eBackpack Tips

1. If students need to bring items offline in eBackpack, they can do so by tapping on the wrench while the assignment is open, and selecting offline.  eBackpack is currently working to bring all assignments that are up to 2 weeks old automatically offline. So, you may see some assignments with green thumb tacks next to them.  This does not change how eBackpack and the assignments will work online.  It just makes them available without wifi as well.  However, in order to have access to offline items in eBackpack when students get home, they must keep the app running in the background.  Students can use other apps and work in other places on the iPad, but eBackpack should not be closed.  Do not double tap the home button and flick the app to the top of the screen. 
2. If students need to revise a paper that was submitted in eBackpack, they can certainly do that. Students can open the graded work and tap on Open Submitted File to get to the original document.  Students can then highlight, write, and insert text boxes on the document. However, if you want students to make changes that do not look like revisions (you want the paper to look like it is a clean draft), you will want them to open the document in whatever app they created it in (for example, open it in Pages).  Teacher markings and comments will be gone, and students can add text, remove text, etc. just like they could when they created it.
3. If eBackpack begins to act a little wonky, students can tap on the settings icon at the top left of the screen.  Then, have them tap on Clear Cache at the bottom of the box.  This should clear things up and make things run more smoothly.
4. If a pen in eBackpack begins to erase text near it, have students change the color of the pen. This should fix the problem.  Color choices on the top row work better than those at the bottom.
5. When viewing assignments, students can tap on Complete or Not Completed at the bottom right of the screen to see what assignments they turned in and marked as being done and those they have not finished or marked in that way.  Some students think they have lost assignments because they only see those that are marked as completed.