Support

Signing Up

How do I create a teacher account?

Signing up is easy. Visit poptential.org and click “Teacher Login” in the upper right corner. A page will open asking you to sign in or create an account. To create an account, fill in your name and email address, scroll to find your school, then create a password. Clicking “Submit” should automatically take you to your dashboard where you can access the Poptential ebooks. If you do not see the dashboard, click “Dashboard” in the upper right corner.

My school isn’t listed, what can I do?

We are adding more schools every day. If your school isn’t listed, don’t worry, you can still use Poptential. Simply leave the “Select School” field blank and continue with your registration.

Can I sign up if I’m a homeschooler?

Absolutely! Follow the instructions to create a teacher account. For your school, scroll down until you find “Homeschool” and select that as your school.

Is verification needed after I create an account?

No verification is needed. We do not require employment at a school in order to allow homeschool teachers to access our free materials.

Can students access a teacher account?

We do not direct students to our website. If a student does create a teacher account, contact support and we will switch the setting to “student.”

What if I forget my password?

If you have already registered but forgot your password, click the “Forgot Password?” option below the black “Submit” bar.

How do I access ebooks?

Once you log in, your teacher dashboard containing all of the ebooks will load. Simply scroll down to the ebook you need.

How do I share ebooks with students?

There are a couple ways you can share ebooks with students:

  • If you are using an LMS, click “Share Student Edition” under the book you would like to share. Then, go to your LMS and paste the link in the feed for the course.
  • To send through email, click “Share Student Edition” under the book you would like to share. Then paste the link into an email to your students.

What happens after I share an ebook with students?

Once you share an ebook with students, either through an LMS or via email, students will click on the link you shared and use any username they create. We suggest you tell students to bookmark the page for easy future access.

Can I have both a teacher and a student account?

Some teachers like to have both accounts so they understand what students see. In order to do this, we recommend creating a student account from a different computer. That’s because our website will remember your initial login and may direct you back to your teacher account. The main difference between teacher and student accounts is that the teacher resources—tests, quizzes, discussion questions, etc.—are locked and cannot be accessed by students.

Using Poptential

How do I add materials to the teacher dashboard?

As a teacher, you have full access to all Poptential material.

Where do I find teacher resources (tests, quizzes, primary source activities, mini-lessons)?

The teacher resources are embedded within the modules.

How do I access the answer keys for tests and quizzes?

The answer keys for quizzes/tests are listed below the quiz/test and end in AK (answer key).

Where is the code for ebooks?

See How do I share ebooks with students? and How do students add more than one ebook to their account?

How do students add more than one ebook to their account?

Next to the ebook you’d like to share, click the orange “Share Student Edition” button to copy the link. Paste the new link to your LMS or share via email. Once students click on the new link, students who already have an account will use the same username to sign in, and the new book will be added.

How do I print guides or content?

If you need to print parts of the course, please contact support.

How do I download courses?

Poptential courses are designed to be used online. If you have a special need to print or download courses, please contact support.

Can students access ebooks offline?

Our ebooks are browser based; therefore, internet access is needed to access the ebooks.

How do I assign Bell Ringers to students?

Teachers can share Bell Ringers with students by copying and pasting the URL of the Bell Ringer into your LMS platform. Students must have an account in order to access bellringers since they reside on our ebook platform.

Can I use Poptential with Canvas?

Poptential can be used with Canvas or any LMS. Simply copy and paste the ebook code into the LMS feed.

Can I import lessons to a calendar, like Google or Outlook?

We currently do not provide that functionality.

How can I access resources in Spanish?

Teachers can switch from English to Spanish in the American History and Government courses by clicking on the Globe icon in the upper right corner.

Do you have a standard curriculum map (NCSS standards)?

All of our books are standards based, but we do not have them mapped at this time to any particular standards.

What is the appropriate age/grade level for each class?

While the curriculum is targeted to the high-school level, it can also be adapted for use by middle school or college educators.

Should I teach the classes in a particular order?

Most high schools follow the following schedule:

  • Grade 9: World History
  • Grade 10: American History
  • Grade 11: Economics
  • Grade 12: Government

That said, nothing in the organization of the materials prevents you from following a different order.

About Certell/Poptential

Is this really free?

Yes! Certell’s Poptential course packages are completely free for teachers and students.

Who is funding this?

Certell is a nonprofit funded by donors who believe all teachers and students should have access to quality curriculum. Our donors do not influence or control the content that we produce and distribute. You can learn more about Certell at www.certell.org

Does this curriculum include critical race theory?

Teachers like Poptential because it is free from bias. Virtually every module of our World and American History curriculum includes topic-relevant mini-lessons on race, social organization (class), and other issues pertinent to that module’s topic. We believe this is the appropriate way to assure that our content addresses important and controversial subjects, without becoming partisan or ideological.

Do you collect student data?

We do not collect any personal data on students.

Is there/will there be a Certell app?

That is something we are working on providing in the future.

Can homeschoolers use Poptential?

Yes! See Can I sign up if I’m a homeschooler?

Is Poptential appropriate for students with special needs?

Depending on the needs of students, Certell is able to make some accommodations. Please contact support for specific needs.

Troubleshooting

Course/ebook not opening

Since Poptential is browser-based, it may be necessary to clear your browser history and cache to fix loading problems.

Sign in/log in issues

If you are having difficulty signing in, you can reset your password. To do that, click on the “Forgot Password?” option below the black “Submit” bar. If you continue to have problems, please send us a message.

No sound on videos

Please contact support and include the location (book, module, section) of the video.

Students unable to sign in

Students should be able to create a user name/sign in once they copy the link into the browser. If they continue to have problems, please ask them to send us a message.

How to turn off highlighting

You can remove highlighting, notes and bookmarks by clicking on the highlighted section and selecting the garbage can.

What if I have other questions?

If you don’t see your question answered here or need support, we’re here to help. Contact us.