ONLINE HELP: GETTING THE MOST OUT OF YOUR CURRENTS4KIDS SUBSCRIPTION

Currents4Kids is an online teaching resource that brings current events alive in the classroom – and outside of it.

Your subscription gives you access to a powerful tool with many features. To help you get the most out of Currents4Kids, we've created this Help Guide.

THE HELP GUIDE INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING SECTIONS:

I. Managing classrooms: How can teachers set up and manage classrooms of students?

II. Using articles: What features and functions are associated with articles?

III. Viewing student results (Students): How can students view the responses they've submitted and their quiz results?

IV. Managing student results (Teachers): How can teachers view and sort their students' quiz results? How can teachers view, edit, and grade their students' responses?

V. Other:  Everything you've ever wondered about Dashboards, school coordinators, user accounts and ordering, lost passwords, and more!

Of course, if you don't find the answer to your questions in this guide, please contact us at any time.

I. MANAGING CLASSROOMS

1. CREATE A CLASS AND GENERATE USERNAMES AND PASSWORDS FOR YOUR STUDENTS:

  • Click on the 'Dashboard' link (orange button) at the top of the page.
  • Click on your school name under ‘Schools’.
  • Click on the ‘Classrooms’ tab.
  • Click on ‘Create Classroom’.
  • Enter the name of your classroom in the text box and click 'Save'.
  • If you wish, set the number of quiz attempts you'd like to allow your students. (The default is 1.) You may also choose to block students from seeing the correct quiz answers if you allow them multiple quiz attempts; to do so, check the 'Hide quiz answers from students' box. Click 'Save'. [These settings may be changed at any time on your classroom's 'Settings' tab.]
  • Click ‘Create Students’, then enter your students' first name and last initial. When you've finished adding names, click 'Save’.
  • To print off a list of usernames and passwords, click the PDF or CSV icon beside the ‘Create Students’ button. 

2. VIEW OR EDIT YOUR CLASS LIST AND STUDENTS' PASSWORDS:

  • Click on the 'Dashboard' link (orange button) at the top of the page.
  • Click on the name of the class you would like to edit under the ‘Classrooms’ section.
  • To add more students to this classroom, click on 'Create Students', then click 'Save'.
  • To edit a student’s name or password, click 'Edit' beneath the ‘Actions’ header beside the name of the student that you would like to edit. Then, click ‘Save'.
  • To remove a student, select the arrow beside ‘Edit’ then click ‘Remove’. The website will ask if you are sure that you want to remove the student. All information associated with this student, including content authored by this user, will be permanently removed from the system.

3. ENTER OR EDIT TEACHER'S NOTES:

Teacher's Notes are a way for you to post an assignment or instructions that your students will see on their Home Page when they log in. Multiple notes may be created for each classroom.

  • Click on the 'Dashboard' link (orange button) at the top of the page.
  • Under ‘Classrooms’, click on the name of the class that you would like to post a note for. 
  • Select the ‘Notes’ tab.
  • Click ‘Create Note’ and enter in the information that you would like your students to see when they log in. You can also create links for up to three articles by typing the article title in the ‘References’ boxes and selecting the option that drops down.
  • Click ‘Save’ when you are finished. Once your note has been entered, you can make changes anytime by clicking ‘Edit' under the 'Actions' header.
  • To delete a note, select 'Delete' from the dropdown menu under the 'Actions' header.

4. DELETE CLASSROOM

  • Click on the 'Dashboard' link (orange button) at the top of the page.
  • Click on the name of the class that you wish to delete under the ‘Classrooms’ section.
  • Select the ‘Settings’ tab. Then select ‘edit’, then ‘delete’. Once you select ‘delete’, the website will ask you to confirm your choice. All data from this classroom, including students’ responses and quiz results, will be permanently deleted. 

5. CREATE ADDITIONAL CLASSROOMS

If you teach more than one class, you can create additional classrooms following the same process that you used to create your first classroom: 

  • Click on the 'Dashboard' link at the top of the page.
  • Click on your school name under ‘Schools’.
  • Click on the ‘Classrooms’ tab.
  • Click on ‘Create Classroom’.
  • Enter the name of your classroom in the text box and click 'Save’.
  • Follow the same instructions for adding students as above (#1).  

II. USING ARTICLES

Click on any article on the Home Page. For each article, teachers and students can:

1. LISTEN TO THE ARTICLE

Each article has been pre-recorded. Students can click the arrow beneath the photo caption to hear the article as they read along.

2. LOOK UP THE DEFINITION OF A WORD

To use the dictionary box located in the margin to the left of each article, type the word you’d like to look up in the box. Click ‘Go’.

3. TAKE QUIZZES

Each article has two quizzes. Both consist of five multiple choice and/or true/false questions.

On-the-Lines quizzes test reading comprehension. Between-the-Lines quizzes include questions that require students to make inferences, determine the main idea, and think critically.

To complete the quizzes, click on the ‘Quizzes’ tab underneath the title of the article. Please note that teachers will see all of the questions and possible responses, but will not be able to respond to the quiz questions. Students will be able to respond to the questions one at a time. 

The number of times a student may take a quiz is set to '1' as a default. To change the number of quiz attempts allowed, navigate to the 'Classroom' tab on your Dashboard. Click on the classroom name in the 'Classrooms' section, then on the 'Settings' tab. Click on the 'Edit' button associated with the classroom. Click 'Save'.

  • Students may listen to each segment of the quiz as they read by clicking the arrow to the left of the segment.
  • While taking a quiz, students may go back and reread for information by clicking on ‘View Story’. 
  • Students may also go back and change previously completed answers by clicking ‘Prev’. They can navigate forward by clicking 'Next'.
  • When finished, students click ‘Finish', and then ‘View your results’ in the blue header to see their results. Alternatively, they can click 'view' in the table showing their quiz attempt #, date, and score.   
  • If students have to stop a quiz, they can select ‘save and exit’ and resume where they left off at a later time.

4. RESPOND TO A STORY

  • Students can respond to each story, answering the questions provided or commenting freely on the topic.
  • Students select the ‘Respond’ tab underneath the article title and then ‘Create Response’. They can type their response in the text box that appears.
  • Beneath the text box, a ‘Rubric for Assessment’ shows a possible marking rubric for this assignment.
  • To save a response as a draft that may be worked on later, students can click 'Save’. Their response is then stored on their Dashboard, and they may resume working on it at any time.
  • To submit a completed response to the teacher, students must click ‘Submit’. Their response is sent to their teacher, and it appears on the teacher's Dashboard under the student’s classroom.

5. FIND OUT MORE ABOUT A TOPIC

Students and teachers may visit the links listed in this section to read more about a topic or view maps, photos, or videos, and more. Please note that these links have been carefully selected, but may not be appropriate for everyone.

III. VIEWING STUDENT RESULTS (STUDENTS)

Students can view their work history and results by clicking on their Dashboard at the top of each page:

1. RESPONSES

Students can view all of the article responses they've written. They appear under two headings: 'Draft & Revise', and 'Review & Accepted'.

  • If a response is marked 'draft', it isn't complete. Students can click 'continue' to finish their draft, then 'Submit' to send it to the teacher's Dashboard.
  • If a response is marked 'revise', the teacher has sent it back to the student for revision. Students can click 'revise' to view the teacher's feedback and edit their response, then click 'Submit' to send it back to the teacher's Dashboard.
  • If a response is marked 'review', it has been sent to the teacher. Students may click 'view' to read their submission, but may not make any further changes unless the teacher sends it back marked 'revise'.
  • If a response is marked 'accepted', the teacher has reviewed the response. Students may click 'view' to see their grade and comment, if the teacher has provided them.

2. QUIZZES

Students can view the results of all of the quizzes they've taken. Scores are listed as a percentage; depending on the classroom settings selected by the teacher, students may click 'view' to see their full results and correct answers. 

IV. MANAGING STUDENT RESULTS (TEACHERS)

1. RESPONSES

To view and manage students' responses, click on the Dashboard at the top of the page, then scroll to the 'Classrooms' section and click on the name of the classroom. 

  • To view and manage responses, go to the ‘Responses’ tab. 
  • Responses assigned a 'draft' state have not yet been completed by the student and may not be marked or commented on. Responses with a 'review' state have been submitted by the student for assessment.
  • To view a draft response, click ‘View’. To delete a draft response, select 'Delete' from the dropdown menu under 'Actions'.
  • To comment on, and/or assign a grade, to a response set to 'review', select ‘Mark’ from the dropdown menu under 'Actions'. Teachers may assign a grade from 1-4 according to the accompanying rubric. (See the 'Rubric for Assessment' below the response questions in the ‘Response’ tab.) Teachers may also assign a state: 'Revise' sends the response back to the student for editing; 'Accepted' indicates to the student that the assignment has been completed. IMPORTANT: Clicking on a state SAVES any changes, comments, or grades.
  • Use the filters to sort students' responses by student name, article title,  grade, or state. 
  • To delete a large number of responses at once, select the responses you wish to delete, then click 'Bulk Delete'.

2. QUIZ RESULTS

  • View all students' results for all of the quizzes they've taken, or sort the results using the filters at the top of the table or by clicking on the table headers. You can sort by student name, article title, date, or quiz type, or a combination of these criteria.
  • Scores are listed as a percentage.
  • Students' answers can be reviewed by clicking 'View'.
  • To download a PDF or CSV document showing the number of On-the-Lines or Between-the-Lines quizzes (or both) that a student or selection of students has completed, as well as an average of each student's scores, click on 'Dashboard', then select the classroom you'd like a report for in the 'Classrooms' section. Select the students you'd like to include in the report. (To select all students in the class, click the box beside 'Name' in the table header.) Then, click 'Create Quiz Report'. Use the filters to select the quiz type and date range; click 'Apply'. Download your report immediately; alternatively, it will be stored for 14 days under the 'Reports' tab for your classroom.
  • To delete a quiz, select 'Delete' from the dropdown menu under 'Actions'. To delete a large number of quizzes at once, select the responses you wish to delete, then click 'Bulk Delete'.

V. OTHER

1. WHAT IS THE DASHBOARD?

The Dashboard is accessed via a link at the top of every page when a user is logged in. It's each user's 'control panel' for the site. On the Dashboard, users can view their school's account information, including the date their account was created and when it expires; they can create, view, and edit classrooms and the students in them; they can view their students' quiz results; and they can view and manage their students' responses to the stories.

2. WHAT IS A SCHOOL COORDINATOR?

Because schools that subscribe to Currents4Kids purchase a site license, often many teachers in the same school have access to the website. One teacher – usually the person who places the order – is designated the school coordinator. The school coordinator enjoys the same features as other teachers, except that he or she is also able to add teachers to or delete teachers from the account. 

3. HOW DO I KNOW IF I'M A SCHOOL COORDINATOR?

Click on your Dashboard and then select your school under ‘Schools’. If you're a school coordinator, you’ll have the coordinator title beside your name as well as the button ‘Invite teacher’ at the top of the list of teachers. You can now add and remove teachers from the school. 

4. I'M A TEACHER IN THE CURRENTS4KIDS SYSTEM. HOW CAN I FIND OUT WHO MY SCHOOL COORDINATOR IS?

When you select a school from the ‘Schools’ section of the dashboard, you will see a list of all of the teachers at your school. The teacher(s) designated as coordinator(s) will have ‘coordinator’ written beside their name. 

5. CAN THE ROLE OF SCHOOL COORDINATOR BE DELEGATED TO SOMEONE ELSE AT THE SCHOOL OR MORE THAN ONE PERSON?

Sure. Contact us with details of the changes you'd like to your account and we'd be happy to help.

6. I'M A SCHOOL COORDINATOR. HOW CAN I ADD TEACHERS FROM MY SCHOOL TO OUR SCHOOL'S ACCOUNT?

It's easy. Go to your Dashboard and scroll to 'Schools’. Select the school that you would like to invite teachers to. (You are likely only a part of one school!) Click on 'Invite Teachers’. Enter the teacher's first and last name, and email address. Click 'Save.' The teacher will receive an email with a one-time login link to set up an account. If you want to add more than one teacher, simply repeat with the other teacher's information.

7. HELP! I'VE FORGOTTEN MY USER NAME OR PASSWORD.

Go to http://www.currents4kids.com, and select ‘log in.’ After you select ‘I’m a teacher’, the website will give you the option of resetting your password underneath the login fields. 

8. HELP! MY STUDENTS HAVE FORGOTTEN THEIR USERNAMES OR PASSWORDS.

Go to your Dashboard and click on your school or your classroom. Select the appropriate classroom. The website will display the usernames and passwords of all of the students. You can print out the PDF or CSV files again from here. 

9. HOW CAN I FIND OUT WHEN MY SUBSCRIPTION WILL EXPIRE?

Go to your Dashboard and click on your school, then on the 'Settings' tab to see the expiry dates for your subscription(s).

10. HOW CAN I RENEW MY SUBSCRIPTION OR PLACE AN ORDER?

That's easy. You can order online on our main (LesPlan) site, contact us via email, or call us at 1-888-240-2212.

A site license for one school for one year (Sept. - June) costs $230 plus tax.

11. WHO PRODUCES CURRENTS4KIDS?

Currents4Kids is owned and produced by LesPlan Educational Services Ltd., publishers of What in the World?, The Canadian Reader, Building Bridges, and News4Youth. You can find out more about LesPlan on our website. We're located at #1 - 4144 Wilkinson Road, Victoria, B.C. V8Z 5A7