Managing Students in Answers VBS

AnswersVBS provides powerful student management tools at MyAnswers.com to help you keep track of registrations, organize students into teams, and manage all the data that comes with running a VBS—especially when you have many students attending.

1. Log into MyAnswers.com

2. Navigate to the People section

3. View three categories: Students, Volunteers, and Coordinators

Students Section Summary:

• Shows total number of registered students

• Provides quick action buttons

• Displays new student notifications

Available Actions:

• Manage All Students

• Add a Student

• Manage Attendance

Click Manage All Students to access the main student management interface.

You don't need to use the public registration form to add students. The registration form is built right into the admin tools.

To Add a Student:

1. Click Add a Student button

2. Complete the form with student information

3. Form includes all fields from your customized registration form (if you have the Plus version)

4. Check "Add multiple students" to register siblings together

5. Click Register Student

6. Students appear immediately in your list

This is particularly useful when parents register by phone or submit paper forms.

New students are highlighted in the list until you complete their setup (such as team assignment). The system displays a count of new students at the top of the page.

Click on any student to view their complete information:

Information Displayed:

• All registration form responses

• Team assignment

• Grade level/age group

• Emergency contact information

• Allergy information

• Any custom fields you added

Mobile-Friendly Features:

MyAnswers.com works seamlessly on mobile devices (phones and tablets).

Quick Contact Buttons:

• Phone Button: Tap to automatically initiate a call to emergency contact

• Email Button: Tap to open default email client

• Instant access to critical information during VBS

To Make Changes:

1. Click the Edit button on a student's detail page

2. Form becomes editable

3. Update any information

4. Save changes

Common Use Cases:

• Parent calls to correct registration error

• Update emergency contact information

• Add allergy information

• Change grade level or team

This is a critical distinction in the AnswersVBS system.

Purpose: Classification by grade or age level

Characteristics:

• Display on registration form

• Parents select during registration

• Used for curriculum organization

• Managed in Settings > Age Groups

Customization Options:

• Add new age groups (e.g., Preschool)

• Remove unused age groups

• Reorder age groups

• Show/hide age groups on registration form

Hidden Age Groups: Create exclusive age groups that you manually assign but don't display on the registration form. Useful for special programs or VIP groups.

Purpose: Groups that move through stations together with a leader

Characteristics:

• Actual rotating groups during VBS

• Can include one or multiple age groups

• Can be gender-specific

• Managed in Settings > Teams

Default Setup: One team per age group (works well for smaller VBS events)

Customization for Smaller VBS:

• Create teams with multiple age groups

• Example: One team for 1st and 2nd graders combined

Customization for Larger VBS:

• Create multiple teams per age group

• Example: Three different 3rd grade teams

To Edit Teams:

1. Navigate to Settings > Teams

2. Click Edit on any team

3. Select which age groups the team includes

4. Optionally assign gender to team

5. Save changes

Team Gender Assignment:

Setting team gender enables automatic team assignment based on both age and gender, helping organize students efficiently.

Default Setting: Enabled (can be turned off in Event Settings)

Process:

1. Student completes registration

2. System identifies selected age group and gender

3. System finds teams matching those criteria

4. Student is automatically assigned to appropriate team

Load Balancing: If multiple teams match the criteria, the system assigns the student to the team with the fewest members, helping equalize team sizes.

• Saves time during busy registration periods

• Automatically organizes students

• Balances team sizes

• No manual sorting required

When to Use Manual Assignment:

Turn Off Auto-Assignment If:

• You want complete control over team placement

• You need to keep siblings together

• You have special considerations for certain students

• You prefer hands-on management

To Disable Auto-Assignment: Navigate to Event Settings and turn off the auto-assign teams option.

With Auto-Assignment ON:

• Students are immediately assigned to teams

• No "new student" notifications for team assignment

• You may still receive email notifications about registrations (if enabled)

With Auto-Assignment OFF:

• New students appear highlighted in the list

• "Assign to Team" button appears

• System prompts you to assign teams manually

• Count of unassigned students displayed at top

To Assign One Student:

1. Click Assign to Team button next to student's name

2. View assignment interface

Assignment Interface Shows:

• Student's name and grade level

• Available teams

• Teams matching student's age group and gender (highlighted)

• Radio buttons to select team

Making Selection:

1. Choose appropriate team

2. Click Save

3. Student is assigned and notification clears

To assign multiple new students at once:

1. Click Assign to Team button at top of page

2. System walks through each unassigned student

3. Make selections for each

4. Process entire group efficiently

Search Capabilities:

• Type student name (first or last)

• Results filter automatically

• Quickly locate specific students

Example: Search for "Billy" to find Billy in a large student list.

Display only students matching specific criteria:

Filter by Team:

• View only Peru team members

• See students in South Africa team

• Isolate any team

Filter by Age Group:

• Show only 3rd graders

• Display all 5th graders

• Any grade level

Filter by Status:

• New students (unassigned to teams)

• Recently registered

Filter by Gender:

• View only boys

• View only girls

Combine Filters: Use multiple filters together for precise results.

Print Roster: Create a complete student list for reference.

Print Name Tags: Generate name tags for all students (covered in this article).

Download Student List (Plus Version): Export complete student data to Excel (covered in separate video).

To Use Bulk Actions:

1. Check boxes next to desired students

2. Access Actions dropdown

3. Choose action

Available Actions:

• Assign to Team: Assign multiple students to teams at once

• Print Name Tags: Generate tags for selected students only

• Remove Students: Delete multiple registrations

The student management tools in AnswersVBS help you:

Stay Organized:

• Centralized student information

• Clear team assignments

• Easy access to emergency contacts

Work Efficiently:

• Quick student addition

• Automatic or manual team assignment

• Powerful search and filter tools

• Bulk actions for common tasks

Stay Mobile:

• Access information on any device

• One-tap emergency contact

• Quick updates on the go

Maintain Flexibility:

• Customize age groups and teams

• Choose automatic or manual assignment

• Edit information as needed

• Accommodate VBS of any size

These comprehensive tools ensure you can effectively manage your students and make your VBS a success this year, whether you have 20 students or 200.