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Getting Started in
Plano ISD Instructional Technology
February 2013
Contents
Logging In ............................................................................................................................................ 1
Setting up Your Class ........................................................................................................................... 1
Allocating Products to Your Class and Creating Groups ........................................................................ 3
Editing a Student’s Navigation Language.............................................................................................. 5
Student Login ...................................................................................................................................... 6
Creating your Avatar............................................................................................................................ 7
Viewing the Online Teacher Edition ..................................................................................................... 8
Previewing Net-text Activities .............................................................................................................. 9
Previewing Grammar Snap Activities ................................................................................................. 10
Creating Assignments ........................................................................................................................ 11
Interactive Whiteboard Lessons ......................................................................................................... 14
General Notes ................................................................................................................................... 15
Getting Started in Write Source
After installing the WriteSource program from the App Depot, the program will be launched from the
Language Arts folder in PISD Apps. You can also use the web address http://ws.hmhpub.com from home
or school.
Logging In
Click the Login button.
Teacher’s Login: PISD email address
Teacher’s Password: employee ID number
To locate your employee ID number, enter
www.pisd.edu/employeeid in your browser’s
address bar, and type your Social Security number
and birth date in the fields provided.
Setting up Your Class
1.) Click the Manage Class tab at the top of the Dashboard.
2.) Class Details is the first tab. Change the name of
your class, if desired.
3.) Click the Students tab from the Class Management Screen.
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Select your grade level from the drop-down menu on the right side of the window. Select your
students’ names from the list and click the arrow button to move the students from the
Available Students box on the left to the Students in Class box on the right. To select more than
one student, press and hold the Ctrl key, and then click each name.
Alternatively, you can use the Search for student name field by typing all or part of a student’s
name. Click Save and Next when finished.
Students may be assigned to only one class at a time.
Because students are uploaded at the district level, never use the Create a New Student Link.
Names of new students should be automatically uploaded every few days. If you find that a student who
has been at your campus for a week or more does not have access to WriteSource, please email Nancy
Watson – [email protected].
Please do not change your or your students’ passwords, even though it may look as though it is possible
do so.
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Allocating Products to Your Class and Creating Groups
1.) After you have selected your students, click the Products tab. Check the first and third boxes
to allow students to have access to all materials in English (Plano ISD did not purchase the
Spanish products). Click Save and Next.
Be sure to select
the correct
grade level
when allocating
products.
2.) If desired, you can create groups within your class to facilitate differentiation. Click Add a
Group. Give the group a name and move the students (already in your class) to the Group
List box. Click Save and Next.
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Profile Questions will appear on each student’s avatar screen. These questions can be changed as
frequently as you wish. Use the scroll bar to see all questions choices.
Students see only their own responses on the Profile Questions. They see a pie chart of all student
answers for the class poll.
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Editing a Student’s Navigation Language
Some students will see the navigation (i.e., the directions) in Spanish. To
edit student language information, click the globe on the left side of your
dashboard.
Click Edit next to the student’s name.
REMEMBER NOT TO CHANGE USERNAME, PASSWORD, OR STUDENT ID!!
Scroll down to the Language drop-down menu and select English.
Click Confirm to change the navigation language, then click
Save.
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Student Login
1.) Students will install WriteSource from the App Depot and launch the program from the
Language Arts folder in PISD apps.
2.) Select a state from the dropdown list (first time only).
3.) Enter the school name: (First time only)
The school list is filtered using predictive text as the student enters characters in the school name field.
State and school selections are saved to the computer, so the next time the students log into Write
Source from the same computer, they should not have to select a school. (Students could, of course,
subsequently log in to a different workstation, but would have to enter school information again.)
Important Note: Locating the correct school name can be tricky for some schools because students have
to start typing the entire school name – i.e. Thomas Wesley Andrews or Loreta Hickey. Additionally,
some schools from different cities have the same name. It would be VERY possible for a student to select
the wrong “Davis Elementary,” for example, because you have to scroll down in the window before the
Plano Davis Elementary school appears.
4.) After the correct school has been selected, the students use their student ID# as both
the user name and the password. Teachers must add students to a class and allocate
products before students will see any assigned activities.
Students can use Write Source from home! They can use the address https://ws.hmhpub.com/ (which
teachers can post on their myPISD pages) and then follow the same login procedures noted above.
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Creating your Avatar
Students can create customized avatars, but they have to earn points to “buy” their changes by
successfully completing grammar games and activities. Customize your own avatar to encourage your
students to get started on theirs.
Click the Avatar in the upper left corner of your
dashboard. Click the Customize Avatar button.
Find the hairstyle, clothing, expression, etc. that
you’d like to use. Click Save, then Back.
Click the Customize Theme button to set the theme and
background style you prefer.
To return to your dashboard, click the Home (Dashboard) button.
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Viewing the Online Teacher Edition
Click the View All link near the bottom of the screen.
Double-click the cover of the desired book to open it.
To use “highlighter” or “notes,” click the highlighter or notes icon once, then click anywhere on
the page to activate. The notes and highlights will not be saved when you close the book.
Since the ebooks open in a new window, you can click on the red “X” in top-right hand corner of
the screen to close them without closing your entire dashboard.
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Previewing Net-text Activities
Click either Net-text icon.
Hover your mouse over any of the Net-text icons on the bookshelf to view its title. When you select the
desired title, click the View this Net-text button to see its contents.
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Previewing Grammar Snap Activities
Click either Grammar Snap icon on the dashboard to preview the activities.
Use the Launch
button to view that
part of the lesson.
These icons are only indicators
of where you are in the
Grammar Snap lesson.
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Creating Assignments
From your dashboard, click either Create Assignment button.
Complete each field (Due Date,
Title, and Instructions) and click
Next.
Note: Because you have to name
the assignment before adding any
activities, it’s a good idea to
preview the activities so you’ll have
an idea of what to put in the Title
field.
Click Add an Activity.
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Select a Net-text AND/OR Grammar Snap AND/OR Custom activity to assign. Click Save when done.
The selected activity/activities can now be seen on the Activities list. Click Next.
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There are three options for assigning the activity: whole class, individual students, or groups. If you have
not previously set up groups, you can do so at this point. After selecting the appropriate students, click
Next.
Click Publish. Note: This is an important step! Students won’t be able to see the assignment until you
click the Publish button!
If desired, you can also make assignments from the
Net-text preview screen.
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Interactive Whiteboard Lessons
Click this icon for interactive whiteboard lessons.
Select the desired lesson, then click the View Online button. A new window will open. It may take
several seconds for the lesson to appear.
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General Notes
Grammar Snap Quiz Scores: The number displayed on the
award ribbon is the number the student has answered
correctly.
Students’ answers do NOT record unless the student clicks
“OK”. If a student uses the forward arrow key it simply
takes them to the next question (assuming they will come
back to previous question and click “OK” when they want to
submit the answer). The software developers are aware
this is unclear to students and are working on a better
layout for the quiz question screens.
Demonstrate to your students that, in order to get an accurate score on the Grammar Snap quizzes, they
must click the OK button before proceeding to the next question.
Listing of Assignments on Student’s Homepage: An assignment will show up on a student’s homepage
until it is completed. Once it is completed, it’s dropped from their homepage. This will keep their
dashboard much simpler to navigate. On the other hand, all assignments remain on a teacher’s
homepage as this is how she’s accessing the “Manage Assignment” tab to view students’ work,
comment on students writing, unlock quizzes etc.
Portfolios: Any work that students save to a portfolio will be saved from year to year.
For more information about Write Source, see http://www.hmhelearning.com/langarts/writesource/na/index.php
and http://www.hmheducation.com/writesource2/
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