Skyward is our district's Student Information System for accessing grades, report cards, attendance records, and food service accounts.
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TECHNOLOGY TROUBLESHOOTING, TIPS, & TRICKS
Skyward, Clever, Empower, Microsoft 365, Laptops, PDF Editing
Lost password? Contact your student's teacher or office.
Other Technology Questions? Contact the elearning_help desk
Office hours: M-F | 7 am-4 pm
Phone: (217) 639-1035
***Please include in your message the student's first and last name, school, grade level, and a short description of the technology issue.
SKYWARD
CLEVER
Clever is simply a dashboard connecting students to multiple online programs in one central place. Learn more about it in this video.
Students often access Nearpod, GreatMinds InSync, Raz Kids, Lexia, Freckle and more through Clever!
EMPOWER
Empower is our district's Learning Management System for accessing assignments, turning in work, and seeing how well students are meeting standards. Each student has a unique login and password, and each guardian has a unique login and password.
Parents: view this QUICK GUIDE to the Empower learning platform
MICROSOFT 365
Outlook (email)
Word
PowerPoint
Excel
OneDrive
Teams
HOW DO I SIGN IN TO MICROSOFT 365?
To access this account and its apps anytime, go to www.office.com and sign in with your school-issued email address and password.
Example: 25smithj@charleston.k12.il.us)
To switch to other apps, click the waffle (app launcher) shown below
TEAMS (LIVE MEETINGS)
Teachers can meet with students and parents virtually using the Teams app.
If you have any trouble with your microphone or camera, please refer to the "Laptop" section of this page.
OUTLOOK (EMAIL)
For security purposes, students can only send and receive emails to other @charleston accounts.
Email attachments are limited to 20MB.
This handout explains how to send an email and include an attachment.
ONE DRIVE (CLOUD STORAGE)
Cloud storage makes files more easily accessible no matter where you are or what device you are using. You can also share files with other classmates and teachers.
When uploading a file to OneDrive, the limit is 100MB.
This handout explains how to upload and share files in OneDrive and how to submit them to Empower.
Use the OneDrive app to scan documents and pictures with your phone. Read this to learn how!
The Office app is another way to scan documents, edit, and share with others. Watch this video to learn more.
WORD, POWERPOINT, EXCEL
When you first access Word, PowerPoint, or Excel, you may see the following screen. Be sure to "Sign In" with your school email and password.
If you are signed into Microsoft but are still unable to edit files, follow these directions to Activate Microsoft.
The app versions of Word, PowerPoint, and Excel have limited capabilities. Click the Editing button and choose "Open in Desktop App" to have the full version of the program!
LAPTOP
Each student is issued a Dell laptop and is responsible for keeping it in proper working condition.
Elementary students will keep theirs in the classrooms, but middle and high school students will travel between home and school with theirs.
WHAT SHOULD I DO IF A CONTENT KEEPER MESSAGE APPEARS WHEN I'M AT HOME ON MY WIFI?
Enter your Microsoft username (ex. 32smithj) and password. It may take more than one attempt to login before it will work.
WHAT SHOULD I DO IF I CAN'T GET SIGNED IN TO MY DEVICE?
Enter your Microsoft user name (ex. 32smithj) and password. Remember that passwords are case-sensitive. If you still have trouble, contact the elearning_help line.
DOES CLOSING THE LID SHUT OFF MY LAPTOP?
No, this just puts your computer to sleep and doesn't allow it to properly restart and install important updates.
HOW SHOULD I POWER DOWN MY LAPTOP?
Click the Start button, click on Power and choose Shut Down. When you're ready to use it again, just press the power button on the laptop.
HOW DO I CHECK TO SEE IF MY LAPTOP NEEDS TO BE UPDATED?
Click the Start button, click Settings, then click on Update & Security.
It will indicate if your device is up to date or if you need to check for updates and then restart your computer to complete the installation.
It is important that the laptop periodically connects to the district WIFI to receive updates as well.
HOW DO I MAKE A SOUND RECORDING WITH MY LAPTOP?
Click the Start button, then scroll down to find the Voice Recorder app and choose it. Click the blue button to start a recording. The file will save in your Documents/Sound recordings folder.
HOW DO I TAKE A PICTURE OR A VIDEO WITH MY LAPTOP?
Click the Start button, then scroll down to find the Camera app and choose it. The file will save in your Pictures/Camera Roll folder. Review this handout for more details.
HOW DO I TAKE A SCREENSHOT WITH MY LAPTOP?
Review this handout to learn how to use the Snip & Sketch app.
WHAT SHOULD I DO IF MY SOUND/CAMERA/MICROPHONE ISN'T WORKING?
As shown in this video, right-click on the sound icon in the bottom-right corner and choose Open Sound Settings.
For Output sound, click "Manage sound devices"; under Output device, click on "Speakers/Headphones" and use the Test button.
If you still don't hear anything, bring the device to Central Office to be checked by the Tech Department.
In the Input section, look for "Test your microphone" and see if, when you talk, the blue bar moves to recognize the sounds.
If not, click "Manage sound devices"; under Input device, click on your microphone and be sure it is Enabled.
If you still have trouble, bring the device to Central Office to be checked by the Tech Department.
WHAT HAPPENS IF MY COMPUTER NEEDS REPAIRS?
This handout explains the steps of the repair process, including the use of a loaner device until yours is returned.
Replacement costs for lost/damaged devices:
Case $25
Keyboard $30
Charger $40
Screen $80
Laptop $250
HOW DO I TAKE GOOD CARE OF MY DEVICE?
PDF EDITING
The Portable Document Format (PDF) is a file format that allows the document to be viewed and printed the same way on any device. Many paper worksheets and resources that teachers used to distribute as a physical copy now have to be distributed in PDF format. When you open a PDF file, by default it opens in the browser Microsoft Edge, and you are very limited in what you can do to the PDF file.