1. What is Microsoft Teams?

Microsoft Teams is the ultimate messaging app for your organization—a workspace for real-time collaboration and communication, meetings, file and app sharing, and even the occasional emoji! All in one place, all in the open, all accessible to everyone. Used in industry and education, it is a great resource and students can use it as part of their Microsoft 365 subscription.

2. Downloading Teams for Mobile & Desktop

To download the application for your desktop (laptop or PC) or for your mobile device, navigate to:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/microsoft-teams/download-app

You will then be given an option to download it (as shown in the image below) for either your desktop (this can be either a desktop PC, or a laptop) running the Windows 10/11 operating systems.

For Desktop: select download for desktop, once this has been selected you will be given an option to download it for home or small business, or for work and school. 

As you have a work or school subscription to Microsoft 365 you should download this version (as shown in image below).

Once you have selected 'download Teams for work or school' a file will begin to download, once this has completed, locate the file, usually in your downloads folder as shown below.

Double click on, or right click and run the file. Follow the instructions and this will install the Teams application to your device. You can then sign in using your Microsoft 365 credentials (student email address and password). More about that in the next chapter.

3. Getting Started with Microsoft Teams

Signing in with your Work or School Credentials and Using Teams

Open Microsoft Teams on the desktop:

Sign in to Teams

• In Windows, click Start  > Microsoft Teams.

• On Mac, go to the Applications folder and click Microsoft Teams.

• On mobile, tap the Teams icon.

Pick a team and channel

A team is a collection of people, conversations, files, and tools — all in one place. A channel is a discussion in a team, dedicated to a department, project, or topic.

The best way to get familiar with teams and channels is to pick a team and channel and start exploring.

1. Select Teams  on the left side of the app and then pick a team.

   If you're not on a team and want to create one, see Onboard your teams.

2. Select a channel and explore the Conversations, Files, and other tabs.

   For more info, see Teams and channels

In the next chapter we are going to look at sharing files in Teams and using chat.

4. Sharing files and chat with other users

Starting New Conversations: 

With specific people or groups 

1. Select Chat > New chat .

2. In the To field, type the name of the person or people you want to chat with.

3. In the box where you type your message, say what's on your mind and select Send .

With your whole team 

1. Select Teams , then pick a team and a channel.

2. Select New conversation.

3. In the box where you type your message, say what's on your mind and select Send .

Sharing files with others 

Sometimes words aren't enough, and you may need to post a file to a channel conversation.

1. In your channel conversation, select 
   Attach  under the box where you type your message.

2. Select from these options:

   • Recent

   • Browse Teams and Channels

   • OneDrive

   • Upload from my computer

3. Select a file > Share a link.

   If you're uploading a file from your computer, select a file, select Open, and then select Send .

You can always see all the files you post to a channel by going to the Files tab.

Using memes, emoji and GIFs 

Express yourself and impress your peers or colleagues. 

• Select Sticker  under the box where you type your message, then pick a meme or sticker from one of the categories.

The Sticker  catalog contains a wide variety of customizable stickers and memes — you can even upload your own! Check out Emoji  for smiley faces and Giphy  for animated GIFs.

Replying to conversations

Conversations in channels are organized by date and then threaded. 

The replies in threads are organised under the initial post so it's easier to follow multiple 

conversations. 

1. Find the conversation thread you want to reply to.

2. Select Reply, add your message, and select Send .

Next we will look at how we can collaborate using Microsoft Teams.

5. How to Collaborate in Microsoft Teams & Channels

How it Works 

@mention someone

An @mention is like a tap on the shoulder—a way to get someone's attention in a channel conversation or a chat.

1. In the box where you type your message, type @, then type the first few letters of the person’s name. You can also @mention entire teams and channels.

2. Select the person. Repeat for as many people as you want to @mention.

Each person you @mention gets a notification in their Activity feed. Check for a red circle next to Activity  right now to see if someone has @mentioned you!

Stay on top of things

Notifications let you know when someone @mentions you, likes something you’ve posted, or replies to a thread you started. The Activity feed helps you stay on top of all your notifications.

1. Select Activity .

2. Feed shows you a summary of everything that's happened in the channels you follow.

   • Select Filter  to show only certain types of notifications such as @mentions or reactions.

   • Select Feed > My Activity to see a list of everything you've been up to lately in Teams.

Search for messages, people, or files

Searches cover your entire organization — 

all the teams and channels that you're part of.

1. Type a phrase in the command box at the top of the app and press Enter.

2. Select the Messages, People, or Files tab.

3. Select an item in the search results to expand and learn more about it.

6. Set up your Teams mobile apps

Setting up Teams on your Android or iOS (Apple) Devices

With the mobile Teams applications you can access your teams, channels and even make calls and attend meetings from your mobile device.

Get to your files from anywhere - at work, at home, or on the go.

Set up the Office apps on your mobile device.