Docks, Tiles, and Favorites for Teachers

You can save time by creating shortcuts using docks, favorites, and Tiles. These shortcuts act as bookmarks, taking you directly to a particular screen.

  • Dock screens enable you to access screens you use frequently from any location in the software by expanding the Dock area.

  • Favorites enable you to access screens you use frequently from tiles on the home screen as well as the Favorites drop-down menu.

  • Live tiles enable you to access screens you use frequently from your dashboard and provide a real-time count of records on that screen.

Scroll past the video to access the step-by-step instructions.

Audio Transcript

Let's take a look at docks, favorites, and tiles. These are all shortcuts to quickly access certain areas of the system. For example, if I were to go into the Gradesheet of the Gradebook module and if this an area that I am often navigating to, I can add this to my dock. To do so, I will need to make sure that the dock is enabled by making sure this arrow is pointing upwards and then I can select Add to Dock. Now this will be added to my dock and I can use this from any area within the system. For example, if I select the Home icon, I will be able to see my dock, select it, and navigate to that area. Also, if I was in another area within the system, I will be able to see my dock, and again select it to navigate to that area. Next let's talk about favorites. If I were to go into the Assignment List of the Gradebook module, I can add this to my favorite by filling in the star next to the screen name. Once that is completed, this has been added to my Favorites list, which I can access by selecting the Star icon next to the menu, and I can also navigate here from any area within the system. If I select the Home icon, we will see that this has also created a tile for us that we can use to navigate and if I was within another area within the system, I could also use the star icon to access my Favorites, and navigate that way, as well. Lastly let's talk about creating a tile. One example, if I were to go into the Daily Attendance feature and select a class, I could add this as a tile to my dashboard. If I select Add Daily Attendance Tile to Dashboard, we will receive a message that it has been successfully added. And if I navigate back to my home screen, I will be able to see the tile for Daily Attendance. By selecting this, it will navigate me directly to that area. Another example would be if I would go into the Student List, I can add this as a tile as well, by selecting the More option on the right hand of the screen and select Add Live Tile to Dashboard. Here I will get the option to name my live tile, so maybe I just want to name this Student List. I can then select Save, and now when I navigate back to my home screen, I will see that tile, and it will include the number of students that I have, that will update as students are added or removed from any of my classes. Thank you for taking a look at docks, favorites, and tiles.

Procedure

Let's take a look at docks, favorites, and tiles. These are all shortcuts to quickly access certain areas of the system. For example, if I were to go into the Gradesheet of the Gradebook module and if this an area that I am often navigating to, I can add this to my dock. To do so, I will need to make sure that the dock is enabled by making sure this arrow is pointing upwards and then I can select Add to Dock. Now this will be added to my dock and I can use this from any area within the system. For example, if I select the Home icon, I will be able to see my dock, select it, and navigate to that area. Also, if I was in another area within the system, I will be able to see my dock, and again select it to navigate to that area. Next let's talk about favorites. If I were to go into the Assignment List of the Gradebook module, I can add this to my favorite by filling in the star next to the screen name. Once that is completed, this has been added to my Favorites list, which I can access by selecting the Star icon next to the menu, and I can also navigate here from any area within the system. If I select the Home icon, we will see that this has also created a tile for us that we can use to navigate and if I was within another area within the system, I could also use the star icon to access my Favorites, and navigate that way, as well. Lastly let's talk about creating a tile. One example, if I were to go into the Daily Attendance feature and select a class, I could add this as a tile to my dashboard. If I select Add Daily Attendance Tile to Dashboard, we will receive a message that it has been successfully added. And if I navigate back to my home screen, I will be able to see the tile for Daily Attendance. By selecting this, it will navigate me directly to that area. Another example would be if I would go into the Student List, I can add this as a tile as well, by selecting the More option on the right hand of the screen and select Add Live Tile to Dashboard. Here I will get the option to name my live tile, so maybe I just want to name this Student List. I can then select Save, and now when I navigate back to my home screen, I will see that tile, and it will include the number of students that I have, that will update as students are added or removed from any of my classes. Thank you for taking a look at docks, favorites, and tiles.





  • To dock a screen, complete the following steps.

    When you dock a screen, a dock icon for that screen is added beneath the icons for Menu, Star, House, and, if your organization has it set up, Globe.

    1. Navigate to the screen you wish to dock.
    2. Click the Dock icon near the top right of the screen.
    3. Click Add to Dock near the top left of the screen to dock the screen.

      A dock icon with the screen name displays near the top left of the screen. As long as the Dock area is expanded, that dock icon displays in that location as you move to other screens.

  • To add a favorite, complete the following steps.

    When you add a favorite, the system automatically creates a favorite tile on your Home screen and adds the screen to the Favorites drop-down menu. However, if you delete a favorite, the system does not automatically delete the favorite tile. The favorite and favorite tile are not linked.

    1. Navigate to the area or screen you wish to save as a favorite.
    2. Click the unfilled Star icon to the right of the screen name to make this screen or area a favorite.
      The star outline is filled in, which indicates the screen or area is a favorite. The screen or area name is added to your Favorites List and a Tile with the name of the favorite is added to the Home screen.
  • To add a live tile to your dashboard, complete the following steps.

    You may need to modify the filter or view on the list screen before creating a live tile in order to display the information you wish to view. Any filters in effect when the live tile was created will be used in the counts on the tile.

    1. Navigate to the list screen you wish to create a live tile for.
    2. Click More near the top right of the screen.
    3. Select Add Live Tile to Dashboard from the menu.
    4. Verify the Display Text or enter the correct display text if necessary.
    5. Click Save near the bottom right of the window to save the tile.

Results

For more detailed information, please refer to the "Creating Dock Screen," "Creating a Favorite," and "Creating Live Tiles on Dashboard" articles in the Help Center.