Getting Started: Classroom Activities

Desmos Classroom products (Classroom Activities, Activity Builder, Computation Layer and the Desmos Math 6-A1 Program) are now part of Amplify Education. For the most current Desmos Classroom help center resources please visit Amplify’s help center.

The most accurate version of this specific article can be found here.

 

At Desmos, our mission is to help every student learn math and love learning math. With that in mind, we’ve assembled a collection of unique and engaging digital activities at teacher.desmos.com.

Learn more about: Student Experience | Teacher Dashboard | Finding Activities | Creating Classes | Assigning Activities

 

How to Run Your First Lesson.

Step 1: Pick an Activity

Visit teacher.desmos.com, scroll down to the featured activities, and pick an activity (we highly recommend Floats and Anchors and DinoPops).

Step 2: Assign the Activity

Once you select an activity, hit the Assign button. Here you’ll have two options: 1) Assign to Your Classes or 2) Single Session Code. If you already have your class set up, select option 1. If you’re just getting started, we recommend option 2.

Step 3: Share It With Your Class

Once you create your code, find your activity's teacher dashboard by scrolling down to Activity Sessions and selecting View Dashboard. You can either share the invitation link or the 6-letter code for students to join on student.desmos.com.

Step 4: Teach Your First Lesson With Confidence

Now you’re ready to start teaching. Start your first lesson with confidence, knowing that Desmos is here to support you each step of the way as you guide students to aha moments and celebrate their brilliant thinking.

 

What will Desmos activities look like for students?

Students will learn by interacting with mathematical representations, illustrations of the world, and their classmates. They’ll represent their developing ideas with sketches, text responses, card sorts, number responses, multiple choice, and more.

Gif of a student typing in a number and a scale filling.

Click Student Preview on any activity to experience it as a student.

Student Preview button highlighted on an activity page.

 

What will Desmos activities look like for teachers?

Teachers will learn about their students from the teacher dashboard, which you can access after you assign the activity.

Learn more about using the Teacher Dashboard.

Teacher dashboard for an activity.

 

How do you find an activity?

The most common ways to find an activity are:

  1. Finding out about one from a helpful colleague in person or online.
  2. Looking through featured collections on teacher.desmos.com.
  3. Searching for an activity on teacher.desmos.com.

You can create collections to organize activities you’d like to run with your students. When you find an activity, press the + button and select one of your collections.

Learn more about searching for activities.

Most Popular and Featured Collections links in the teacher sidebar.

 

How do you create classes?

Create classes to assign activities to the same group of students throughout a school term. Students will use an invitation code to join the class at the beginning of the term.

Learn more about creating classes.

Manage classes page

 

How do you assign an activity?

Once you’ve created your classes, go back to the activity page and assign the activity. Your dashboard will be empty until students join.

When students log in on student.desmos.com, they will see any new activities you’ve assigned to the class.

Learn more about Desmos Student Accounts.

Assign button highlighted on activity page.

 

Next Steps

If you have any questions or feedback as you begin your journey with Desmos, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us by emailing support@desmos.com.

Ready to get started? Head back over to teacher.desmos.com.

Was this article helpful?
495 out of 705 found this helpful