New!  Share documents using Google Classroom

Blended learning just got easier!  Problem-Attic now gives you multiple ways to share documents with your students, including Google Classroom.

You’ll see the newest option for sharing on the Make PDF page.  The option is totally free and works with any document you create in Problem-Attic.  A related option for online tests and worksheets shows up on the Export page and is available to subscribers.  If you’re not a subscriber, you can try it in the Play Area.

Sharing PDF Documents

Previously, to make a PDF document available to students, the file had to be downloaded and then uploaded to a teacher website or attached to an email.  Downloading is no longer necessary, as Problem-Attic can host the file, and you can make it available to students just by sending them a link or clicking Google’s Share to Classroom button.

Here are the steps to follow:

1. Create or open a document in Problem-Attic.  Select any problems you like, and click the Arrange and Format tabs to change page layout, fonts, multiple-choice options, etc.

(If you haven’t used Problem-Attic in a while, you’ll notice the website has been redesigned.  Details are here.)

2. When ready, click Make PDF to preview your document.

3. If you’re happy with the appearance of your document, you can download the PDF file or click the new Share with Students button.



4. If you click Share with Students, the PDF file is saved “in the cloud”, and you’re shown a link to the document.  You can copy the link and email it to your students.  Or you can click and the link will be sent to Google Classroom.  (See below for more instructions.)

Sharing Online Tests and Worksheets

If you use the free part of Problem-Attic, you may not know that the program can deliver questions to student devices:  laptops, Chromebooks, tablets and smartphones.  We call this an “online test or worksheet”.  Problem-Attic has various options for scoring the questions, both multiple-choice and free-response.  Also, it can show results to students, which is great for self-paced learning or flipping your classroom.

Online tests and worksheets are always hosted by Problem-Attic, and links can be easily posted on a teacher’s website or shared through Google Classroom.  Here are the steps:

1. Create or open a document, as usual.  Select any problems you like, and click the Arrange or Format tab to change fonts, multiple-choice options, etc.

2. When ready, click the Export tab.

3. On the Export page, you’ll see various links and download buttons.  The slideshow options are explained in Problem-Attic’s online help.  The Quiz for LMS option is new and explained here.



4. You’ll see a link for an online test or worksheet.  Select “interactive” if you would like students to submit their answers, and select either one problem per page or a continuous document.  To view the online test or worksheet, click the link.

5. To make the link available to students, you have several options.  You can highlight and copy the link, then paste it in an email or add it to a class website.  Or, you can click and the link will be sent to Google Classroom.  (See below for more instructions.)

Share to Classroom button

The Share to Classroom button works the same in Problem-Attic as in other web apps.  After clicking it, you’ll be presented with Google’s own share pages.  Follow these steps:

1. Sign in to your Google Apps for Education account, if you haven’t done so already.

2. Click the Choose class button, then select the class you want to share to.

3. When prompted for an action, you’ll normally want to choose “Create an assignment”.

4. Add some brief instructions, click Post, and the link will go into your class stream.

To learn more about the Share to Classroom button, please see Google’s education support pages or click here.

Notes about Sharing

• The options described above are for delivering documents to your students only, in accordance with Problem-Attic’s Terms of Service.  To share with other teachers, use public document links, which are described here.

• If you share a PDF with your students, you may want the answer key turned off.  That is done on the Format tab.  You should make the change before clicking the Share with Students button.

• A shared document is not dynamic.  If you modify a document after sharing it, students will not automatically see the changes.  Instead, return to the Make PDF page and click the Share with Students button, or click the Export tab.  That will refresh a link to an online test or worksheet.  It is not necessary to share again through Google Classroom, but you may want to announce the changes to your students.

• It is sometimes necessary for Problem-Attic to clean up documents that have been shared and not accessed for a long period of time, or which are otherwise expired.  If students report that a link is no longer valid, then you should “refresh” the link by going to the Make PDF page and clicking Share with Students, or by clicking the Export tab.

We hope you like the new sharing features in Problem-Attic.  If you have comments or suggestions, please email us at support@problem-attic.com.  Thank you!