Units structure your curriculum. Share them across classes, check their status and fix common problems with this guide.
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How units are shared, hidden and managed
Units structure your curriculum, are shared across classes and carry over each year. Use this guide to understand unit status and sharing, and to find, hide or restore a unit.
Unit status at a glance
| Status | Who sees it | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Active | Teachers, students and parents | Shared across every class of the same subject and grade |
| Draft | Hidden from students and parents in the classes where it is drafted | One class; stays active in other classes |
| Archived | Hidden from everyone in every class | Whole school; restore it from Whole School Curriculum |
How sharing works
- Shared by subject and grade: a unit appears in every class of the same subject and grade level, and can also be shared with other grades in the same programme (for example MYP 3 and MYP 4).
- One unit, many classes: editing, archiving or deleting a unit in one class changes it in every class that shares it.
- Streams are per class: lesson plans, tasks and resources in the Stream can differ between classes, and drafting a unit in one class does not affect the others.
- Carries over each year: units move to the new academic year automatically. Record changes in Reflections, and download PDF copies for your records.
- Read-only access: add Observers to give read-only access to your curriculum. See Observer users.
How units differ by programme
| Programme | How units are organised |
|---|---|
| DP | By subject and grade. Courses may run at Standard Level (SL) or Higher Level (HL), and schools can plan SL and HL units differently. Creating IB DP & CP Unit Plans |
| MYP | By subject group and grade. Interdisciplinary units connect subjects for shared inquiry and assessment. MYP Interdisciplinary Unit Plans |
| PYP | Units of Inquiry by transdisciplinary theme, plus subject-based units for specialists such as languages, music or PE. Creating IB PYP Unit Plans |
Unit actions
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Duplicate | Copy a unit to start a new one. How to duplicate a unit |
| Import | Add lessons and resources from other units and classes. Importing from the ResourceBank |
| Share across districts | Share with other schools in your group or district. Sharing units across schools |
| Delete | Removes the unit permanently, from every class that shares it. |
If a unit is active in a class and you no longer need it there, draft it (one class) or archive it (all classes). Deleting cannot be undone.
Add or remove unit authors
- Open the unitClick Add Author in the sidebar.
- Choose a teacherSelect the teacher and click Add Author. Teachers of a class with the same subject and grade can also add themselves.
- Remove an authorClick the red X. Their content stays in the unit, but they can no longer edit it.
Only teachers of a class with the same subject and grade can be authors. For example, to author an MYP Grade 10 Physical Education unit, the teacher needs an MYP Grade 10 Physical Education class. Admins and teachers can browse units without being authors.
Draft or archive a unit
- Open the SummaryOpen the unit, go to the Planner tab and click Edit Section on Summary.
- Choose the statusTick Draft to hide it in this class, or Archived to hide it from every class.
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SaveClick Save Changes.
Archived units leave every class calendar and are stored with archived units under Curriculum.
Find a missing unit
If a unit is not in your schedule, it is probably drafted or archived.
- Open your classGo to Classes, choose the class and open Tasks.
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Show hidden unitsTick Show draft and archived units and click Filter.
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Spot the statusDraft units have a grey draft symbol; archived units have an envelope symbol.
- RestoreSelect the unit and click Active, or un-archive it, to put it back on the class calendar.
Archive or restore units from Whole School Curriculum
- Open the curriculumGo to Insights > Curriculum > Whole School Curriculum and choose the grade.
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Archive quicklyHover over a unit and select Archive.
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RestoreFind it under Archived Units on the right and click the icon next to its name.
What students and parents see
- Only Active units, in their unit calendar and Stream.
- The At-a-Glance view of the unit. Admins choose which parts of the template appear there in each programme's curriculum settings.
- Anything in the Stream. In Study Mode, students see unit content and lesson plans side by side.
More in the student guide to classes, units and resources and what students and parents see.
Questions
Why are units shared across classes?
So teachers of the same subject and grade can plan one unit together, reuse learning experiences and update resources once, instead of repeating the work in each class.
What happens to units if a class is deleted?
Nothing. Units are not tied to one class, so they stay available in every other class with the same subject and grade.
Do units need copying each year?
No. Units carry over automatically and appear once next year's classes are created. Use the term selector in Reflections to record changes over time.
Questions?
Submit a request