Documentation for Teachers

Using the Mobile App for Teachers

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Logging in to the Mobile App

1. Open the app on your device.

2. Enter your Focus Username and Password and tap Log In.

If single sign-on is set up for your Focus site, and is enabled for staff logins, you can log in to the mobile app using your single sign-on login information.

If you have two factor authentication enabled, you will be prompted to authenticate after logging in.

You can view public News and Links without logging in to the app by swiping the screen to the left or tapping on the News or Links icons at the bottom of the screen.

Taking Attendance

After logging in, the Overview screen is displayed, from which you can take attendance.

1. To switch the period you are viewing, tap the period pull-down to open it, and then tap the desired period.

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2. To change a student's attendance from the default code, tap the code icon next to the student until the desired code is displayed.

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3. Tap Save Attendance when finished.

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At the top of the screen, a check mark will display, along with the message "You have taken attendance today for this period."

Awarding and Spending Positive Behavior Badges

Positive behavior badges can be added to students and spent on the Overview screen. See Configure Positive Behaviors for information on how badges are set up.

1. To switch the period you are viewing, tap the period pull-down to open it, and then tap the desired period.  

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2. Tap Badges beneath the student.

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3. To add a badge to the student, scroll through list of badges and the tap the icon for the desired badge.

4. Adjust the Value, if needed.

5. Optionally, enter a comment to display on the Parent and Student Portal.

6. Tap Finalize.

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7. To spend a badge, locate the Spend icon in the list of badges and tap it.

8. Adjust the Value, if needed.

9. Optionally, enter a comment to display on the Parent and Student Portal.

10. Tap Finalize.

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The badge count displayed beneath the student will increase or decrease depending on if a badge was awarded or spent.

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Viewing Student Information

1. Tap the menu icon at the top-left corner of the screen.

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2. Tap Students in the menu.

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Alternatively, swipe left from the Overview screen to view the Students screen, or tap the Student icon at the bottom of the screen.

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The student list is displayed.

If you have access to more than one school, use the Restrict School pull-down to select a school and view only the students in that school.

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3. To search for a student, tap the Search by Name or ID... field and enter the student's full or partial name or student ID number.

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4. If multiple students are returned in the search, tap the student to view.

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Alternatively, tap the barcode icon and scan the barcode on the student's ID badge. The student's record will open.

The student's summary screen is displayed, with the Courses tab open. The student's schedule, attendance summary (absences and tardies), and gradebook average are listed for the current marking period. If a period is currently in session according to the bell schedule, the course information is displayed next to "In Session" above the schedule, along with the student's attendance code for that period. "In Progress" will also display next to the course in session in the student's schedule.

If lunches are set up in Focus, the student's assigned lunch will also display above their schedule.

5. To view student information, tap Student Info.

The Student Info screen is displayed.

6. To change the category you are viewing, tap the arrow on the left side of the screen.

7. Tap the category to view.

8. To call a student's contact, navigate to the Address & Contacts category, and tap the Call button at the bottom of the screen.

A pop-up is displayed with a list of the student's contacts and their phone numbers.

9. Tap the phone number to call the number.

10. To close Student Info and return to the summary screen, tap the Back button.

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Viewing Course Information

1. In the Courses tab of the student summary screen, tap the course to view.

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The Grades tab is displayed, with a list of Gradebook assignments and grades for that course.

2. Tap an assignment in the list to view the assignment details.

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3. Tap Back to return to the Grades tab.

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4. Tap the Planner tab to view an overview of assignments due over the current week.

5. Tap an assignment to view the assignment details.

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6. Tap Back to return to the Planner.

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7. Tap the News tab to view tardy/absence and positive behavior information.

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Viewing the Student Planner

The Planner tab displays an overview of the assignments the student has due for the current week for all of the student's courses.

1. While viewing a student, tap the Planner tab.

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2. Tap an assignment to view the assignment details.

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3. Tap Back to return to the Planner tab.

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Viewing Student News

The News tab displays an overview of the student's tardies/absences, course web page posts, and positive behaviors.

1. While viewing a student, tap the News tab.

Student tardies/absences, badges awarded and spent, and course web page posts are listed. The total number of available and spent badges are displayed in the blue header.

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Viewing Student Groups

The Student Groups screen in the mobile app allows you view student groups that you have created and groups that have been assigned to you. The student groups in the mobile app are view only. You cannot add, edit, or delete student groups in the mobile app. See Groups for more information on how student groups are created and used in Focus.

1. Tap the menu icon at the top-left corner of the screen.

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2. Tap Student Groups in the menu.

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3. Tap the My Groups or All Groups tab.

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4. Tap the View button next to the group to view.

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The View Students report is displayed, including the Student Name, Student ID, Gradelevel, # Absences [Marking Period], # Unexcused Absences [Marking Period], # Failing Courses [Marking Period], # Processed Referrals, Course History GPA, and Honor Roll.

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5. Tap a student's name to open the summary screen for the student.

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Using the Gradebook

The Gradebook in the mobile app offers the much of the same functionality as the Gradebook in Focus, but in a mobile-friendly format. This section will provide an overview of navigating the Gradebook in the mobile app. See Gradebook for more detailed information on how to use the Gradebook.

1. Tap the menu icon at the top-left corner of the screen.

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2. Tap Gradebook in the menu.

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Alternatively, swipe left two times from the Overview screen to view the Gradebook screen, or tap the Gradebook icon at the bottom of the screen.

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3. To change the section and marking period you are viewing,  tap the section or marking period pull-down to open it, and then select the section and marking period to view.

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4. Only one assignment is displayed at a time. To navigate to a different assignment in the Gradebook, tap the arrows.

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5. Tap the speech bubble icon to add a comment to that student's assignment.

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6. Tap the dotted line to enter a grade for an assignment. Grades are auto-saved.

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7. Tap the file box icon to view the Assignments panel.

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Categories can be added or edited, and assignments can be added to a specific category.

8. Tap the person icon to open the Students panel.

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9. Tap a student to view the Gradebook for the specific student.

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10. Tap the plus icon to add a new assignment.

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11. Tap the gear icon to access setup options.

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Viewing School and District News

The News screen in the app displays school and district messages and announcements, as well as posts from school and district social media feeds.

1. Tap the menu icon at the top-left corner of the screen.

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2. Tap News in the menu.

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Alternatively, swipe left two times from the Overview screen to view the News screen, or tap the newspaper icon at the bottom of the screen.

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School and district messages/announcements and social media posts are displayed.

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Lesson Planning

The Lesson Planning screen in the app allows teachers to add units and lessons to their web pages. See Lesson Planning for more detail on using this feature.

1. Tap the menu icon at the top-left corner of the screen.

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2. Tap Lesson Planning in the menu.

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The Lesson Planning screen is displayed. See Lesson Planning for more information on using this feature.

Using Communication

The Communication module in the app allows teachers to compose messages and class announcements to select students and students within sections. See Communication for more detail on using this module.

Tap the envelope icon at the top-right corner of any screen in the mobile app to open the Communication module. If you have unread messages, the number of unread messages will be indicated on the icon.

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See Communication for more information on using this module.

Changing School News and Social Media News Settings

You can enable or disable school news and social media news feeds in the app.

1. Tap the menu icon at the top-left corner of the screen.

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2. To change school news settings, tap School News Settings.

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The school news feeds are listed.

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3. To disable a school news feed, tap the toggle so that it is gray. To enable a news feed, tap the toggle so that it is green.

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4. To change social media news feed settings, tap the menu icon at the top-left corner of the screen.

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5. Tap Social Media News Settings.

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The social media feeds are listed.

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6. To disable a social media feed, tap the toggle so that it is gray. To enable a social media feed, tap the toggle so that it is green.

You will not be able to disable the social media feed if "Force Subscription" was enabled on the feed by the district.

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Switching Your Profile

If you have more than one profile in Focus, such as a teacher and an administrator profile, you can switch between your profiles in the mobile app.

1. Tap the menu icon at the top-left corner of the screen.

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2. Tap Profile at the bottom of the menu.

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3. Tap the desired profile.

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Logging Out of the Mobile App

1. Tap the menu icon at the top-left corner of the screen.

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2. Tap Log Out at the bottom of the menu.

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