Overview
Live mode turns Grouper into a classroom display. When you click Go live, Grouper opens a full-screen presentation view designed to be shown on a projector or shared screen. Students see their groups on the big screen, and you have a set of Live mode tools available to keep the class moving.
Live mode includes the following tools:
Groups display
Attendance (PRO)
Mood (PRO)
Random picker (PRO)
Timer (PRO)
Student spotlight (PRO)
Icebreakers (PRO)
Starting and leaving Live mode
To start Live mode:
1. Open a class and go to Groups view.
2. Click Go live in the top-right area of the screen.
To exit Live mode, press Escape or click the back arrow in the floating panel.
Groups display
The Groups display tool is available to all users. It shows your current grouping on screen — each group's members displayed as student avatars with names.
From this view you can also:
Shuffle to re-randomize groups on the fly.
Rotate groups (shift each group to the next position).
Show roles — if you have a Role attribute set up, toggle this on to display each student's role alongside their avatar. See the Preset attributes support article.
Zoom to get an enlarged view of a group - helpful for large classes or students with visual impairments.
Attendance (PRO)
The Attendance tool helps you take attendance live. When students are shown in groups on screen, it's easy to spot where they're supposed to be in the classroom and notice if someone is absent. It also enables you to change the student's attendance status with a single click. You can also email yourself an attendance report so you can review it later.
Two common workflows:
Mark absent as needed — Leave everyone marked present and click student names to mark them absent. Good for quick, lightweight attendance.
Student self-check-in — Click Set all absent first, then let students tap their own avatar on the smartboard to mark themselves present as they arrive.
To use the attendance tool:
(optional) Click Set all present or Set all absent to set the starting state for the whole class.
Click a student name to toggle their attendance status between present and absent.
(optional) Click Email attendance to send yourself an attendance report.
Students marked absent are automatically excluded from automated grouping tools like Shuffle.
Attendance resets all students to present automatically after 18 hours of inactivity, so it's ready for your next class.
Mood (PRO)
Mood mode lets students do a quick emotional check-in as they arrive at class. When Mood is active, students tap their own avatar on the screen to pick how they're feeling, giving you a snapshot of classroom energy before the lesson starts.
To use Mood mode:
1. Open the Attendance tool in Live mode.
2. Toggle on Mood.
3. Let students tap their avatar on the smartboard and select a mood.
Available moods: Happy, Sad, Angry, Tired, Neutral. Students can also tap Absent to mark themselves absent.
Note: mood check-ins are not saved after you leave Live mode.
Random picker (PRO)
The Random picker randomly selects a student or group to call on. Three pick modes are available:
Pick a student — picks one student at random from the whole class.
Pick a group — picks one group at random.
Pick one student from each group — picks one student per group simultaneously, useful for selecting a spokesperson or presenter from every group.
Each pick is shown with a confetti animation. Keep picking to cycle through students without repeating.
Timer (PRO)
The Timer tool lets you set a countdown for group work time. Features include:
Set a custom duration.
Play, pause, and reset the timer.
Adjust time up or down while the timer is running.
An animated character provides a visual cue as time runs out.
When the timer is running, it can be shown full-screen or alongside the groups display.
Avatar (PRO)
The Avatar tool enables students to customize their avatars to capture their personal vibe. Select from:
Background color
Fur
Clothes
Hat
Eyes
Mouth
Extra (freckles, earrings, etc.)
Icebreakers (PRO)
Icebreakers are short, whole-class warm-up activities to energize groups before they start working. Three activities are available:
Ick or OK? — Students hear or read a prompt and decide: gross or acceptable?
Would you rather? — Students choose between two options.
Food Fight — Students debate which food wins.
For each activity, students find classmates who agree with them and stand together. Navigate through questions using the arrow buttons or keyboard arrow keys.
Attributes in Live mode
Attribute overlays (color-coded data you can see in Groups view) are not visible to students in Live mode. The exception is the Role attribute, which can be toggled on using the Show roles button in the Groups display tool. See the Preset attributes support article.