How to run a group project with Microsoft Whiteboard

Whiteboard offers a great way for students to work together on group projects, especially when using it together with Microsoft Teams. 

To get started, create a group chat in Teams. From there, students can add a Whiteboard tab to their chat to ideate and progress on their project. Whiteboard is a great place to brainstorm, capture ideas, draw insights, and track action items. 

Key features:

  • Use the Brainstorming templates to get started
  • Inking helps to get the creative juices flowing
  • Insert images from your computer to add rich visuals
  • Organize your thoughts with colorful sticky notes
  • Collaborate on any device using the input method of your choice — keyboard, mouse, touchscreen, or pen
  • Participate as little or as much as you want with a spectrum of tools — including reactions, sticky notes, text boxes, and ink

Sample group projects in Whiteboard

Set up groups in Microsoft Teams

  1. To keep group work private, use group chats rather than a team or a channel within Teams.
  2. Either create group chats for each group (with yourself included in each), or instruct your students to do so.
  3. To add a whiteboard to the chat, select the ⁠+⁠ button at the top of the screen in the chat window, search for Whiteboard, select it, and then click Save.
  4. The Whiteboard associated with the group chat can now be accessed from the chat directly, or from the Whiteboard app.

During the project

  1. Provide instructions to your students about how they should use the whiteboard for the project. For example, clarify if the whiteboard will be turned in as a part of the project, or if it’s simply available as a workspace during the project. 
  2. Inform your students of the Whiteboard features they can use, such as Brainstorming templates, shapes, image insertion, inking capabilities, and so on. 
  3. Encourage your students to use the whiteboard during meetings to interact and brainstorm together in real-time.
  4. If your students have questions, they can invite you to the whiteboard by either adding you to the chat, or by sending you a Whiteboard share link.

After the session

  • If the Whiteboard is supposed to be turned in, have your students invite you to the board. Alternately, have them create a PNG image of their board from the Settings menu and then send it to you.

See also

Check out our other Whiteboard guides to learn more!