Frequently Asked Questions

An iPad version of TeachTown: Basics is under consideration, however we are not there quite yet. In the meantime, there are a number of 3rd party applications that allow an iPad to be connected to a laptop or desktop computer so that it functions like a touchscreen monitor. Many of our users have successfully run TeachTown: Basics on an iPad using this technique.

Here are two iPad applications you might consider trying:

• Air Display
• SplashTop Streamer

And, Please click here to read instructions on setting up TeachTown: Basics using the applications noted above.

TeachTown: Basics is a safe, cross-platform (Windows, Mac, Linux) software application that you install on your computer. It isn't a website. TeachTown: Basics can be fully installed from our website in less than a minute by going to our Downloads area. You may also install TeachTown: Basics from a DVD if you prefer. Upon activation of your child / student's account the application will then automatically download all the media required to run the application.

Please see our System Requirements section.

TeachTown: Basics is designed for students with a developmental age of 2 to 7 years.

TeachTown: Basics has 6 learning domains: Adaptive Skills, Cognitive Skills, Language Arts, Language Development, Mathematics, and Social and Emotional Skills.

All of the On Computer Lessons and Off Computer Activities fall into one of the six learning domains.

If your student is initially placed too low in the TeachTown: Basics curriculum, the software will recognize that and correct it. Every time your student begins a new lesson in TeachTown: Basics they are given a pre-test to determine how well they understand the material in the lesson. If your student passes numerous pre-tests in a row they will be advanced in this domain to more difficult lessons. Once your student fails a pre-test they will be placed on the standard progress track. If your student passes the pre-test they will automatically be given the next lesson in that domain. That way your student will never take a lesson that is below their developmental level.

If your student is initially placed too high in the TeachTown: Basics curriculum, the software will recognize this and correct for it. As your student continues to use TeachTown: Basics, the software will give your student easier lessons until your student begins to succeed. At this point, TeachTown: Basics will begin to present more challenging lessons.

Yes, use Facilitator Selected Lessons. If you choose to start a session for your student using Facilitator Selected Lessons the computer will only give your student the lessons you chose. This allows your student to work on specific concepts that you feel they still need to learn.

Follow the steps below to choose lessons for your student:

1. Launch TeachTown: Basics and Log In.
2. Select your student.
3. Click CURRICULUM at the top of the page.
4. Click CHOOSE FACILITATOR SELECTED LESSONS.
5. Click ADD LESSONS at the bottom of the page.
6. Select the box in the Add column next to the lesson you want to add.
7. Repeat Step 4 to add more lessons.
8. Click DONE.
9. Review the lessons you chose.
10. Click DONE.
11. This takes you to the Home Page.

To start a computer session using Facilitator selected lessons:

1. Click START STUDENT SESSION at the top of the page (see Figure 1, Number 10 in the Reference Guide).
2. Click USE FACILITATOR SELECTED LESSON at the top of the page.
3. Set the session length by doing one of the following:
   • Select the box next to By Number of Lessons. Use the drop-down menu to set the number of lessons.
   • Choose the number of minutes from the drop-down menu to set the session length. (See Section 13.1 in the Reference Guide for more information about setting the session length.)
4. Click CONTINUE.
5. Hold down the (left) mouse button and press the “T” key.
6. The TeachTown map will appear. This is the beginning of the student session.
7. When the student session ends, or if you need to end a session early, hold down the (left) mouse button “T” key to exit the student session.
8. This takes you to a Session Report that summarizes your student’s session.

Yes, each time you start a session for your student, simply choose either Computer Selected lessons or Facilitator Selected Lessons. If you choose to start a session for your student using Facilitator Selected Lessons the computer will only give your student the lessons you choose. This allows your student to work on specific concepts that you feel they still need to learn.

Follow the steps below to choose lessons for your student:

1. Launch TeachTown: Basics and Log In.
2. Select your student.
3. Click CURRICULUM at the top of the page.
4. Click CHOOSE FACILITATOR SELECTED LESSONS.
5. Click ADD LESSONS at the bottom of the page.
6. Select the box in the Add column next to the lesson you want to add.
7. Repeat Step 4 to add more lessons.
8. Click DONE.
9. Review the lessons you chose.
10. Click DONE.
11. This takes you to the Home Page.

To start a computer session using Facilitator selected lessons:

1. Click START STUDENT SESSION at the top of the page (see Figure 1, Number 10 in the Reference Guide).
2. Click USE FACILITATOR SELECTED LESSON at the top of the page.
3. Set the session length by doing one of the following:
   • Select the box next to By Number of Lessons. Use the drop-down menu to set the number of lessons.
   • Choose the number of minutes from the drop-down menu to set the session length. (See Section 13.1 in the Reference Guide for more information about setting the session length.)
4. Click CONTINUE.
5. Hold down the (left) mouse button and press the “T” key.
6. The TeachTown map will appear. This is the beginning of the student session.
7. When the student session ends, or if you need to end a session early, hold down the (left) mouse button “T” key to exit the student session.
8. This takes you to a Session Report that summarizes your student’s session.

No. TeachTown: Basics stores your student’s data on our secure server at all times. Even if you suspend (deactivate) your student’s account the data will not be deleted. This allows you to reactivate your student at any time and still have all their data.

TeachTown: Basics refers to all adults on your student’s educational team as facilitators. To add a new facilitator, you need their email address. TeachTown: Basics sends an email inviting them to be a facilitator on your student’s account. They accept the invitation by clicking on a link in the email. If the new facilitator does not have a TeachTown: Basics account, they must create a facilitator account online at www.teachtown.com.

Do not share your login information with anyone. This protects the confidentiality of your student’s account.

You can add as many facilitators as are appropriate for your student. There is no cost to become a facilitator in TeachTown: Basics.

TeachTown: Basics recommends that you add all members of the student’s educational team as facilitators. This includes teachers, paraeducators, Speech and Language Pathologists (SLP’s), Occupational Therapists (OT’s), parents, behavior analysts, etc.

There are two ways to add a facilitator. You can do it using the TeachTown: Basics software, or by visiting www.teachtown.com.

Steps in the Software:

1. Click MANAGE TEAM at the top of the page.
2. Click ADD FACILITATOR.
3. Fill in the new facilitator’s information.
4. Click SEND INVITATION.
5. Click OK.
6. This takes you back to the Manage Team Page.
7. Click Close in the orange bar to go back to the Home Page.

Steps via the website:

1. If you’re already in the program, click the school house icon next to TEACHTOWN from any of the facilitator pages to go directly to the website.
       Or
   Go to www.teachtown.com if you’re not in the program.
2. Click LOG IN
3. Click VIEW MY STUDENTS
4. Select the student that you want to add a Facilitator to.
5. Click MANAGE TEAM.
6. Click ADD A FACILITATOR.
7. Fill in the new facilitator’s information.
8. Click SUBMIT.
9. Click OK.

An email will be sent to the new facilitator asking if they want to accept or decline working with your student. You will receive an email notifying you whether the new facilitator accepted or declined your invitation.

Each building in the TeachTown Map represents a subset of lessons from the curriculum.

When your student is at a point where no lessons are currently available for a particular building, that building fades out to eliminate that choice. For example, if you are using Facilitator Selected Lessons you might not have chosen a lesson from each building. Therefore when your student begins their session, the building with no lessons will be faded.

If your student chooses a building far more often that the other buildings, that building will be faded (and not available as a choice) until your student has chosen more lessons in the other buildings.

For convenience, we offer a printed version of the Off Computer Activities to all TeachTown: Basics customers. Anyone can purchase the printed Off Computer Activities binder by calling us at (800) 283-0165. Classroom purchases of 10 or more licenses include the printed Off Computer Binders with purchase.

Off Computer Activities are also downloadable in the software in Adobe PDF format, although you will need to print those from your own printer.

TeachTown: Basics automatically recommends Off Computer Activities for your student based on lessons your student is taking and has already completed on the computer.

Off Computer Activities can be found inside the program. You can print Off Computer Activities from TeachTown: Basics.

Follow these steps to locate activities in TeachTown: Basics:

1. Login to TeachTown: Basics with your username and password.
2. Select the student that you wish to do the Off Computer Activity with.
3. Click CURRICULUM at the top of the page.
4. Click VIEW OFF COMPUTER ACTIVITIES.
5. Click RECOMMENDED OFF COMPUTER ACTIVITIES.
6. Use the Scroll Bar or the Search Bar to search for activities.
7. Click the PDF icon next to the Off Computer Activity you want to view.
8. This takes you to the Off Computer Activity you chose.
9. Click Close in the orange bar when you’re done.

The first thing to do is to make sure that your computer’s clock is set to the correct date and time. If that is not the problem, contact support@teachtown.com and provide the following information:

• What is the exact text of the message that you received?
• Have you been able to connect to the TeachTown servers with this computer in the past?
• What company provides your Internet service?
• Do you use dial up or broadband?
• What kind of anti-virus programs do you have installed on your computer?
• Is your computer’s clock set to the correct date and time?

Some of the lessons from previous versions of TeachTown: Basics had their names changed. The purpose of the name changes was to more accurately describe what the lesson involved or to match the lesson to other naming conventions. For example, all matching lessons should now have the word ‘Match’ at the beginning of their names.

Some of the lessons from previous versions of TeachTown: Basics had their names changed. The purpose of the name changes was to more accurately describe what the lesson involved or to match to other naming conventions. For example, all matching lessons should now have the word ‘Match’ at the beginning of their names.

TeachTown: Basics 2.0 has both added rewards and taken some out. Rewards that were less popular with students were removed.

With the introduction of the new TeachTown: Basics characters, many rewards now feature the new characters. You will find Jelly, Ginger, Pico and Mochi in many of your students’ favorite old rewards.

As soon as you launch TeachTown: Basics 2.0, you will immediately see a difference. The facilitator pages have been redesigned. A main goal of the redesign was to make the program easier for facilitators to navigate the program. We created a navigation bar containing 10 drop down tabs that are available on all facilitator pages. The drop down bars allow you to move quickly from one page to another. We also added a QuickStart feature that allows you to start a session for your student in just a few steps.

The way the program collects and analyzes student data is still the same. The program will still choose lessons that are developmentally appropriate for your student.

Your student will have a similar experience to what they had with the previous versions. The TeachTown Map has been upgraded but your student still chooses a building, goes into a lesson, receives rewards, and ends their session the same way as before.

We’ve added new characters: Jelly, Ginger, Mochi and Pico. The characters are in the lessons, rewards, and the Off Computer Activities.

We’ve also added over fifty new On Computer Lessons. These lessons cover new areas for TeachTown: Basics 2.0 such as Sequencing and Multiple Choice Questions. The lessons that were already in the previous version are still there, but the pictures have been updated. Along with these new computer lessons, we have updated our previous Off Computer Activities and added over 150 new ones.

Deactivated students can’t use TeachTown: Basics. The student’s facilitators can’t view the student’s data or reports. However, a deactivated student’s data is not deleted. TeachTown: Basics stores your student’s data on our secure server at all times. This allows you to reactivate your student at any time.

A deactivated student will still appear on your screen if you’re viewing All Students. However, a deactivated student will have an exclamation mark in a triangle next to their name, indicating they are inactive. You can also view just your inactive students by choosing that option from the My Students tab.

Credit Card Customers:

Payment for your student will not be fully deactivated until you contact customer support by emailing support@teachtown.com or by calling 1-800-283-0165. Please provide your name, phone number and the student’s name.

Steps:

1. Click CURRENT STUDENT at the top of the page.
2. Click STUDENT PROFILE.
3. Click EDIT BILLING.
4. Click DEACTIVATE.
5. Click OK.
6. This takes you back to the Student Profile.
7. Click Close in the orange bar to go back to the Home Page.

Organizational Customers (school districts, clinics):

If your student is moving to another organization that is currently using TeachTown: Basics or would like to consider using TeachTown: Basics for this student, the data and payment options can be transferred to the accepting student's organization. Contact TeachTown for additional information by emailing us at clientservices@teachtown.com or by calling us at 1-800-283-0165.

Steps:

1. Click CURRENT STUDENT at the top of the page.
2. Click STUDENT PROFILE.
3. Click EDIT BILLING.
4. Click DEACTIVATE.
5. Click OK.
6. This takes you back to the Student Profile Page.
7. Click CANCEL to go back to the previous page or click Close in the orange bar to go to the Home Page.

All sensitive student data is transmitted between the client application and our server via a secure encrypted connection over the HTTPS protocol. This is the same technology that is used from on line credit card processing and financial institutions.

Our back end database is a robust commercial Relational Database Management System that is located behind a secure firewall located in a high security data center. All data is backed up regularly to multiple geographic locations for safety and redundancy.

No plugins of any kind are required for any browser. You will need to have Adobe Reader installed, which most computer already have installed.

Our client application communicates with www.teachtown.com over standard HTTP and HTTPS ports. Nothing else is required.

It must be possible for the client application to reach www.teachtown.com over standard ports.

Information is transmitted between client and server via web services over encrypted HTTPS. Typically the format is HTML or JSON.

Only authorized TeachTown subscribers have access to student data via reports that are available behind a secure login. If data is used for purposes of research it is fully anonymized.

Yes. For Windows, there is a self-contained installer that can be downloaded and run silently using command line arguments. Click here to download the Windows installer. This executable can be run from the command line like so:
...>TeachTownBasics_Win_Setup.exe /S /D="c:\Program Files (x86)\TeachTown"

The silent installer should be suitable for rapid deployments via Group Policy in a Windows network environment.

For the Mac there is a self-contained Disk Image (DMG) that can be downloaded. Click here to download the Mac installer. This is not a silent installer, but it is bundled with everything necessary for a Mac installation.