The Otus Bookshelf offers teachers and students a place to collect resources that can be accessed anytime. These resources can be anything from PDFs or PowerPoint slides to links to educational websites or videos.
Teachers can:
curate resources to be shared with individual students, student groups, or classes.
add resources to use as activities in Lessons.
share resources they've collected with any other Otus user.
Students can:
access resources that their teachers or administrators have shared with them.
add their own resources or study aids to keep for future reference
Start Here ➡ Click Bookshelf 
on the left.
Adding Resources
💡 Tip: The best workflow is to add resources to All Resources first and then share that resource.
Step 1: Select the + icon, and then select Resource.
Step 2: Choose the type of resource you'd like to add.
File Upload: choose from the files on your computer.
Link: the URL of a website.
Image: take a live image using your computer's built-in camera, or browse your computer for one that has already been taken.
Video: record a live video using your computer's built-in camera (5-minute max), or browse your computer for one that has already been recorded (30mb file size limit).
YouTube Video: the URL of a YouTube video.
Audio: record live audio using your computer's built-in microphone (5-minute max), or browse your computer for one that has already been recorded (30mb file size limit).
Google Drive: choose from files in your Google Drive (see FAQ section below for more details)
One Drive: choose from files on your One Drive
Page: build a page. For more information, click here.
💡Tip: Save time by adding more than one resource at a time. You can add up to five resources with an individual size of 30mb at one time.
Step 3: Choose the class to share it with (optional). If you'd like to share this with individual students, groups, or teachers instead of a whole class, skip this step.
Step 4: Select Save.
Sharing Resources
Now that you have added resources to your bookshelf, you can share them with an entire class, specific students, student groups, or other teachers. Administrator can share with teacher groups.
Step 1: Locate the resource on your bookshelf and select the ellipsis to the right
Step 2: Select Share.
Step 3: Select who you'd like to share the resource with.
Classes  | Students  | Student Groups  | Teachers  |
Sharing with Classes/Students/Groups:
Select the class(es)/student(s), or group(s) you'd like to share with, then click Done.
Sharing with Teachers:
Click Email.
Type in the full email address of the teacher you'd like to share it with.
Click SEARCH.
Click Share in the upper right-hand corner
Share with a Teacher Group (Admin Only)
Are you an administrator wanting to share resources with a Teacher Group?
Select the Teacher Group icon, select the teacher group(s) you'd like to share with, and then select Done.
💡Tip: Any individual resources or folders that have been shared with a teacher group will be auto-shared with any new teachers who are added to the group at a later time.
Otus Live Video
Click to see videos from our Otus Live series on how to add resources to the bookshelf and share them with students.
Click to see videos from our Otus Live series on how to add resources to the bookshelf and share them with students.
To see how students access shared Bookshelf resources from their accounts, check out the video below.
FAQ and Troubleshooting
Click to see FAQ and troubleshooting details.
Click to see FAQ and troubleshooting details.
What types of resources would be helpful to share with students in the Bookshelf?
We recommend sharing resources that students will need to access for the duration of the class (similar to a physical bookshelf in the classroom). Examples include:
Reference materials – dictionaries, glossaries, or grammar guides
Core curriculum guides – learning objectives, rubrics, assessment guidelines
Study aids – formula sheets, citation guidelines, class notes, instructional videos
Tech tutorials – guides for Otus or other essential platforms
Policies and procedures – classroom rules, digital etiquette, emergency protocols
Well-being resources – time management tips, counselor contacts, etc
When I add a resource to a Lesson, does it get added to my Bookshelf as well?
Yes! When you add a resource to a Lesson, that resource is also added to your Bookshelf. You will see resources from your Lessons listed in My Bookshelf under All Resources.
What are the rules for adding resources from your Google Drive?
1) You can only upload one file at a time from your Google Drive. 2) You can only upload resources that are owned by you not ones shared with you. 3) You can't add resources from a shared drive. However, see the tip below for a way to address this!
💡 Tip: Use these steps to create a "shortcut" that will move a file from a Shared Drive into your own Google Drive:
On your computer, go to drive.google.com and go to the Shared Drive that you are looking to access.
Right-click the file or folder you want to make a shortcut for.
Click Add Shortcut to Drive.
Choose where you want the shortcut to be.
Click Add shortcut.
Can I "unshare" a folder?
Yes, just go through the same process you went through to share the folder and uncheck the class/student/group/teacher you want to "unshare" the folder with.
If I share a folder, does the recipient also get each item inside the folder?
Yes.
If I add a resource to a folder I already shared, do I need to re-share the folder?
No - the new resource will automatically be added to the recipients' copy of the folder as well. There is no need to re-share.
Can the recipients of a shared folder use the resources in lessons?
Because the shared resources aren't owned by the recipient, they won't be able to add them to lessons.
If I want to share an individual resource that is in the folder, do I have to share the folder as well?
Yes - if a resource is in a folder, the folder must also be shared in order to share the individual resource.
Can I organize the resources in the Shared With Me section into folders?
Since those resources are owned by others, you won't be able to organize them.
Can I share an entire bookshelf with another teacher?
No, resources must be shared individually or by folder.
Can co-teachers see the resources on my bookshelf for the classes they co-teach?
No. The resources will need to be shared with the co-teachers.