Maximize Classroom Efficiency: Agendas in Apple's Classroom App

The Classroom app is one of the most powerful applications in a teacher's toolbox. From helping keep students on track and sharing resources, to celebrating student progress. To learn more about the setup and power of using this app, check out the post Apple Classroom Guides for Teachers.

Agendas is a feature of the Classroom app that helps you to utilize every moment for instruction. Create Agendas in Classroom to follow your daily schedule or the flow of a specific lesson. Agendas can also allow the ability to include built in timers for specific tasks. You also have the ability to share Agendas with other teachers in your learning community.

Let's Get Started

1. Launch the Classroom App.
2. From the main menu, tap Agendas
3. Tap the + sign to add a new Agenda
4. Give your Agenda a File Name
5. Start to build your tasks:
6. Give your first item a name and description, then select the following:

• If necessary, how much time you want to spend with the class on the item
• Whether to have an alert (only on teacher device) when the timer ends
• Whether to allow the item to automatically advance. This feature only advances to the next step on the teacher devices, not on student devices.
• If you want to add any actions to the agenda item, select Add Action, then select which action you want to associate with the item. Available Actions:
• Connect/Disconnect (Learners on different networks)
• Open apps
• Navigate (Podcasts, Safari Links, Swift Playgrounds, Books, etc)
• Share Files
• Lock/Unlock
• Mute
• Hide (bring back to Homescreen)

Example Agendas in Classroom

Fourth Grade Gardening Agenda Example

Second Grade Water Cycle Agenda Example

Using Agendas within your Apple Classroom Classes

Now that you have an agenda built, open one of your Apple Classrooms. Tap on the Table of Contents icon to access your agendas.

Taking it Further 

In order to see all details of your agenda and student devices on your Apple Classroom home screen, you can use Agendas in split screen with another view of Apple Classroom. See the video below for more information.  

Suggestions:

• As a teacher, I probably wouldn't use Classroom agendas on a daily basis. However, for those lessons that you do each and every year, they could really support efficient practices. Some examples might include starting a new unit in your content area or one that has a lot of movement in terms of apps and resources.
• Utilize the Lock/Unlock screens to maximize your time when you are off your devices, say when students are participating in a whole class discussion.
• To share agendas, the best way is using AirDrop between devices.
• Agendas sync between all devices that are signed in with the same Apple ID. You can build and access from both your MacBook and iPad.