You can give your lesson straight from the browser, without downloading an app. All the lesson tools are there: audio and video, screen sharing, the whiteboard, quick questions, raise hand, chat, locking the door, and the phone camera.
Start the lesson
- Sign in on hessety.com and open Account.
- On the class's card, click Start lesson.
- The "Check your camera and mic" page opens. The first time, your browser asks for permission to use the camera and mic: click "Allow". Then choose your camera and mic, and check that your picture shows and the sound meter moves when you speak.
- Click Start lesson. Students who have their links open join on their own, and students with the Android app get a notification.
Your students only hear that the lesson has started when you click Start lesson in the last step, so take your time getting your camera and mic ready.
The check page shows your name and email. If they aren't yours, don't start the lesson: sign out of that account and sign in with your own.
Which browser should I use?
| Device | Browser | Screen sharing |
|---|---|---|
| Computer or laptop | Chrome or Edge (best), or an up-to-date Firefox or Safari | Yes |
| Android phone | Chrome | No |
| iPhone or iPad | Safari | No |
- On a phone you can teach from the browser, but without screen sharing, and keep the page open in front of you for the whole lesson. If you teach from an Android phone all the time, the Hessety app is easier.
- If you opened the page inside WhatsApp or Facebook, open it in Chrome or Safari instead. The browser inside those apps doesn't run the camera and mic well.
During the lesson
The buttons at the bottom of the page:
| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| Mic and Camera | Turn your sound and picture on and off. |
| Share screen | Shows a tab, a window or your whole screen to your students. On a computer only. |
| Whiteboard | Write and draw in front of your students with a mouse, a pen or your finger. |
| Quick question | Ask "Got it?" or a multiple-choice question, and see the answers in seconds. |
| Students | Who's here and who has a hand raised. From here you can let a student speak or remove them. |
| More | Lock the door, the phone camera, and changing your mic or camera. |
| End | Ends the lesson for everyone, or you leave on your own and the lesson keeps running. |
The chat is in the side panel. On a phone there are fewer buttons, and the rest are under More.
Share your screen
- Click Share screen.
- Your browser asks what to show: a tab (like a PDF or a website you have open), a window (like PowerPoint), or your entire screen.
- Choose one and click "Share". Your students see it right away.
To stop, click Share screen again, or the "Stop sharing" button your browser shows.
On a Mac, the first time you need to allow your browser to record the screen: System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen Recording, then quit the browser and open it again.
If you close the page
The lesson doesn't end if you close the page by mistake or your internet drops, and its time keeps counting. Go back to Account: the class's card says "Live", with two buttons next to it:
- Back to lesson: takes you back to the same lesson, and your students stay in it.
- End lesson: ends it for everyone without going in.
The lesson is open on another device
Only one lesson can run on your account at a time, from one device. If you open it in the browser while it's running in the app or on another page, we ask you first. If you continue, the lesson moves to this device and closes on the other one, and your students stay in the lesson.
If you have a lesson running in another class, the page lets you choose: go to that lesson, or end it.
Phone camera
You can use an Android phone as a second camera for your notebook or a board: from More, choose Phone camera, and a 6-digit code appears. The full steps are in Your phone as a second camera.