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ClassDojo Parental and Child Controls FAQ

This page explains what parents can see and control across ClassDojo. It covers both school use (where teachers & schools manage the in‑class experience) and out‑of‑school use (e.g., Dojo Islands at home, where parents manage settings).

ClassDojo helps parents, teachers, and schools collaborate.  No Student Account, Outside School Child User’s account (“Outside School Child Account”), Profile, or Portfolio information is made available or visible to the general public through ClassDojo. 

ClassDojo is uniquely positioned with its online services to offer possibilities for education, learning, and teacher learning. We are committed to protecting the privacy and online safety of our users, and in particular the students who use our service. We always consider the interests of students when processing personal data. We have built in controls in the platform to do so, as set out in further detail in our privacy policy. 

To prevent data-enabled physical and mental harms, ClassDojo does not share children’s data with 3rd party advertisers and marketers. In addition, the ClassDojo platform has controls built into the platform that prevent messaging between children, with the exception of Class Islands, where child players can communicate with their classmates using only pre-selected emojis and expressions, keeping interactions friendly and positive. Teachers can also message 1:1 with students directly about approved Portfolio posts and children > 13 directly, but not without parent notification. Teachers also oversee the limited interactions students have on Class and School Stories, such as viewing and “liking”, but not commenting.

Quick Reference:

 

Overview (what parents can control)

Parental controls differ for our in-school and at-home features. Our in-school features include Portfolio, Feedback Points, Class Islands, and ClassDojo Stories. In general, schools have control over how in-school features are used. Our at-home features include Home Islands, ClassDojo Plus, Family Chat and Dojo Tutor. Parents are able to control the use of at-home features in the ways described in this FAQ. See here for more information on the difference between Student Accounts and Outside School Child Accounts: What’s the difference?

  • At school (Main Product): You can view Portfolio posts that have been submitted by your child and approved by their teacher, together with class and  school updates.  Messaging with your child through their portfolio and messaging with students > 13, as well as messaging between you and your child’s teacher, is managed by the school/teacher.  You will receive notice that messaging between your child and their teacher has been turned on (or is in use), and you can discuss the use of this feature with your child or their teacher. 
  • At school (Main Product/ Feedback Points): Teachers decide if families see all points, positive‑only, or no feedback points. (ClassDojo Help Center).  We automatically delete (or de-identify and aggregate) their Feedback Points awarded in the classroom or school after a year and delete associated feedback comments after a year.
  • At school (Dojo Islands / Class Islands): Dojo and Class Islands are private to the class. There is no open chat feature, and students communicate by using select emojis and other preset messages. Teachers control access to Dojo and Class Islands, including hours used. (ClassDojo)
  • At home: Outside School Child Accounts (ClassDojo Help Center) are created only with appropriate parent permission for children. ClassDojo permits Students to associate an Outside School Child Account with their Student Account  by using the same login credentials associated with an Outside School Child Account.  The accounts are then linked.  (ClassDojo Help Center)  
  • At home (Dojo Islands / Home Islands): Parents choose when kids can play (Always / After School Hours / Never) and who they can play with (e.g., classmates, invited guests; optional Global Playground). (ClassDojo Help Center)

 

Controls for School Use (teachers & schools manage during class)

ClassDojo encourages schools to provide information to parents and children regarding the use of the platform, including the extent of parental oversight. In addition, teachers have control over who is granted access to the platform within the classroom environment, and the amount of time students use it for. 

ClassDojo is designed so that schools control who has access to the platform, and the types of information and content that are stored. This includes providing:  

  • Controls over account creation, so that accounts are created either (1) at school by a teacher (who has authority to act on behalf of the parent); (2) by a student with involvement of the parent; or (3) by the parent. 
  • Controls over who can connect to the platform as a parent or family member of a student.
  • Controls over what content is on the platform, including an ability to delete content where required. 
  • Controls to allow for commenting features to be turned “on” or “off” in Stories.
  • Tools for teachers to control when students can access  Class Islands.

Additionally, the ClassDojo services used by schools and with access to student personal data, including educational video games, must be under the “direct control” of the school, including under contract with schools and have strict safeguards and requirements on how the Services may use, protect, and delete information.  Schools are responsible for ensuring that the products or services offered to students are beneficial to their well-being and education. Additionally, schools are best suited to make the decisions about providing the necessary baseline privacy protections to children, and as such, ClassDojo is designed to provide schools with extensive controls over usage to help schools make these choices. 

When we develop new products and features, we speak to schools to get their views on what should be capable of being shared outside of the classroom environment, including with parents. We seek to ensure that our products and features operate in the best interests of our child users, and that they are consistent with the requirements of applicable privacy laws and regulations. 

Stories, Portfolios, Messages & Points

What can I see as a parent?

  • Your child’s avatar. 
  • Class Story / School Story: You will be able to see Class Story posts and comments (if turned on by the school) for your child’s class, and School Story posts for the school. Only the connected class or school community can view Class or School Stories (they cannot be viewed by the public). (ClassDojo Help Center)
  • Portfolios: You’ll see your child’s Portfolio posts after the teacher approves them. Pre‑approval drafts/comments aren’t visible to families.   (ClassDojo Help Center)
  • Portfolio Messaging with Students; Student Teacher Messaging for Students > 13:  Messaging with your child through their portfolio and messaging with students > 13, as well as messaging between you and your child’s teacher, is managed by the school/teacher.  You will receive notice that messaging between your child and their teacher has been turned on (or is in use), and you can discuss the use of this feature with your child or their teacher.
  • Messages (Chats): Teachers manage messaging between families and the school.  Teachers (or the school) do not control or have access to Family Chat and Family Communities that are created outside of school. Families can also control who can message them, report, or block as needed (details in links below). (ClassDojo Help Center)
  • Feedback Points: Teachers decide if families can see all points, positive‑only, or no feedback points. If your child’s teacher has decided to share points totals with you, then you will have access to the past two weeks of feedback points. If you have subscribed to ClassDojo Plus, you will be able to see the last 365 days of feedback points and additional insights. We automatically delete (or de-identify and aggregate) their Feedback Points awarded in the classroom or school after a year and delete associated feedback comments after a year.

What default controls are there?

ClassDojo believes schools are best suited to make decisions about the features of the platform that are provided to students and their families. As such, ClassDojo is designed to provide schools with controls over usage. ClassDojo provides private settings by default to assist schools by giving children control over when and how we use their personal data. 

Schools are also in the best position to determine how much control to provide to children, for example, over the content that is uploaded and retained on the platform. Providing extensive controls to students or parents (e.g., allowing them to delete content uploaded by students or teachers) or certain default settings could undermine the educational objectives of schools and create problems for teachers needing to review work or maintain educational records.

We’ve documented a list of what logged-in student user’s information can be viewed by other logged-in ClassDojo users in this Privacy Policy FAQ. For children, we’ve included this information in the Child Privacy Terms in the section “What Children’s Information is Visible to Others?” which explains that, for students using ClassDojo in the classroom (or at home in connection with school use), only the following people can see the Student’s Account, Outside School Child User’s account, or Portfolio:

  • The student;
  • Student's connected parent account(s) (which may include other adults the parent authorizes and invites);
  • The student's teachers (including those outside the child's school that are connected to the child) or school leaders and school admins connected to the child's class

Dojo Islands in school (Class Islands)

Who can my child play with at school?
Only classmates, inside a private class island. Chat is pre‑set (emojis/preset messages)—there’s no free‑text chat. (ClassDojo)

Who controls access?
Teachers control access to Class Islands; the home version (Home Islands) is controlled by parents (see Section B). (ClassDojo Help Center)

Helpful links

  • Dojo Islands FAQ for Teachers (explains class‑only play, safety & chat type) → Help Center 

Other school‑managed areas

  • School Directory: Only school staff with admin permissions manage the directory. (ClassDojo Help Center)
  • Connecting/Disconnecting families: Teachers/schools can add or remove family connections when needed. (ClassDojo Help Center)

 

Controls for Out‑of‑School Use (parents manage at home)

Dojo Islands at home (Home Islands)

There are two ways in which your child can access Home Islands: 

  • If your child has an Outside School Child Account, they can access Home Islands through that account, unless you decide to turn the feature off (see below). 
  • Your child may be invited to use Home Islands in “Guest Mode”. If your child accesses Home Islands in this way, we will collect very limited information about them, including information about their device. See the ClassDojo privacy policy for more information. 

The parental control features we outline in this section are available when your child accesses Home Islands through their Outside School Child Account. They do not apply if your child accesses Home Islands through Guest Mode.

How do I control when my child can play?
In your parent settings, choose Always / After School Hours / Never for Home Islands. You can change this anytime. (ClassDojo Help Center)
→ Quick overview: Dojo Islands for Home FAQ (Help Center) 

Who can my child play with at home, and how can I control this?

When in Home Islands, your child can play with siblings, friends, classmates, and any guests that you (or your child) invite. Guests can only be invited through the use of a QR code that is generated through the app. You can remove friends and classmates from Home Islands at any time. 

What is Global Playground, and how can I control access to it? 

Global Playground is a feature within Home Islands that allows your child to play with other, similarly aged students around the world. Pairings are made automatically based on a child’s grade. Note that when your child accesses Home Islands through Global Playground, the functionality of Home Islands remains the same. Children cannot see the names of other players and can only communicate by using emojis/preset messages (there are no free chat features). 

Teachers don’t see Home‑only activity.  If you disable Home Islands, this will not affect class use of Dojo Islands (Class Islands), as your child’s teacher controls this use. (ClassDojo Help Center).  Please contact your child’s teacher or school for questions or concerns you have regarding your child’s use of Class Islands at school. 

Chats between families (optional)

For Parent/Family Chat, families can choose who can message them, report or block users, and manage privacy (e.g., read receipts).

Privacy and data rights

Reporting safety concerns

Students are able to report any abuse or inappropriate content to the connected teacher or school in the first instance. If any school user needs to report any abuse or inappropriate content on the Services that has not been addressed by the connected teacher or school, they may do so by reporting the user or content directly to ClassDojo by emailing safety@classdojo.com.

In addition, as a parent, you can report inappropriate content or chats directly in the app.

Dojo Tutor (separate service)

Dojo Tutor is a separate, optional service for one‑to‑one tutoring. Parent consent, scheduling, and billing are parent‑managed in Dojo Tutor.

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