Teacher Portal

The Teacher Portal (part of the unified Member Portal) is where teachers see their schedule, pick lessons, prepare for classes, manage their availability, and handle substitute requests. This article covers everything teachers see and can do from the portal.

Accessing the Portal

Teachers sign in to your church's member portal with their TimelyChurch account. Teachers who serve on a team or teach a class see a Team section in the portal sidebar with My Schedule, My Groups, and My Tasks.

Teachers who also have admin access can switch between the admin interface and the portal. Older bookmarked links to the teacher dashboard redirect automatically to the portal, so teachers with old bookmarks still land in the right place.

My Schedule

My Schedule -- "Your serving and teaching, in one place." -- is the teacher's primary view. Switch between List, Calendar, and Availability at the top.

In the list, dates are grouped into This week, Later, and Past (Show past / Hide past). Teaching dates carry a Teaching label and show:

• The class and date.
• The lesson for that date -- click its name to open it -- or Add Lesson when none is assigned yet.
• Need a sub? to ask for a substitute.

At the top of the page you'll also find Pick up a slot (open spots you can volunteer for), Add to calendar, and Scheduling preferences.

Teachers see sessions for classes they lead and any sessions where they are the assigned teacher.

Choosing a Lesson for a Session

When a teacher's session has no lesson:

1. Go to My Schedule and click Add Lesson on that date.
2. On Select a Lesson, browse or search (Search lessons...) the Available Lessons. Click a lesson to preview its details.
3. Click Select Lesson (or Select This Lesson from the preview).
4. The lesson is linked to the session and the teacher can open its materials.

Teachers see approved lessons here. Draft and archived lessons are not shown.

Creating a Lesson

If the church allows teachers to create lessons (Allow teachers to create lessons in Lesson Settings):

1. On Select a Lesson, choose Create Your Own Lesson.
2. Fill in the lesson form -- Lesson Title, Scripture Reference, Description, Learning Objectives, Supplies Needed, and any files or links under Materials & Resources.
3. Click Create & Assign Lesson.

"Your lesson will be submitted for review by an admin before appearing in the lesson library for others to use." It shows as Pending Review until an admin approves it, and it is already assigned to the teacher's session.

Requesting a Substitute

When a teacher cannot make a class they have confirmed:

• Quick: on My Schedule, click Need a sub? on that date.
• With a reason: open the lesson for that date, click Need a substitute?, add an optional Reason, choose Normal or Urgent, and click Send Request.

The team is notified automatically. For full details, see Substitute Teacher Requests.

Covering for Someone Else

Teachers can volunteer to cover for colleagues from My Schedule:

• You've been invited to sub -- requests sent to you personally. Click Accept to take the class, or Decline.
• Substitutes needed -- open requests for anyone. Click I'll Help to take the class. If you are already teaching that day, the request shows Already Teaching instead.

Once you accept, you are the teacher for that date and class.

Confirming or Declining an Assignment

When you are scheduled to teach, you get an invitation (on Telegram if linked, otherwise by email) and the date appears on My Schedule with Confirm and Decline buttons.

• Confirm -- locks you in. No further reminders are sent.
• Decline -- hands the date to the replacement flow, which invites the next person (see Teacher Scheduling).

Teachers can also respond straight from the email without signing in.

Viewing a Lesson

When a teacher opens a lesson from their schedule, they see:

Lesson Content

• Description, learning objectives, scripture reference, and supplies needed.
• Duration and age group.

Materials & Resources

• Uploaded files (PDFs, images, documents) to download.
• External links to online resources.

Quick Actions

• Add a Task -- personal reminders for the teaching day, like "bring craft scissors", with an optional due date and priority. They also appear on My Tasks.
• Request Supplies -- ask church leadership for craft supplies, snacks, or materials (Items Needed, urgency, notes). Past requests are listed under My Supply Requests.
• Need a substitute? -- see above.

If a substitute takes over the class, its supply request conversations move to the new teacher.

Profile and Certifications

From My Profile (the account menu), teachers can:

• Upload or change their profile photo.
• Change their password.
• Keep their Certifications up to date -- Background Check, CPR Certification, First Aid, Safe Sanctuary Training, Child Protection Training, Mandated Reporter Training, or Other -- each with issue and expiration dates and a supporting document. See Teacher Certifications.

Notification choices are on Notification Settings in the same account menu -- see Notifications.

Availability Management

Teachers manage their unavailable dates from within My Schedule:

1. Open My Schedule from the portal navigation.
2. Switch to Availability using the List / Calendar / Availability control at the top of the page.
3. Tap any upcoming Sunday to toggle it between Available and Blocked.
4. Away for a longer stretch? Use Block a date range, choose From and To, and click Mark unavailable.

For recurring days off, preferred days, or a limit on how often you serve, click Scheduling preferences. Admins see teacher availability when making assignments.

Viewing Team Members

Teachers can view the other members of their teams and classes:

1. Click My Groups in the portal sidebar.
2. Open a group to see its member list and leader.

Notifications

The portal notification center shows teaching assignments, lesson-needed reminders, sub request alerts (both open requests and personal invitations), and confirmation reminders. Click Mark all read to clear them.

Messages

The portal includes Messages, where teachers can read and reply to conversations with admins and other members -- including supply request conversations -- and start a New message. See Messages.

Quick Reference: What Teachers Can Do

Related Articles

• Teacher Scheduling
• Substitute Teacher Requests
• Teacher and Parent Lesson Views
• Lessons (for Teachers)