student can then log in with the username and password.

Find username and password guidance here.

For additional information, please see:

• Lexia’s Parent Hub 
• Optional printable resources here. 
• A quick google search may answer your questions.

If your student is using a computer (desktop or laptop) or Chromebook, they should go to literably.com and click Login in the upper right (or go directly to literably.com/login).

If you student is using an iPad, download the Literably app. (Literably does not yet work with Android tablets.)

• Click on I’m a Student.
• Your student can then log in with the username and password. Find username and password guidance here.

Zoom is a web-based video conferencing tool that enables students and teachers to video conference with one another, either 1:1 or as a whole class. It provides the ability to see, hear and interact through shared screens and a whiteboard function. Recording features allow for lessons to be played back later. Anything that can be shown live on a screen in a classroom can be livestreamed to one or many students with Zoom.

Students do not need an account to use Zoom. They will be prompted to join video-based meetings hosted by their teachers, who have access to a school-owned account. Don’t worry — teachers will guide students through the process step by step.

Families should make sure to have Zoom downloaded as an app on their tablets or the program downloaded on their computers. Links will be distributed by teachers. 

In K-3 there will be one classroom Zoom link and teachers will rotate through. Parents can keep the Zoom link open all day if they want. For 4-8, Zoom links will be embedded in each student’s schedule to help guide them throughout the day. For MS, during advisory students will be taught how to populate google calendar with all meeting locations.

Select Mute and Stop Video in the lower left corner of the screen. You will know that you have turned off your mic and video when they look like this:

Most computers have built-in devices and no external cameras or microphones are required. However, we encourage students to use headphones or earphones with a microphone, such as a gaming headset or earbuds designed for a phone. This will allow for a better virtual classroom experience.

Besides just voice-chatting, Zoom gives kids plenty of tools to interact with each other and the teacher, work together, and even break off into smaller groups — just as if they were sitting with each other in a classroom. But if teachers don’t need these capabilities for class, or if they’re causing problems, they can all be turned off. Here’s just a sampling of what you can do if these features are enabled:

• Share screen. This allows the entire class to view one person’s computer screen. Students can even annotate a document on another kid’s computer. Teachers can restrict this so only their screen can be shared.
• Whiteboard. This is a brainstorming tool that lets kids toss ideas around, such as for a group project.
• Breakout rooms. The teacher can divide students up into smaller groups, and then bring the entire class back together.
• Raise hand, clap, disagree, speed up, slow down. These are icons kids can use to: let the teacher know they have a question or comment, react to something, or ask the teacher to talk faster or slower.
• Chat with the group. Kids can send a message to the entire class. Some teachers may disable chat if it’s distracting.

Students can use Zoom backgrounds, however backgrounds should be such that teachers are still be able to see the student and their learning space. Backgrounds should be a still photo, no moving backgrounds as they can become a distraction. For instructions on how to change your Zoom background and for some Park Day templates click through to this folder. 

Yes, cameras must remain on while students participate in classes. For students that feel self-conscious seeing their image or feel distracted by their image, they can select “hide my image” by right clicking on their image so that they menu option of “hide myself” appears.

Once selected, your child will only see the other members of the Zoom call, and their image will disappear.

To bring back your image, right click on any visible user’s display and select “show myself” and your image will be brought back to the screen.

ZOOM Agreements in Picture/Written Form PDF

Seesaw is a platform that provides a simple way for K–3 teachers and students to record and share what’s happening in the classroom. Each morning, teachers will post daily schedules, activities and assignments for students — and parents — to see. Seesaw gives students a place to document their learning, be creative and submit assignments. It also provides a way for parents to see their child’s work and track the learning they are doing at school.

K–3 parents will receive an email from Seesaw prompting them to log in. Simply follow the steps in the email to access your account.

Student Access

Either through the student app or through the Seesaw web browser.

Parent Access

Either through the family app or through the Seesaw web browser.

• A daily schedule for each student
• The Zoom link for synchronous learning (will stay the same)
• Assignments for asynchronous learning 

If necessary, parents should help their student(s) open the Seesaw app to view their daily schedule and assignments, and enter their Zoom room. Parents can also help create the right environment for studying.

Each specialty class teacher has a folder on your child’s Seesaw site. The work that is assigned, as well as any additional course content, will be available in this folder.

• Inbox — Class announcements and daily schedules 
• Activities — Assignments
• Journal — Varies by teacher
• Skills — Used to track skills or standards that students are working toward (coming soon!)

Classroom is designed to help teachers create and collect assignments paperlessly, including time-saving features like the ability to automatically make a copy of a Google document for each student. It also creates Drive folders for each assignment and for each student to help keep everyone organized. Students can keep track of what’s due on the Assignments page and begin working with just a click. Teachers can quickly see who has or hasn’t completed the work, and provide direct, real-time feedback and grades right in Classroom.

Students can:

• Track classwork and submit assignments.
• Get feedback and grades.
• Share resources and interact in the class stream or by email.
• Share your screen with a teacher.

Guardians can:

• Get an email summary of your student’s work.
• Review announcements and activities.

Teachers will go over all of these steps with their students, but as a reminder:

If you’re signing in for the first time:

1. Go to classroom.google.com and click Go to Classroom.
2. Enter the email address for your Classroom account and click Next.
3. Enter your password and click Next.
4. 
5. If there is a welcome message, review it and click Accept.
6. If you’re using a G Suite for Education account, click I’m A Student or I’m A Teacher.
   Note: Users with personal Google Accounts won’t see this option.
7. Click Get Started.
   

8. Go to Menu  to access:

   • Classes—Navigate to your classes.
   • Calendar—View due dates and access items.
   • To-do—Review work for your classes.
   • Settings—Change your profile photo, password, and notifications.

You can join a class with:

• A class link—Your teacher sends you the link.
• A class code—Your teacher sends or tells you the class code.
• An email invite—Your teacher sends you the invite.

Join with a class link

1. Click the class link your teacher shared.
2. Select the account you use for Classroom.
   Note: If you need to switch accounts, click Switch accounts before you try to join. Learn more.
   
3. Click Join.

Join with a class code

Your teacher can tell you the class code. After you get the code, follow these steps:

You can attach one or more files to your work. You can also open new files in Google Docs, Slides, Sheets, and Drawings, work in them, and then attach them to your assignment. However, you can’t attach a file that you don’t own.

1. Go to classroom.google.com.
2. Click the classClasswork.
3. Click the assignmentView assignment.
4. To attach an item:
   1. Under Your work, click Add or createselect Google Drive , Link , or File .
      
   2. Select the attachment or enter the URL for a link and click Add.
5. To attach a new document:
   1. Under Your work, click Add or createDocs , Slides , Sheets , or Drawings .
      A new file attaches to your work and opens.
   2. Click the file and enter your information.
6. (Optional) To remove an attachment, next to the attachment’s name, click Remove .
7. (Optional) To add a private comment to your teacher, under Private comments, enter your comment and click Post .
8. Click Turn In and confirm.The status of the assignment changes to Turned in.
   
   Important: If you get an error message when you click Turn in, let your instructor know.

Turn in a quiz assignment

1. Go to classroom.google.com.
2. Click the classClasswork.
3. Click the assignmentView assignment.
4. Click the form and answer the questions.
5. Click Submit.
   If the form is the only work for the assignment, the status of the assignment changes to Turned in.
6. If there’s more work to do for the assignment, click Open assignment.

Turn in an assignment with a doc assigned to you

If your teacher attached a document with your name in the title, it’s your personal copy to review and edit. As you work, your teacher can review your progress before you click Turn in.

1. Go to classroom.google.com.
2. Click the classClasswork.
3. Click the assignmentView assignment.
4. Click the image with your name to open the assigned file.
5. Enter your work.
6. On the document or in Classroom, click Turn in and confirm.
   The status of the assignment changes to Turned in.
   Important: If you get an error message when you click Turn in, let your instructor know.

Mark an assignment done

Important: Any assignment turned in or marked done after the due date is recorded as late, even if you previously submitted the work before the due date.

1. Go to classroom.google.com.
2. Click the classClasswork.
3. Click the assignmentView assignment.
4. (Optional) To add a private comment to your teacher, under Private comments, enter your comment and click Post .
5. Click Mark as done and confirm.The status of the assignment changes to Turned in.

Unsubmit an assignment

Want to make changes to an assignment that you already turned in? Just unsubmit the work, make the changes, and turn it in again.

Important: Any assignment turned in or marked done after the due date is marked late, even if you previously submitted the work before the due date. If you unsubmit an assignment, be sure to resubmit it before the due date.

1. Go to classroom.google.com.
2. Click the classClasswork.
3. Click the assignmentView assignment.
4. Click Unsubmit and confirm.
   Note: This assignment is now unsubmitted. Turn it in again before the due date.

To quickly see upcoming work and latest announcements: 

1. Go to classroom.google.com.

   On each class card, you can review up to 3 assignments that are due in the next week.

2. (Optional) To see details, click the title of the work.
3. Click a class to see the latest assignments, questions, or announcements.

 See work for all classes

See all your work for a class

You can see a list of all your work for a class. You can check your grades, review assignments and due dates, and see any work that’s late or missing. You can also filter your work by class.

1. Go to classroom.google.com.
2. On a class card, click Your work .You can also click the classClassworkView your work.
   
3. (Optional) To see attachments, comments, or additional details for an assignment or question, click the title of the workView details.
4. (Optional) To filter your work, under Filters, click Assigned, Returned with grade, or Missing.

Check for late or missing assignments

When your teacher assigns work, it’s marked Assigned. If you don’t turn in your work on time, it’s marked Missing or Done late as soon as the due date or time arrives. For example, if work is due at 9:00 AM, turn it in by 8:59 AM. If you turn it in at 9:00 AM, it’s late.

1. Go to classroom.google.com.
2. On a class card, click Your work .
3. On the left, click Missing.
4. (Optional) To review more details, click an itemView details.

See work arranged by topic

If your teacher allows it, you can communicate with your class in the class stream in the following ways:

• Post—Information or a question that you add to the class stream.Example: When do we visit the museum?
• Comment—A response to a post or comment.Example: We go next Friday.
• Reply—A response to a comment that mentions the person who made the comment.Example: +commenter’s name Thanks!

If you don’t want to post in the class stream, you can send a private comment to your teacher on an assignment or question.

Note: If your teacher mutes you, you can’t post, comment, or reply to comments. Only teachers can unmute a student.

Create a post: 

To ask a question or to share information with your teacher and classmates, create a post.

1. Go to classroom.google.com.
2. Click the class.
3. On the Stream page, click Share something with your class.
   Note: If you don’t see Share something with your class, your teacher turned off permissions to post.
4. Enter what you want to say and click Post.

Add a comment to a post: 

If your teacher allows, you can comment on other posts and comments. Teachers can delete comments.

Note: Comments are text only. You can’t add pictures, links, or videos.

Reply to a comment:

When you reply to a comment, the person you reply to is automatically mentioned. You can reply only to comments, not posts.

1. Run a speed test​​

• On a laptop or desktop, visit www.speedtest.net.
• On iOS, you can download the Speedtest app.

2. Move closer to your router

• Locating closer to your modem or router can improve your connection speed.
• Proximity to the router/modem as well as objects blocking its path (walls, doors, etc.) can both have an adverse affect on Wi-Fi performance.
• Use the speedtest tool to pay attention to your connection speed while moving throughout your home.

3. Restart your device(s)

• If just one device is showing poor speed but other devices are fine, restart that device.
• If necessary, have that device forget the wireless network and reconnect.
• Restart your devices every few days.

4. Restart your network equipment

• Modem: this brings internet to your home
  • A modem is a small box that connects your devices to the internet using cables — there is typically a coaxial cable or phone line connecting the modem to your internet service provider (ISP).
• Router: brings internet to your devices
  • A router is a small box that sometimes has large antennas that send a wireless signal throughout your house.
• Some ISPs provide a combined modem and router box. 
• Restart both of these devices. Follow the manual for directions to restart or remove the power cord, then wait 10 seconds before reconnecting to a power source.
• Wait about five minutes after reconnecting for your devices to locate/load your network.

5. Note the number of users

•  Minimize unnecessary users or reduce unnecessary high-bandwidth activities.
• 1-2 users? 25Mbps should be adequate
• 3-4 users? 50-100Mbps should be adequate
• 5 and up? Consider upgrading to 150-200Mbps

Q: What can I do to improve my Zoom experience? 

A: If your laptop, desktop or tablet seems to be running slow at home, here are some strategies to “speed” things up:

• Reboot your device before every session. Often this clears the cache, allowing the machine to run smoother.
• Quit out of all unnecessary applications (note: sometimes this means more than just closing the window).
• Move closer to the Wi-Fi router for a better signal.
• Arrange with others in your household to prioritize Wi-Fi and internet bandwidth. Depending on your home set-up, this could include TV watching.
• Try joining Zoom class sessions using the audio from a phone instead of computer audio. Click the upward arrow next to the mute button and choose “Switch to Phone Audio.”
• Contact your internet service provider to see if they can upgrade your service plan to increase speed without extra costs. Also, most providers will let you increase your bandwidth month-by-month.

Note: Comcast is offering free Wi-Fi hotspots to anyone who needs one – including non-Xfinity internet subscribers. Learn more here.

Nearly all home internet connections are sufficient for Zoom, which recommends internet bandwidth at or above 5 Mbps. Most home plans range from 25-300 Mbps. You should be able to find this information in your home broadband plan details. However, a simple test is if you are able to stream video and movies with consistent results at home, then you are likely well prepared to support media-rich virtual collaboration. In fact, most mobile smartphones, when used as mobile hotspots, will deliver sufficient bandwidth to support Zoom-based video conferences.

Contact Jennifer Cooper, Facilities Manager, who can get you set up with a school loaner device.

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