Heading image for Staff Notebooks in Microsoft Teams and OneNote

A OneNote Staff Notebook in Microsoft Teams is a digital notebook that helps teachers facilitate collaboration, save time and keep everything organised and in one place.  At Cloud Design Box, we provision Staff Notebooks in Teams, automatically placing the right staff into their departments and subjects so they can always access their Staff Notebooks from … Read more

Teacher sat at a desk in the classroom with a desktop computer. Using Microsoft Class Teams Assignments and Class Notebook

Microsoft has released some much-anticipated features to Teams that make delivering quality teaching and learning even easier. Ranging from invisible feedback to deleting sections in Class Notebooks, these new features have been long-awaited by many teachers and schools. In the video, Joe gives you a roundup of all the best new features. Invisible Feedback. Providing … Read more

Create Eye-catching announcements in Microsoft Teams

Announcements in Microsoft Teams are great for highlighting content for a whole class or department. In this guide, we show you how to post an eye-catching announcement in your Teams channels, alongside some time-saving tips. How to post an announcement in Teams. You can create an eye-catching, customised announcement post with a coloured background in … Read more

Cloud Design Box logo with VR and AR learning illustration.

Ian Stuart from Avantis Education talks about the power of Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality in teaching and learning. Avantis has supported teachers with classroom technology for almost two decades and now boasts a diverse range of education products, including LearnPad, ClassCharge, ClassConnect and ClassVR. In this podcast episode, Cloud Design Box’s Darren Hemming … Read more

Cloud Design Box logo with promotional image for Viva Adaptive Cards feature.

The new Microsoft Viva Connections Dashboard allows you to create adaptive cards that give users easy access to key information and quick actions in Teams and SharePoint.   We’ve already spoken about the power of Microsoft Viva Connections in a previous blog. But, in short, the simple way of describing Viva Connections is “A SharePoint … Read more

Title image for Post a document as news on a SharePoint site. Man with tablet sat reading news. A coffee is on the table.

Posting a document as news on SharePoint is a great way to share important information and resources with a large group of people. For example, you can share policies, handbooks, revision material, or any other useful information that your school, trust or organisation may need to be informed about. Here’s an example of staff handbook … Read more

Two men on a video call, one with headphones, in a professional setting.

The Director of Digital Learning at Lingfield College talks about the school’s plan to roll out 1:1 devices, and the challenges and benefits that come with digital transformation.  Lingfield College is a co-educational independent school in Surrey for pupils aged two to eighteen. Stefan Hagen is the Director of Digital Learning and works with his … Read more

Teacher using Microsoft Teams Assignments to provide video feedback to students

Microsoft Teams Assignments uplifts static documents by introducing real-time feedback from tutors. Assignments is available in Class Teams and is a dynamic tool with useful features like calendar integration and point system tracking, as well as the ability to add verbal feedback for students. How to leave feedback on Microsoft Teams Assignments: Open Microsoft Teams … Read more

10 Must-Have Ideas For Your Class Teams Home Pages

Class Teams Homepages have arrived – allowing teachers and educators to create an engaging central hub for their classes within a few quick clicks. In this blog, we’ve rounded up our best ideas for what to include in your Class Teams Homepage. Not sure how to get started with Class Teams Homepages? We cover how … Read more

Class Teams Home Pages Everything You Need To Know To Get Started

The new homepage feature in Microsoft Class Teams allows you to create homepages within Microsoft Teams for each class, filled with the latest announcements, pinned class resources, upcoming assignments, recently edited class files and much, much more. The good news is that this doesn’t take much time to set up – it’s mostly automatically generated … Read more

Attach Microsoft Forms to Teams Assignments

Microsoft Forms are a great way to engage students in their learning and get them to reflect on a recent lesson or revise a topic for an upcoming exam or assessment. In this guide, we show you how to attach a Form to a Microsoft Teams Assignment. With Forms, you can make interactive quizzes for … Read more

Title image for How to convert a Word Document or PDF to a Microsoft Form. Young child with parent looking at a computer screen as they complete homework.

The new Import functionality in Microsoft Forms allows you to import your existing Word and PDF documents and turn them into interactive forms. Note: This function is not currently available on Office.com. Instead, you need to be on forms.office.com. (correct at the time of publishing September 2022).  Converting Word and PDF documents to Microsoft Forms is … Read more

Title image for Spend less time in your email inbox with Microsoft Teams and SharePoint. Woman stood resting on her desk while looking through her busy email inbox on her phone. In the background there is a framed illustration, stack of books and a laptop.

Are you opening your email inbox to hundreds of emails and nowhere near enough time to go through them?    The constant ping of email notifications can be overwhelming, and it’s easy to miss, overlook and lose vital information.    And, because most people are in the same boat, there’s a high likelihood of your … Read more

Title image for A new look for CDB Portal allowing you to manage SharePoint and Microsoft Teams from one central place

The CDB Portal is designed to make life easier for our customers. It’s a central space where school leaders and administrators can manage SharePoint and Teams. Users with permissions can create new SharePoint sites, organise class cover and generate assignment analytics reports in just a few clicks.   Recently, we’ve given it a brand new look, … Read more

Title image for How to cut the chaos out of collaborating in Microsoft Teams. Three teenage students sat around a laptop and collaborating on a school project. One is holding a pen and notebook.

The collaboration space in Class Notebook allows students and teachers to work together on a learning resource in real-time. This is a great opportunity for students to get more involved in working as a group as they can add text, digital ink (drawing) and insert images and videos. Although letting your class loose on a … Read more

Title image for collaboration channels in Microsoft Class Teams. Three students sitting and working on a group project, one has a laptop, the other two have notebooks.

A collaboration channel in Class Teams is a great way for students to communicate and collaborate on projects in a safe and controlled way. Teachers can create a workspace for group work and add resources so students can work on projects together. The collaboration channel allows you to oversee your students’ progress. How to add … Read more

Businessman analyzing documents at desk with whiteboard in background.

The ability to hand in work on behalf of students in Microsoft Teams Assignments has been long-awaited by teachers, alongside being able to view assignment history of individual students.  In this guide, we show you how to view assignment history and submit student work as a teacher in Teams Assignments. How to view assignment history … Read more

When working in Microsoft Teams, each Class Team that you’re a member of contains a tab where important subject resources can be viewed. Access a resource library for your class by selecting the tab at the top of your Class Team. In this example, it’s a Year 11 English student accessing their Year 11 English … Read more

School child sat at a table on a laptop. There is a red phone in the foreground

Reflect check-ins in Class Notebook are a brilliant way for teachers to get a good understanding of which students may need additional support or guidance.  Meanwhile, reflecting on learning is good practice for students to build self-awareness and take ownership of their own education.   In this guide, we show you how to insert a … Read more

Title image for Getting best value from Microsoft 365 for Education with Jonathan Bishop. Darren Hemming and Jonathan Bishop talking on the podcast.

In this podcast episode, we speak with Jonathan Bishop, the CEO and Executive Headteacher of The Cornerstone Academy Trust (TCAT), about getting the best value from Microsoft 365 for Education. TCAT is based in the southeast of England and comprises four primary schools. Their motto “Fortune Favours the Brave” is undoubtedly reflected in their forward-thinking approach … Read more

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