How Students Use Microsoft Teams for School

Microsoft Teams for Education is where many students find their class materials, submit assignments, join video lessons, and message their teachers — all in one place.

In this guide (6 steps):

1.Sign in and join your class team
2.Find and read course materials
3.View and submit assignments
4.Join a class video meeting
5.Check your grades and feedback
6.Message your teacher or classmates

Sign in and join your class team

~33s

Open Microsoft Teams (the app or teams.microsoft.com) and sign in with your school email address and password. If your teacher shared a join link, click it to enter the class. If they gave you a code, click "Join or create a team" on the Teams page, select "Join a team with a code," enter the code, and click Join. The class will appear in your Teams list on the left side.

Quick Tip

Quick Tip: Your school email usually ends in your school's name followed by .edu — for example, student@lincoln.edu. If you are unsure of your credentials, contact your school's IT help desk.

Find and read course materials

~31s

Click on your class team and look at the tabs at the top of the screen. The "Posts" tab shows announcements and discussions. The "Files" tab is where teachers upload documents, slides, and reading materials. You can also look for a "Class Notebook" tab, which is a shared OneNote notebook where teachers post notes organized by topic or week.

Quick Tip

Quick Tip: Pin important files to your own Teams account by right-clicking a file and selecting "Pin." Pinned files appear at the top of the Files tab so you do not have to search for them each time.

View and submit assignments

~33s

Click the "Assignments" tab at the top of your class. You will see a list of all assigned work, including due dates and whether each assignment is complete. Click any assignment to see the full instructions and any attached files. When you are ready to turn it in, attach your completed file or type your response in the text box (depending on how your teacher set it up), then click the "Turn in" button.

Warning

Clicking "Turn in" submits your work immediately. Make sure your file is fully complete and saved before turning it in. Some teachers do not allow resubmissions after the due date.

Join a class video meeting

~33s

When your teacher starts a class video call, you will see a notification in Teams and a "Join" button in the class's Posts channel. Click Join to enter the meeting. Before entering, you will see a preview screen where you can turn your camera and microphone on or off. During the meeting, use the "Raise Hand" button (a hand icon in the meeting toolbar) to let the teacher know you want to speak without interrupting.

Quick Tip

Quick Tip: If your internet connection is slow, turning off your camera (while keeping your microphone on) can significantly improve call quality for everyone in the meeting.

Check your grades and feedback

~18s

After your teacher grades an assignment, click the Assignments tab and look for assignments marked as "Returned." Click the assignment to see your grade and any written feedback from your teacher. For detailed comments on a document, open the attached file — teachers can leave comments directly in Word documents or PDFs through Teams.

Message your teacher or classmates

~30s

To send a private message to your teacher, click the chat icon (speech bubble) on the left sidebar in Teams, then click "New Chat" and type your teacher's name. Type your message and press Enter to send. For class-wide discussion questions, post in the General channel of your class so all classmates and the teacher can see and respond.

Quick Tip

Quick Tip: When messaging a teacher, always include your full name, class name, and a clear description of your question. Teachers often teach many classes and may not immediately recognize your account name.

You Did It!

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Microsoft Teams for Education is the version of Teams that schools use to run their digital classroom. If your school uses Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365), your teachers may be posting assignments, sharing documents, and hosting video lessons through Teams. This guide explains the key parts of Teams that students use most.

When your teacher creates a class in Teams, they will give you either a link to join or a 6-digit team code. Once you join, the class appears in your list of Teams and you can access everything the teacher has shared.

Teams is available as a desktop app for Windows and Mac, a mobile app for iPhone and Android, and a web app you can use in any browser at teams.microsoft.com. The desktop app generally works best for video calls and assignments, but the mobile app is convenient for checking notifications and reading materials on the go.

One thing that confuses many new users is the difference between a "channel" and a "chat." Channels are spaces within a class team — your teacher might have a General channel for announcements, a Homework Help channel, and so on. Everything posted in a channel is visible to the whole class. Chat (private messages) are one-on-one or small group conversations that only the people in the chat can see.

If your school uses both Teams and another system like Canvas or Schoology, Teams is usually where live communication and video calls happen, while the other system handles grades and assignment submission. Ask your teacher which system to use for turning in work.

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