How to use the Workspace Groups feature Follow

In this article:

Where to find the Workspace Groups feature

How to add groups or edit existing groups

How are Workspace Groups helpful for instruction and learning?

Hāpara has some great features to help you use groups to support learning in the digital classroom. One of these features is Workspace Groups, which helps you easily differentiate instruction and create collaborative learning opportunities. 

Where to find the Workspace Groups feature

On the main page of the Workspace, on the left, you’ll see a vertical menu with different sections. The Groups section includes the groups for your Workspace. 

This could include:

• A group for each of your classes, if you kept this default option when you created a new Workspace
• Group names that were included with a public Workspace you copied (you must add your own students to these groups)
• Any groups you added to the Workspace
• No groups yet 

 

How to add groups or edit existing groups

The Students & Groups tab allows you to add groups or edit existing groups. There are three ways you can access this tab.

If you don’t have any groups set up yet:

1. Click Create groups from the Groups section in the left-side menu.

2. You’ll be taken to the Students & Groups tab.

3. Click the + sign in the square to create a new group.

4. Select a color for the group.

5. Click the default group name at the top. > Type a new group name.

Note: Group names in Workspace are visible to students. This is different from the groups you create for yourself in Teacher Dashboard and Highlights. So be sure that your Workspace Group names are ones that are sensitive to students.

6. Click Next. 

7. Then from the left, drag and drop any of the following into the group:

• Classes
• Class groups
• Groups from Teacher Dashboard or Highlights
• Or student names 

Note: If you drag and drop a class, class group or any other existing group, the students in that group will automatically be added.

 

If you want to edit existing groups:

1. Click Edit Groups from the Groups section in the left-side menu.

2. Click the three dots to access the drop-down menu on the group’s square.

3. Select Edit to edit the group name or color. 

4. Select Delete to delete the group.

5. In the list of students in the group, click the X next to any student name to remove the student.

6. From the left, drag and drop classes, class groups, other existing groups or student names to add additional students.

 

If you want direct access to the Students & Groups tab any time:

Simply click the Students & Groups tab in the white section at the top of the Workspace. From there, you can use any of the features to add or edit groups.

How are Workspace Groups helpful for instruction and learning?

Workspace Groups allow teachers to support collaborative, personalized learning as students engage with the content of a Workspace. Here are some of the features of Workspace Groups that make them helpful.

Workspace Cards can be assigned to groups

Once you create a group in a Workspace, you can then assign Workspace Cards to it based on the learning needs and/or interests of students in that particular group. 

Students only see the cards assigned to the entire class and their groups. That makes it easy to differentiate the material in the Workspace. 

For example, you can assign scaffolded resources and formative assessments with extra supports for students who need them. Or you can provide extension activities for students who tend to work quickly and need more challenging material. 

Groups can be formed in flexible ways

Workspace Groups are set up so that you can create groups as focused or as large as you wish. You can add just one student, a few students or the whole class. You can also base groups on the same types of criteria you use in the real classroom. For example, you may want to create an ELL group or a group that should receive enrichment resources. 

Consider basing groups on:

• Students’ instructional levels
• Research topics 
• Targeted skills and strategies
• IEP requirements
• ELL resources

Students can belong to multiple groups, and it’s easy to move students around as learning needs and interests evolve. In fact, you can create up to 200 groups in Workspace, allowing even the largest classes to have collaborative Workspaces and truly personalized content.

Groups can promote peer-to-peer communication and collaboration

Workspace Groups encourage student communication and collaboration by allowing students to see the other members of their groups. They can also email group members directly from the Groups area of their Workspace page.

That means they are more easily able to work with each other on assignments and benefit from the peer-to-peer learning that grouping provides for.

Workspaces can be shared across classes more efficiently

You can use the same Workspace with multiple classes, while still building personalized learning experiences. To do this, vary the content and assign different Workspace Cards to different class groups. 

For example, let’s say you teach two sections of high school chemistry. You know that one of your sections can confidently use the scientific method, but the other section needs some extra review time. You could create a single Workspace for both sections. Then you could include Resource Cards on the scientific method and assign them only to the section that needs it.

Your Workspace can be filtered by group

You can also filter your Workspace to see only one group’s Workspace Cards. This makes it easier for you to see and manage the content for groups.

To filter your Workspace by group:

1. Go to the Groups section in the left-side menu.

2. Click on a group.

3. You’ll then be able to see the Workspace Cards assigned only to that group.