How to share online lessons, recorded videos and live class links

Most teachers who teach online already have their tools. Recorded explanations sit on a YouTube channel, live classes run on Google Meet or Zoom, and worksheets are PDFs on someone's laptop. The hard part is getting the right link to the right families at the right time. Links end up spread across group chats, emails and old messages, and a parent five minutes before a live class cannot find the one that matters. SkoolBro now has a Lessons tab on each class that keeps these links in one place per class and subject.

What a lesson holds

Open a class and go to the Lessons tab. A teacher posts a lesson for a subject they teach in that class. Each lesson can have:

• a title, such as "Fractions: adding with different denominators",
• notes, for what to read, watch or prepare,
• a photo or a PDF, such as a worksheet or the slides,
• a link, either to a recorded video or to a live class on Google Meet or Zoom,
• a live class time, if the link is for a live class.

Links must start with https://. SkoolBro refuses a link that does not, which keeps out mistyped addresses and links that browsers would warn about.

Posting a recorded lesson

Mr Rossi teaches Grade 7 Mathematics at Lakeside Secondary, a fictional school. He records a short video on fractions and uploads it to the school's YouTube channel as he did before. In SkoolBro he opens Grade 7, goes to Lessons, and adds a lesson for Mathematics with the title, two lines of notes ("Watch before Thursday. Try the three examples on the worksheet."), the worksheet as a PDF and the YouTube link. Families in Grade 7 can now find it in the Lessons tab of the portal.

Posting a live class

Ms Haddad teaches Grade 7 English. During a week of school closures she runs live classes on Google Meet. She creates the meeting in Google Calendar as usual, copies the meeting link, and adds a lesson in SkoolBro for English with the link and the live class time, Tuesday at 10:00. A Zoom link works the same way.

If the live class is recorded, she can post the recording afterwards as a new lesson with the video link, so students who missed it can watch later.

What families see

In the family portal, each child has a Lessons tab. Upcoming live classes come first, in time order, so the next one is always at the top. Other lessons follow below.

• A live class shows a Live now mark from 15 minutes before it starts until two hours after the start time.
• Each lesson has a button: Join live class for a live class, or Open lesson for a recorded one.
• The button shows which site the link opens, such as youtube.com or zoom.us, so a parent knows where they are going before they tap.

Files on a lesson are private. When a family opens one, SkoolBro gives a short-lived link that stops working after a few minutes.

What SkoolBro does not do

SkoolBro does not host or stream video. It has no online tests, no quizzes and no course builder, so it is not a learning management system. If your institution runs full online courses with graded assignments, keep using the tool you have for that and post the links in SkoolBro where families already look for the class's work.

Lessons sit next to the class's diary, homework and timetable, so a family that checks tonight's homework also sees tomorrow's live class. The class diary is explained in how to use the diary for classwork, homework and notes.

Who can post and remove lessons

A teacher can post lessons for the subjects they teach in a class, and can remove their own lessons. The school office can remove any lesson, for example a live class link that was posted to the wrong class.

For colleges, academies and training institutes

Coaching centres and academies often run evening batches online, and training institutes may share theory videos before a practical session. The Lessons tab works the same way for each, and the menus use your own words, such as batch, course or learner, once you have chosen your type of institution. Our article on digital tools for vocational education discusses where online material fits for trades taught mainly at the bench. Every class feature is listed on the school management system page.

A routine that works

1. Post a live class lesson at least a day before it starts, with the time set, so families see it at the top of the Lessons tab.
2. Use one meeting link per lesson. Reusing an old link makes it hard to tell which class a parent should join.
3. Give each lesson a clear title with the topic, so it is easy to find weeks later.
4. After a recorded live class, post the recording as its own lesson for students who missed it.
5. Remove lessons that were posted by mistake, so the tab only shows what families should use.

Questions

Does SkoolBro host or stream the videos?

No. You keep your videos where they already are, for example on YouTube, and your live classes on Google Meet or Zoom. A lesson in SkoolBro holds the link, the notes and any file.

Can I set online tests or build a full course in SkoolBro?

No. SkoolBro has no online tests and no course builder. Lessons are notes, files and links kept next to the class's diary, homework and timetable.

Why was my link refused?

Links must start with https://. Copy the full address from the video or meeting page, including the https:// at the start.