Create a Class in MS Teams

How to Create Microsoft Teams Breakout Rooms

In this guide we are going to discuss how you can use a Microsoft Teams Team, to enable you to have a main meeting or lesson in Teams, where the attendees then split out into Breakout Groups or Rooms for collaboration work, and can then rejoin the main meeting at the appropriate time.

Breakout Rooms

Within a Team you can setup channels to function as breakout rooms during a meeting. Pre- load files to each breakout room for students to work on, access files from breakout rooms to share in main session, provide a whiteboard for students to access during a breakout session, and seamlessly transition between breakout sessions.

Step 1: Create a Class in MS Teams

1. Select Teams in your left rail to view your teams
2. Select Join or create team > Create a new team.

3. Select Class.

4. Enter a name and optional description for your team, then select Next.

5.Once you've created the Class team, please add students as team members.

Step 2: Create Channels

6. Click the ellipses next to the Team name

7. Select Add channel

8. Enter a Channel name

9. Enter a Description

10. Leave Privacy on the Privacy – Accessible only to a specific group of people within the team.

11. Click Next

12. Add members to the channel.

Step 3: Breakout Room – Meet Now

13. To join the group breakout room while you and students are in the lecture meeting, click the group channel, and select the Video icon (Meet now.) Do not end the lecture meeting. Teams will put the lecture meeting automatically to hold.

Note: Students also use the same step to join their group meeting.

14. Visit different rooms when starting the breakout part so you can help people who have issues. Moreover, as an active facilitator you may want to make visits during the breakout as well.

15. You can join 4 Teams meetings at the same time (3 of those will be on hold) which allows you to quickly switch between 4 rooms. If you have more than 4 rooms -> have people to assist you with this.

16. Meetings organizer (who created those meetings) can use “End meeting” functionality when breakouts are done.

• Using team and channels has it’s pros:

1. Materials are easy to share – all team members have access to materials, even if they are guests.

2. You don’t need to share meeting URLs – people can join in directly via channel

3. Chat is always available for everyone