Technology » Parent Square Resources

Parent Square Resources

Watch a quick video or complete a parent training module to get started using ParentSquare today! The videos and training module below are designed to help you tour ParentSquare and set your preferences.

Parent Training Module - designed to take 15 minutes and covers the things you need to know about using ParentSquare as a parent!

 

Getting Started Parent Video

Activate Your Account 

Your school will send an invitation email or text to join ParentSquare. Users can click the link to activate their account. See below for examples of what these activation links will look like. Users can also register through our app or using Google single sign-on. 

Email Activation Example

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Text Activation Example:

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Sign In with Google
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Register on our ParentSquare App (iPhone or Android)

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Download our FREE ParentSquare app for iOS or Android.

This video will walk you through the ParentSquare app.

Downloading the mobile app is the easiest way to receive all Posts, Events, Sign Up Requests, Photos and Files. Enable app notifications to be notified when a message is posted.  

 

 

iOS App - Apple Store

Android App - Google Play Store

 

Use the camera on your phone to scan these QR codes - it takes you directly to the App or Google Play store.

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Update Mobile App

Make sure you are updated to the most recent version of the ParentSquare app. For information on how to check the version number and update the ParentSquare app, click here. 

In order to keep your contact information up-to-date, your school may need you to verify your information.  

Article in Spanish: Puede ir aquí para acceder al artículo de ayuda en español.

Contact Verifications at Your School

ParentSquare works with your school to keep contact information accurate. You can view, confirm or suggest corrections to your contact information. If you are both a staff member and parent, you can combine accounts.

What You Need to Do

  • Update Apps: Update your iOS or Android ParentSquare mobile app to the latest version. Some features may not work on older versions. Click here for help with updating.  
  • Sign In: Sign in to ParentSquare.  
  • Confirm: You may be asked to confirm your contact information. Follow the instructions, and to confirm, a verification code will be sent that is valid for 10 minutes. 

How to Confirm Your Contact Information

Confirm Using Web Browser

  1. Log in to your main ParentSquare account.
  2. If you have unverified contact information, you will see one or more contact cards under, "Action Required: Confirm Your Account Information".
  3. Confirm Email and/or Phone. Click:
    • Confirm Email or Phone:  A verification code will be sent to the email or phone number. Enter verification code to confirm.
    • Edit Email or Phone:  Correct your email and/or phone number. A verification code will be sent to your corrected email or phone number. Enter verification code to confirm.
    • Skip For Now: You will be able to verify or correct your contact information the next time you sign in. (You'll continue to receive notifications.)
  4. Confirm Child(ren). Click Confirm or Not My Child for each child.
  5. Confirm your name and school affiliations. Click Yes, this is me or This is Not Me.  

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  6. If you clicked Skip For Now on any information on a contact card, you will not see the choice, "Yes, This is Me", and must select Skip For Now or This is Not Me.

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  7. Your school will be notified of corrections in order to update their student information system. After school updates information, it will show in your account. Depending on your school’s settings, you may see the corrected email or phone number immediately in your account or the following day.

Confirm Using Mobile App

  1. Log in to your main ParentSquare account.
  2. If you have unverified contact information, you will see one or more contact cards under, "Action Required" and "Confirm Your Account Info"
  3. Tap arrow to right of Email and Phone to confirm or edit.

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  4. Select ConfirmEdit or Skip For Now. Repeat for phone number. 

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    • Verify Email or Phone: Tap Confirm. A verification code will be sent to the email or phone number. Enter verification code to confirm.
    • Correction to Email or Phone: Tap Edit and enter correct email and/or phone number. A verification code will be sent to your corrected email or phone number. Enter verification code to confirm.
    • Skip For Now: You will be able to verify or correct your contact information the next time you sign in. (You'll continue to receive notifications.)
  5. Confirm Child(ren): Select Confirm or Not My Child for each child.
  6. Tap Yes, this is me or This is Not Me.
  7. If you select Skip For Now on any information on a contact card, you will not see the choice, "Yes, This is Me", and must select Skip For Now or This is Not Me.
  8. Your school is notified of corrections in order to update their student information system. After school updates information, it will show in your account. Depending on your school’s settings, you may see the corrected email or phone number immediately in your account, or the following day.

Users can fine-tune their notification settings for both school and notification types. For General Announcements, you can select Digest, Instant, or choose to turn off notifications altogether (excluding emergency alerts and notices) for email, text, and app notifications.

These settings allow a secondary parent/guardian contact to turn off all notifications except for emergency alerts (particularly useful if their partner parent/guardian manages school-related daily activities).

ParentSquare allows users to customize their notifications based on notification type and select their preferred delivery method for each school. The Instant setting will send all post notifications in real-time. The Digest setting sends direct messages, alerts, and time-sensitive posts instantly, but sends all non-time-sensitive posts at the end of the day, reducing the number of notifications you receive daily. (We recommend the Digest setting.)  

Notification types include:

  • Emergency Alerts & Notices include any urgent alerts and attendance notices (cannot be disabled).
  • General Announcements & Messages includes any posts, direct messages, and reminders.
  • School Alerts include any Smart Alerts and other student notices.

For General Announcements, you can select whether you want to receive Instant or Digest notifications.

  • Off: no notifications about posts will be sent to you. Emergency Alerts and Notices will still be sent, and School Alerts if turned on.
  • Instant: you'll receive an email and/or text and/or an app notification every time notice or message is sent.
  • Digest: you'll receive an email and/or text and/or an app notification once a day in the evening with all posts from that day.

The default setting is typically Digest so that you receive all notices and messages in one convenient notification once a day. All emergency notifications still come through instantly, and a school can override settings as needed for an urgent message. If you choose Instant notifications and have multiple children in multiple schools, that can add up to a lot of messages.

 

Update your Notification Settings (using web browser)

  1. From Home, click your name and select My Account.

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  2. Under Notification Settings, click Customize your settings.

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  3. Choose your preferred Notification Settings for General Announcements & Messages (Off, Instant, or Digest) and School Alerts (On or Off). Once you've made selections, future messaging will send based on your preferences.

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  4. If you have multiple emails or phones listed on your account, set the order of your preferred contacts to receive notifications. Notifications will only be sent to one email and one phone on your account.

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    Note: the “Choose Best Match” setting will select the most relevant email and phone to send the notification to. Notifications related to the student/parent will go to the personal email/phone, while notifications intended for staff only will always go to the staff email/phone. Posts sent to both staff and parents will default to the parent email/phone.

 

Update your Notification Setting (using mobile app)

  1. From home screen tap the triple bar menu at top left.
  2. Select Account and then Notifications.

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  3. Select how you want to be notified at each school.
    - Turn OFF Custom Settings to use the same notification settings for all schools.
    - Turn ON Custom Settings to set different notifications at each school.
  4. Toggle on or off to receive Email, Text and/or App Notifications.
  5. Select Instant or Digest for each mode. Note: Digest is recommended – you will receive one notification per day, for all posts, in the evening.

    notifications_custom_off_iOS.png      notifications_custom_on_iOS.png

Q: How do I combine existing accounts? 

  • If you receive an invitation email or text, this may mean that you have more than one account. Open the invitation and click the link Sign in to Combine Existing Account. You can also combine accounts later in My Account settings.

 

Q: Can I still log in using the same email or phone number as before?

Yes, you can log in using the same information as before.

 

 

Q: Will I be sent through this process every time I log in?

No, after you complete the verification process, nothing else is needed unless your contact information changes.

 

 

Q: Can users share an email and/or phone number?

Yes, family members can share an email or phone number and yet have different accounts. However, if one account is a staff account, they can only be accessed with staff email/phone.

 

 

Q: How does a user sign in when they share an email or phone number with another user?

If you are using the same email/phone AND password or Google Sign In, when you sign in you will select your own name. 

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Q: Can parents have more than one email or phone number?

Each contact (staff or parent record) has only one email and phone associated with it. A parent account can have multiple contacts, with multiple emails and phone numbers if they have different emails/phones for each child in the school database or across districts. Staff who are also parents can have multiple emails/phones. 

After verifying your contacts, you can set your preferred order of contacts in which to receive notifications

 

 

Q: How does a staff user sign in that is also a parent?

Staff will need to sign in using their staff contact information. If they enter their (shared) parent contact information they will get this message, "The email/phone you entered is linked to a staff account but is not your staff email/phone. Please use your staff email/phone.”

 

 

Q: Can I add my own email and phone number?

You are ONLY allowed to add an email or phone if none exists. Otherwise you can only edit existing emails/phones.

 

 

Q: How can I confirm my contact information if I skipped it when I signed in?

  1. The next time you sign out and then sign in again, you'll be asked to verify your contact information. 
  2. OR, when you are signed in to ParentSquare, click on your name in the upper right and select My Account. Go to the yellow box, Missing kids, schools or contact info? and select Confirm Contact Info.

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  3.  Follow the steps above to confirm.

Q: I never received my verification code by email or text, can I have it resent?

For security purposes, email and text verification codes are only valid for 10 minutes after they are requested. If you need another code, click Resend Code.

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If you are still unable to receive the verification, try these notification troubleshooting tips.

 

 

Q: What happens if a parent or guardian accidentally rejects their child (clicks Not My Child) during verification?

If you're a parent or guardian, please contact your school.

 

 

How to contact your school. 

If you've tried all the above troubleshooting tips and still have questions, please contact your school. 

  1. Click ? icon next to your name, then select Contact School.

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  2. On the mobile app, tap the three bars at top left, then tap Help. 

Using a Website Browser

  1. From Home, click the down arrow next to your name, in the upper right.
  2. Select My Account.



  3. Click on Language Settings in the left hand sidebar.

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  4. Select your preferred language from the drop down menu and click Save. 

Change Menus to Spanish

To change the application menus to Spanish, click Español in the top menu bar. (To change back, click Englas.)  Note: Spanish and English are the only languages available for the application menus.

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⬇️

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Using the Mobile App  

Follow the steps below to change the language for Posts and Messages sent to you.

  1. From Home, tap the triple bars (menu) in the upper left.

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  2. Select Account, then Preferences. 

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  3. From the Preferences screen select Language.

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  4. Choose your preferred language. You will receive all post messages in your preferred language.

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Change Language Used by the App

To see how to change the language in the App (UI) and menus, visit:
-  
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204031 for iOS 
-  https://www.androidcentral.com/how-change-system-language-your-android-phone for Android

 

Also, see Manage Your Account Settings for a quick guide on how to set your language preference and other account settings.