1. To begin, visit https://teacher.blocksi.net. This will give you several buttons to choose from.
   We want to use the “Sign in with Google” button. Reach out if you have any issues with the Google button.
   

2. This should take you to the Blocksi Teacher Dashboard
   

1. This button allows you to import your Google Classroom classes and rosters. Even if you don’t use Google Classroom, you will want to accept your class, and use it just for the purpose of rostering.

2. The “Create Class” button lets you manually create a class. We will use this later on to have a dedicated class for grading.

3. The “Delete Class” button will allow you to delete classes you imported from Google Classroom or manually created.

4. The “Show/Hide Schedule” button will show this nifty screen, which we will discuss a bit later.
   

5. The “Website Rating Tool” is for testing to see if a website is categorized in a blocked area.
   

6. The hamburger menu opens up options for viewing and modifying filters for your class. Again, more info later on!
   

1. Click on the Google Classroom button
   

2. Check the boxes next to the Google Classrooms you wish to add. You can ONLY select courses you accepted.
   

3. Click on OK to submit your selections.
   

4. You should now see those courses listed under “Your Created Classes.”
   

Class tiles are the quickest way to get to several settings and the fastest way to view some pieces of information.

1. The name of the class, and the part of the tile to click to open your class.
2. The amount of time that the class is supposed to last. This defaults to 80 minutes, but we will provide instructions on how to change it.
3. This is the class invitation code, which you will probably never need.
4. This will let you set and view the class schedule.
5. This will let you see the history of class sessions.
6. This will let you delete your class. If you accidentally delete it, you can always just re-import it from Google Classroom.

Start by opening a class. To do so, click on the class name.

To return to the dashboard (list of classes), click “Blocksi Teacher Dashboard.”

We need to be sure the class length is set correctly. That way we don’t accidentally block students in other classes.

If the time listed in the area where the arrow is pointing is NOT correct, we need to adjust it.

1. Open the class.

2. Click the “Edit” button.
   

3. Edit the number of minutes to reflect the correct class length.
   

4. Click the “Save” Button.
   

The filter determines what websites students can and cannot access. You will have the choice of which of our filters you wish to apply to your class.

1. Open the class.

2. Click the “Edit” button.
   

3. Click the dropdown to the right of the class time, and choose which filter to apply.
   

4. Click the “Save” button.
   

5. Check the “Keep Policy on Next Session” box to make sure this setting will continue to be applied each day.
   

Before you can actually view a student’s screen or manage any of their internet options, you must first start the class.

1. From inside the class, press the “START” button.
   

This will begin counting down the number of minutes until the class automatically ends and students are automatically released.

It is important to stop your classes if they end before the timer runs out.

1. From within the class, click the “STOP” button.
   

If you notice your Blocksi student list is not matching the students on your roster. You can pull those students in from your Google Classroom. Please understand that this ONLY works if schedules have been correct in eSchool/TAC for a day before you try to sync.

1. Click on the “Sync classroom” button.
   

It is also important to note that you will NOT see this button if you clicked the log in with Clever button.

You can lock the screens of students with a “heads up” screen. This will prevent the students from using their device in any way during the duration of time that you set.

1 . Click on the “HEADS UP” button

2. Type in the number of minutes you wish to lock the machines, and then click “Confirm.”
   

When sharing or enforcing, you will push a website or set of websites to student devices. They will not be able to close these pages, but they will be able to open others and to have these pages in the background.

1. Click on the “SHARE/ENFORCE” button.
   

2. Type in (or paste in) the address you want kids to go to.
   

3. Click on the “Add Field +” button IF you want to add another website. You may add as many as you like.
   
   

4. Click either “Share Page” or “Enforce Page.” If you choose share, students will be able to close the pages. If you click “Enforce,” the pages will keep opening when students try to close them.
   

5. If you choose “Enforce,” you will be asked for how long you want these pages to remain open. Enter the number of minutes, and then click on confirm.
   

6. If you overestimate the amount of time you wanted the enforce to be in place, you can cancel it by clicking the “Stop enforce” button that replaced the “SHARE/ENFORCE” button.
   

Sometimes it might be helpful to send reminders for students to get back on task without verbally stepping in. Maybe this would be helpful if there is a guest speaker of some sort.

1. Click on the “MESSAGE ALL” button.
   

2. Enter the message you want to send, and then click the “Send” button. Students will receive this message at the top center of their computers.
   

The assessment feature is very similar to the enforce feature, but students aren’t able to access recourses you don’t specifically allow.

1. Click the “ASSESSMENT” button.
   

2. In the “Enforced URLs” enter the websites that you want to require to remain open for the duration of the assessment period.
   

3. In the “Allwed URLs” boxes, enter the websites that you want to ALLOW students to access.
   

4. Press the “Confirm” button.
   

5. When you are finished with the assessment period, click the new “STOP ASSESSMENT” button.
   

Projectors are awesome, but sometimes it is more beneficial for each student to see a copy of your screen directly on their own!

1. Click on the “SHARE SCREEN” button.
   

2. Click on “OK” to allow your microphone.
   

3. This screen works like sharing your screen in a Google Meet. Choose the Chrome Tab, Window, or screen you wish to share, then click the “Share button.”
   

4. Once finished, click on the “STOP SCREEN SHARING” button.
   

The classroom view will automatically show a preview of the Google Chrome page the student is viewing. If the student isn’t in Google Chrome, you will need to open the individual student’s tile to view what they are working on. Please note that students will be prompted to share their screens with you when you do this. If they say no, you will be denied access, and you will have to do it again.

1. Click on the student tile you want to view.
   

2. Click the play button on the left.
   

3. Wait for the student to confirm.

While this isn’t 100% accurate, it has worked for me more times than not.

1. Click the “Plagiarism Checker” button.
   

2. Choose whether you want to copy and paste text or if you want to upload a file.
   

3. Choose whether you wish to check for traditional plagiarism or if you wich to check for AI-Generated Text.

Your results will be on the right.

Assessment Library

1. Let’s create an assessment using the library. Click on the “Assessment” button at the bottom.
   

2. Choose one of the library options. This will probably be classroom or forms.
   

3. On the box that opens, you will need to put the link to the quiz from either classroom or forms, then click on “Confirm.”
   

4. The assessment window now shows several links. On the left, you have the page that will open automatically, and on the right, you have the pages that are allowed to be visited.
   

5. You should ALWAYS verifity that the items on the left and the right are correct, then choose to confirm it for the whole class, or to enforce it upon the group you have selected.
   

Web App Library

1. Let’s create an assessment using a web app template. Select “Web Apps” from the bottom.
   

2. Choose the appropriate app icon. I chose Google Docs.
   

3. Again, our list is populated with what is needed for this app to function. Our students will be taken to a blank Google doc, and the only other places that can access are the sites specific for Google Docs to function. This would be perfect for a writing prompt day.
   

Stacking Web Apps and Assessment Templates

1. Let’s combine two web apps into our list. Choose the “Web Apps” button.
   

2. Select the first app you would like to use. I chose Google Classroom.
   

3. Click the “Web Apps” button again.
   

4. Click the second icon. I chose Google Slides.
   

Now, when students are under this rule, they will be able to access anything within classroom and also within Google Slides. They will also automatically be taken to both websites in two unique tabs.

Custom Presets

What if this is something we want to do regularly, use both classroom and slides? While it isn’t too difficult to do those previous 4 steps, we can make it quicker.

1. I’m going to click on the “-” buttons to remove the enforce URL options.
   

2. This gives me an empty enforced area and a populated allowed list.
   

3. Now I’m going to click the “SAVE CURRENT PRESET” button.
   

4. On the box that opens, I’ll give it a name (I went with “Classroom and Slides”), and then I will click on “OK.”
   

5. Now, the next time I open up the assessment box, I will click on “Custom presets”
   

6. I’ll choose “Classroom and Slides” (or whatever preset I created in the past).
   

7. Then I’ll have my starting point. I also want to make this open to the assignment in Classroom, so I’ll click on the “Add Field” button.
   

8. In the box, I’ll paste in the address of the Classroom assignment.
   

From now on, all I have to do to make this kind of rule is to choose my custom preset, paste in my assignment, and confirm it for the group or the class!

1. Log in to https://teacher.blocksi.net using your Google credentials. Check out last week’s tip for more details.

1. To begin, visit https://teacher.blocksi.net. This will give you several buttons to choose from.
   We want to use the “Sign in with Google” button. Reach out if you have any issues with the Google button.
   

2. This should take you to the Blocksi Teacher Dashboard
   

From the Teacher Dashboard, click the “CREATE CLASS” button.

At this point, you should get a screen asking for several pieces of information
1: Name of the class: This can be pretty much whatever you want it to be.
2: Class Color: This allows you to set the color of the ribbon at the top of the tile.
3: Duration: This is where you should enter the number of minutes that your class session will last. You may set this to anything between 1 and 480.
4: Policy: This allows you to choose the filtering policy to start from.
Once you are satisfied with your settings, click on Create Class.

That screen should automatically close, and after a couple of seconds, you should see a tile with the name of the class you just added.

From this point, the class functions exactly the same as one of the classes you imported, except for the fact that you will have to add students manually. Keep reading to find out how!

1. To begin, click on the class tile that you wish to roster.
   

2. Click on the Students button.
   

3. On the resulting screen, there is a search box for adding students. Put in part of the students name or email, then click on the magnifying glass
   
   

4. Click on the plus sign to the right of the student you wish to add.
   

5. You will then get a green checkmark to the right of the student name, the student email will show in a bubble above the “Add Student(s)” button, and you will be ready to either add more students using the same process, or finalize your roster by clicking on “Add student(s).”
   

At this point, you should see a tile for the student(s) that you added, and this class will function the same as an automatically rostered class.

1. To begin, click on the class tile that you wish to roster.
   

2. Click on the “Teachers” button.
   

3. Search for part of the teacher’s name or email, then click the magnifying glass.
   
   

4. That will add your search results to the top of the page. Click on the Plus sign to the right of the teacher you wish to add.
   

5. Once a bubble with the teacher’s email shows up, you may choose to add another teacher, or to finish rostering your teachers by clicking the “Save” button.
   

At this point, the teacher you added will also be able to view and manage your class.

Start from your Blocksi Teacher Dashboard.

1. Click on the “SHOW / HIDE SCHEDULE” button.
   

2. This opens the schedule flyout. I’ll make sure that the toggle switch is set to “ON” and then I’ll click “Class Scheduler.”
   

3. This will open a slightly intimidating screen. Have no fear. It really isn’t that bad!
   

4. I’m going to start by clicking on the “Week A” tab.
   

5. Select the class you wish to schedule (you must do this one at a time).
   

6. Select the first day that the class meets. I chose Tuesday for this example.
   

7. Set the start time of the class.
   

8. Press the “Add Class” button.
   
   You should now see a bubble with that time and the class color listed in the date boxes on the right.
   

9. Repeat this process for each day that the class meets.
   

10. Repeat this process for each class.

11. Click on the “Weekly Scheduler” tab again.
    

12. Set the First school week and the last school week. You can’t pick before today, and I picked a day past the last scheduled day to account for any extra days.
    

13. Click on “Apply Selection.”
    

14. Select “Week A” in the week template box.
    

15. Click on the number of each week in the school year. I have 43 of them. They should all turn to a uniform color. You MAY NOT click on week 1.
    

16. Click on the “Save” button.
    

17. Click on the “Close” button.
    

At this point, your classes should automatically start, and, if you have the minutes correct, they should automatically stop at the appropriate times.

Please Note: for “Fast Friday” sessions, you will still need to stop your classes. There isn’t a way I am currently aware of to change the minutes on a per-day basis.

1. From the Blocksi dashboard, click on "SUBSTITUTE TEACHERS."
2. Enter the email of the substitute teacher. You can access this in Frontline.
3. Set a date for the access to expire. This should ALWAYS be set to the shortest timeframe available.
4. Enter and confirm as password that meets the requirements. This will be emailed to the sub.
5. Click on the "Send Invite" button.
6. You will see a message stating that the status is "AWAITING VALIDATION."
7. The substitute will receive an email like this one, which includes your email, the password, and a button to access the dashboard.
8. The tech staff has to validate each sub-request, so you need to send a tech ticket to let us know this needs to happen. Please include the email of the user you invited, and also try to include when the account is set to expire. It would also be good to give us a timeline of when the account needs to be available.
9. Once we have validated the request, you will see "VALIDATED" in the status area.
10. The sub will also receive an email letting them know that they may now log in.[/details]

1. Click on the little yellow hamburger menu at the top left of the Blocksi page.
   

2. This will present you with you filtering menu. Go ahead and click on “Filters” to expand it.
   

3. This opens the menu to include several options. We will go through each of them for our class filtering.
   

4. Click on “Web Filter.”
   

5. While not required, I recommend you pick XS_Student as a starting point. Click on the little copy icon to duplicate the filter instead of starting from scratch.
   

6. Enter a name (I’m using “My Classroom” for all of the names to make things less confusing), then click on OK.
   

7. This will add “My Classroom” (or whatever you name it) to the web filter list. We will click on the pencil icon to edit the filter.
   

8. This page shows all of the various categories that Blocksi puts sites in. At the top, you can put in a web address, and Blocksi will tell you the category. Handy if you aren’t sure which category niggles you…
   

9. To edit the web filter, click on a category.
   

10. This will expand the category to show the sub-categories.
    

11. If you want to block something that isn’t blocked, activate the center square. If you want to allow something that is blocked (be careful, we blocked things for a reason), activate the left square. If you want to warn people when they visit a page, but you still want the student to be able to visit, click the right square.
    

12. Once you have edited all of the categories to your satisfaction (you can always edit them again later), click the “Save Changes” button.
    

13. In our menu, let’s click on “Exception Lists”
    

14. Enter a name (I used My Classroom again), then click “Create List.”
    

15. This opens the list editor. This list is both an allow and a block list. If you blocked a category in step 11, but you need a site that is in that category, you can paste that site in the “Enter URL” box, be sure that the “Allow” option is selected, then click on the “Add to List” button. Likewise, if you DON’T have a category blocked, you can enter a site in the box, choose the Block button, then click on “Add to List” to prevent access to that website.
    

16. Once you add an item to the list, it will be listed at the bottom. You can see the site, edit it, toggle between allow/block, update your settings, or delete anything you add.
    

17. Let’s go to “Keyword Filter” in our menu.
    

18. Keywords allow us to block websites that have certain words in them. You must be careful with this. It might seem like a good idea to block the word “naked,” but doing so also blocks any website with the phrase “naked truth.” Enter a name and then click “Crete Filter.”
    

19. Enter the first word you want to block (must be at least 4 characters long), then click on “Add Keyword.” Side note… “guns” could also block a LOT of legitimate resources as well.
    

20. Let’s go to the “Application Filter” now.
    

21. Enter a name, then click “Create Filter.”
    

22. Click on the little pencil to edit the Application Filter you just added.
    

23. The following page shows the main Google apps. You can turn off any of these that you choose, but think about each option carefully. It is possible that you have a class where it isn’t at all helpful to have access to email. If that is true, Block Gmail. You may also choose to block YouTube, but this is more aggressive than blocking YouTube in our Exception Lists. It MIGHT work, and there is no harm in trying.
    

24. To block an item, click on “Block,” then click on “Update.”
    

25. On to the YouTube Filters! Click on the menu item to expand it.
    

26. We will start with the “Category Filter.”
    

27. As should now be familiar, enter a name, then click “Create Filter.”
    

28. Click the pencil icon on the filter you just added.
    

29. This will bring up EVERY category within YouTube.
    

30. Allow (left box) or block (right box) any categories of videos you want to work when students are within your room. You could effectively block YouTube by clicking every box, then you can use step 36 to allow access to only your videos and those of channels you trust.
    

31. When you are finished, go to the top, and click the “Save Changes” button.
    

32. Go to the “Channel Exception List.”
    

33. Enter a name and create your list.
    

34. Click the pencil tool for your list.
    

35. This method allows any video within a chosen channel to be accessible. For this example, I included my channel address. I’ve made sure to choose the “Allow” option, and then I hit "Add to List. I can also use the same method to block an entire channel if I use the “Block” box.
    

36. Blocksi looks up my Channel name and lists it below.
    

37. Go to the “Keyword Filter” item under “YouTube Filters.”
    

38. Enter a name, and click “Create Filter.”
    

39. Edit the list with the pencil tool.
    

40. This filter is similar to the previous “Keyword Filter” option. It will block the ability to search for these words within YouTube. Be cautious, but enter the word of your choice, then “Add Keyword.”
    

41. Click on “Policies” in the menu.
    

42. Enter a name in the top left, then click “Create Plicy.”
    

43. The window that opens will say “None” all the way down.
    

44. We want to choose “My Classroom” or whatever you named each of the previous things for each of the items available. There are two other settings to look at here… The “Access Denied Page” can be set to a custom block page. If you want to add a “hidden” page in your Google Site, you can enter that address here. I recommend that you leave it blank though. I also recommend that you leave “Safe Search” to “On.” Then click on “Save Changes.”
    

1. Open a class.
   

2. At the top, click on “Keep Policy on Next Session,” and then click “Edit.”
   

3. There should be a dropdown to the right of the time. Click on that and choose “My Classroom” or whatever you named your policy.
   

4. Make sure you have the correct policy, then click “save.”
   

5. Click on the dropdown arrow at the far right.
   

6. Click on the checkbox that says “Keep URLs on Next Session” then click the little folder icon.
   

7. Under “List name,” choose “My Classroom.”
   

8. That should have pulled a list of all of the sites you blocked and allowed.
   

It is possible that your web filter page will not have the XS_Student starting point. If that is the case, you can create your own and follow these screenshots as suggestions: