Create and manage breakout rooms during class meetings

Before you get started, make sure you have the desktop app

You can create meetings in any version of Teams, but you'll need Teams for Windows or Mac to create breakout rooms for your students. Students can join from any version of Teams.

Next, schedule a meeting or Meet now

1. Select Calendar > + New meeting. You must be the meeting organizer in order to create and manage breakout rooms.

2. Choose a channel to meet in or add students from your class as attendees.
   
   Note that any meeting options you select before or during your meeting will apply to meetings with breakout rooms as well. Learn more about meeting options.

Create breakout rooms before meeting

1. Go to your Teams meeting and open the meeting invite. 

2. Go to Breakout rooms ​​​​​​ and select Create rooms.

3. From the dropdown, choose how many rooms you'd like to create.

4. Select Assign participants and choose whether you'd like students to be assigned to rooms Automatically or Manually.

As soon as the meeting starts, you can open the breakout rooms.

Create breakout rooms during meeting

1. Join your meeting at its scheduled time and wait for your students to join. 

   Important: Make sure you join your meeting from the Teams desktop app (Windows or Mac) so you can create breakout rooms.

2. When your students have joined and you are ready, select Breakout rooms from your meeting controls.

3. From the dropdown, choose how many rooms you'd like to create.

4. Choose if you'd like students to be assigned to rooms Automatically or Manually.

5. Select Create Rooms.

Assign participants to rooms

If you chose Automatically, participants will be assigned to different breakout rooms.

If you chose Manually, you'll be able to sort participants into specific rooms:

1. Select Assign participants. From this window, organize participants by selecting the down arrow next to Name or Room.

2. Group students together to place in a particular breakout room by selecting the checkboxes next to their names.

3. Select the down arrow next to Assign and choose a room for them.

4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until each student has been assigned to a room.

5. Select Confirm.
   
   If students join the class meeting late, you can still assign them to a room by selecting Assign participants.

Rename rooms

Name your breakout rooms to represent smaller student groups or projects.

1. Select Breakout rooms .

2. Hover over the room and select More options > Rename room.

3. Type in the new name and select Rename room.

Set a time limit for the breakout session

Keep your class on schedule and aware of the time they have left by setting a timer. A timer will be visible in each breakout room. When time is up, breakout rooms will close automatically, and your students will return to the main class meeting.

1. In the meeting controls, select Breakout rooms .

2. Select Rooms settings .

3. Select Set a time limit. Select the down arrow and choose a session length.

4. When you're done, select the back button to save your changes.

Start breakout rooms

First, select Breakout rooms .

To start rooms individually:

• Hover over the room and select More options > Open room.

To start rooms all at once:

• Select Open.

You'll know rooms have successfully opened when their status changes to Open.

Join a breakout room

To join a room and check on its progress:

1. Select Breakout rooms .

2. Hover over the room and select More options > Join room.

3. Select Return when you're ready to leave the breakout room and return to the main meeting.

Send an announcement to breakout rooms

Once breakout rooms have started, send announcements to share time updates or prompts.

1. In the meeting controls, select Breakout rooms .

2. Select Make an announcement .

3. Type in your announcement and then select Send.

4. Students will receive a notification in their meeting chat for your announcement.

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Move students to different rooms

Move participants to different breakout rooms individually.

1. In the meeting controls, select Breakout rooms .

2. Select Assign participants and select the checkbox next to the person's name you want to move.

3. Choose a new room for the person and select Assign, then Move.

Chat with participants in a breakout room

Each breakout room will have its own chat. You and your students will be able to access it from your chats list and from Chat in the breakout room, just like regular meetings.

• Students will be added to a breakout room chat when you open the room and removed when the room is closed.

• You will have access to all breakout room chats.

• After a breakout room is closed, so is the chat; no more messages can be sent.

• You and your students can still access chat history and shared files after the breakout room is closed.

Add or delete a breakout room

To add an additional breakout room:

• In the meeting controls, select Breakout rooms .

• Select Add room .

• Add participants to the room using the instructions above.

To delete an individual breakout room:

• In the meeting controls, select Breakout rooms .

• Hover over the room, select More options  > Delete room.

To delete all breakout rooms at once:

• In the meeting controls, select Breakout rooms .

• Select Remove rooms > Remove.

Close breakout rooms

When you close a breakout room, the participants will automatically return to the main meeting.

To close rooms individually:

• Select Breakout rooms .

• Hover over the room, then select More options > Close room.

To close rooms all at once:

• Select Breakout rooms .

• Select Close.

You'll know rooms have successfully closed when their status changes to Closed.

• Select Resume when everyone is back from their breakout rooms and you're ready to meet as a larger group again.

Save files, recordings, and notes from breakout rooms

Files, recordings, and notes from a breakout room can be accessed in its chat. You and your students will be able to access these materials after the room has closed, but students will not be able to continue chatting or add additional materials.

Edit breakout room settings

To edit settings, select Breakout rooms > Rooms settings .

• Automatic room setting

By default, breakout rooms will be set to automatically move students into opened rooms. If you'd like to change this setting, switch the toggle for Automatically move people into opened rooms to off.

When the automatic setting is turned off, students will receive a message asking them to join a breakout room. They will need to select Join room before being moved.

• Allow students to return to main meeting

By default, this setting will be off. To turn it on, switch the toggle next to Participants can return to the main meeting on.

This will allow students to leave their breakout rooms and return to the main meeting.

Recreate rooms from scratch

Reconfigure rooms and assignments by returning to the meeting controls and repeating the breakout room creation process.

1. In the meeting controls, select Breakout rooms .

2. Select Recreate rooms and confirm your decision.

3. Follow the instructions mentioned in the beginning of this article to create new breakout rooms and assign students to rooms.