Terms

GPA Teacher uses a Term to identify a marking period, which might be a semester, a trimester, a quarter, or an entire school year. Each term contains your classes, to which you assign students. To add, edit, or delete terms, click on the Classes icon from the Navigation Bar at the top of your window. Next, click on either the Terms Manager or Manage Terms link found underneath the Navigation Bar.

Adding a new term

From the Terms Manager window, click on the + Add a Term link.Enter the term name (e.g. Spring 2009), its start date, and its end date. To enter a date, you may type in the date or click on the calendar icon to select a date from an interactive calendar. When you're finished, click on the Add Term button, and the new term will be added.Click on the Cancel button at any time to cancel your request.

Editing an existing term

From the Terms Manager window, click on the Edit link next to the term you'd like to edit.Make desired changes to the term name, its start date, and its end date. To modify a date, you may type in the date or click on the calendar icon to select a new date from an interactive calendar. When you're finished making changes, click on the Update Term button, and the term will be updated.Click on the Cancel button at any time to discard your changes.

Deleting an existing term

From the Terms Manager window, click on the Delete link next to the term you'd like to delete. Note that all classes associated with the selected term will also be deleted.To confirm your request to delete the selected term, a dialog box appears. If you wish to proceed, click OK, otherwise click Cancel.

Duplicating an existing term

Instead of creating new terms from scratch, consider using the term duplication feature to copy all classes, grading options, students, and seating assignments from an existing term. To do so, click on the Classes icon from the Navigation Bar at the top of your window. Next, click on the Manage Terms link found underneath the Navigation Bar.From the Terms Manager window, click on the Duplicate link next to the term you'd like to duplicate.To confirm your request to duplicate the selected term, a dialog box appears. If you wish to proceed, click OK, otherwise click Cancel.Once duplicated, the new term is shown in the Terms Manager window. Its name has Duplicate appended to it. Click on the Edit link next to the term to change its name and reschedule its start and end dates.Make desired changes to the term name, start date, and end date. When you're finished making changes, click on the Update Term button, and the term will be updated.Click on the Cancel button at any time to discard your changes.

Classes

GPA Teacher uses a Class to identify a single classroom of students, which might be a class, a period, or a subject (e.g. for Elementary School Teachers, English is one class, Science another, and so on).To add, edit, or delete classes, click on the Classes icon from the Navigation Bar at the top of your window. In the Periods/Classes section on the left-hand side of the window, all classes for the selected term are listed. You may also select a different term from the Term dropdown box in the middle of the window.Initially, the list of classes for a given term is empty. Once a class is added to the given term, you'll see links to manage your students, seating charts, grades, attendance, discipline, reports, and statistics.

Adding a new class

From the Classes window, click on the + Add link.Enter the class name and its subject, then select the period and term from the dropdown boxes. You may also enter a class description in the text entry box. When you're finished, click on the Add Class button, and the new class will be added.Click on the Cancel button at any time to cancel your request.

Editing an existing class

From the Classes window, click on the Edit link next to the class you'd like to edit.Make desired changes to the class name and its subject, period, term, and description. When you're finished making changes, click on the Update Class button, and the class will be updated.Click on the Cancel button at any time to discard your changes.

Deleting an existing class

From the Classes window, click on the Delete link next to the class you'd like to delete. Note that all information associated with the selected class will also be deleted.To confirm your request to delete the selected class, a dialog box appears. If you wish to proceed, click OK, otherwise click Cancel.

Duplicating an existing class

Instead of creating new classes from scratch, consider using the class duplication feature to copy students, grading options, and seating assignments from an existing class. To do so, from the Classes window, click on the Duplicate link next to the class you'd like to duplicate.To confirm your request to duplicate the selected class, a dialog box appears. If you wish to proceed, click OK, otherwise click Cancel.Once duplicated, the new class is shown in the Classes window. Its name has Duplicate appended to it. Click on the Edit link next to the class to change its name, move it to another term, modify its description, etc.Make desired changes to the class name, period, term, and description. When you're finished making changes, click on the Update Class button, and the class will be updated.Click on the Cancel button at any time to discard your changes.

Students

GPA Teacher uses a Student to identify a student that may be assigned to one or more classes. Before assigning students to classes, each student must first be added to the GPA Teacher software.To add, edit, or delete students, click on the Classes icon from the Navigation Bar at the top of your window. Next, click on the Students icon within the Options section on the right-hand side of the window. Initially, the list of students is empty.

Adding a new student

From the Students window, click on the Add a Student link in the sidebar menu on the right-hand side of your window.Enter the new student's name and contact information. You may also enter additional notes about the student in the text entry box. When you're finished, click on the Add Student button, and the new student will be added.Click on the Cancel button at any time to cancel your request.

Editing an existing student

From the Students window, click on the Manage Students link in the sidebar menu on the right-hand side of your window.Find the student you'd like to edit. You can make use of the search function toward the top of the window to focus your search. Once located, click on the Edit link for the student you'd like to edit.Make changes to student's name and contact information, as necessary. When your changes are complete, click on the Update Student button, and the student information will be updated.Click on the Cancel button at any time to discard your changes.

Uploading a picture for an existing student

From the Students window, click on the Manage Students link in the sidebar menu on the right-hand side of your window.Find the student for which you'd like to upload a picture. You can make use of the search function toward the top of the window to focus your search. Once located, click on the Browse... button for the student you'd like to upload a picture for. Select an image file.After locating and selecting an image file, click on the Upload button. The image file will be uploaded. Note that images will be automatically resized and cropped to a 60x60 square.Once uploaded, you'll see the student's picture. Further, you'll see the student's picture in the student seating chart.

Assigning students to classes

There are two ways to assign students to classes, each of which are described below.

Method 1

From the Students window, click on the Manage Students link in the sidebar menu on the right-hand side of your window.Select students you'd like to assign to a course. To do so, check the box to the right of each student you'd like to select. Next, click on an Assign Checked Student(s) to Class(es) button either above or below the list of students.From the Assign Checked Student(s) to Class(es) window, check the box corresponding to the course (or courses) you'd like to assign the selected students to. Click on the Assign Checked Student(s) to Class(es) button to submit your request.After a brief confirmation message, the Assign Checked Student(s) to Class(es) window will automatically close. Click on the Classes icon from the Navigation Bar at the top of your window to review your courses and create a Seating Chart.

Method 2

From the Students window, click on the Assign Students link in the sidebar menu on the right-hand side of your window.In the middle of your window, select the class you'd like to assign students to by making a selection from the Class dropdown box.Next, in the search box on the left-hand side, type at least the first two letters of the student's name that you'd like to assign to the selected class. As you type, students appear below the search box. Click on the + Add Student link for the student you'd like to assign to the selected class.Repeat this process until all students have been assigned to your classes. When you're done, click on the Classes icon from the Navigation Bar at the top of your window to review your courses and create a Seating Chart.

Seating Chart

Creating a seating chart

GPA Teacher uses a Seating Chart to identify where students and additional objects are in your classroom. For each course you teach, you can assign students to seats .To create, edit, or delete your seating charts, first click on the Classes icon from the Navigation Bar at the top of your window. Next, click on the Seating Chart icon within the Options section on the right-hand side of the window.Initially, no seating charts exist for your courses. Click on the Seating Chart Editor link in the sidebar menu on the right-hand side of your window.Before you assign students to seats, you first design the seating chart layout, which includes seats and any other objects you'd like to define (e.g. bookcase, door, fire extinguisher, etc.). From the Insert Bar on the left-hand side of your window, you define individual or groups of seats. Specify a title (optional), a type (either Seat or Object), and a color, then click on the Insert One button.To streamline your classroom layout, you may add multiple seats or objects with the click of a button. To do so, enter the number of columns, the number of rows, and the spacing (in pixels), then click the Insert Multiple button.Once seats and other objects are placed, you may reposition them by clicking and dragging them to where you want them to reside.

Assigning students to your seating chart

To assign students to seats within your seating chart, first click on the Assign Seats link in the sidebar menu on the right-hand side of your window. Next, right-click on a seat and select the student you'd like to assign to that seat.To clear all seating assignments, click on the Clear button in the upper right-hand corner of the window. To assign seats at random, click on the Randomize button in the upper left-hand corner of the window.Click on the View Seating Chart link to view your completed seating chart. To print your seating chart, click on the Print View link, then click on the Print button that will appear in the upper left-hand corner of your window (not shown in the example screen shot below).

Deleting an existing student

From the Students window, click on the Manage Students link in the sidebar menu on the right-hand side of your window.Find the student you'd like to delete. You can make use of the search function toward the top of the window to focus your search. Once located, click on the Delete link for the student you'd like to delete. Note that all information associated with the selected student will also be deleted.To confirm your request to delete the selected student, a dialog box appears. If you wish to proceed, click OK, otherwise click Cancel.

User Interface

Reminders

GPA Teacher provides electronic sticky notes called Reminders. To create a reminder, click on the Reminders button above the Navigation Bar in the upper right-hand corner of your window.You may add new reminders by clicking the (+) link within the Reminders window. Also note that you can move the Reminders window by clicking on it and dragging it to another location.

More Options Pane

In the upper right-hand corner of GPA Teacher, click on the More Options button for printing, session locking, logout, and help functions. You may also click on the Hide button at the bottom of the More Options pane to close the pane.