TalkingPoints offers several features to help boost family engagement. Starting off with a new account may seem daunting at first, but here are a few steps to help get you situated. Let’s get started!
Sign In
TalkingPoints allows you to sign in different ways using either our web app or our mobile app. The first way you log in might be dependent upon the type of account your school or district has created (Clever, Classlink, or CSV), so see below for more details.
Clever Accounts
If your school or district created their account using Clever, you will first need to sign in through the Clever portal, and then create a password for your TalkingPoints account if you wish to log in on the mobile app.
Classlink Accounts
If your school or district created their account using Classlink, you can sign in through their SSO.
CSV Accounts
If your school or district created their account using a CSV file, you will need to use the invite sent to your email address from your admin and sign in directly to TalkingPoints or use Google SSO.
After your first sign-in, you can sign in on the web at https://talkingpts.org/ and click on the Log in button. You can also download our mobile app for teachers, available on iOS and Android.
Send Your First Message
Your classes, students, and contacts will already be in your account upon login!
The next step is to compose an introductory message to send to your families. Introduce yourself and let families know that you will be using TalkingPoints to communicate with them. Simply click on the NEW MESSAGE button and select one of two options:
Send a class announcement to message all families in your class.
Send a direct message to a specific family or contact, or multiple families.
When selecting multiple families, each conversation thread is private. Families never see information about other families in the class.
To make your first introductory message easy, TalkingPoints has set up some templates you can use. You can find the templates under Suggested messages.
Did you know?
Families who are signed up for SMS text messages will receive a message that lets them know they can opt out of receiving your messages by texting GOODBYE or STOP at any time.
Families automatically receive text messages, but there is also a TalkingPoints | Families App that they can download.
More information:
Engage Your Families
There are multiple ways to engage your families once you have your classes set up.
Schedule and save messages as templates that you often send, like homework reminders.
Add photos, emojis, and other attachments.
Send full class announcements, or reach out individually to families via direct message.
The more you engage your families, the more support they can give your students. Families appreciate hearing from you!