Online Delivery

You have completed the course, prepared your sessions, and now you are delivering the workshop online rather than in a room. This page is for you.

The facilitation guide applies in full to online delivery. The session content, learning goals, talking points, and activity sheets are the same. What changes is the setup, the pacing, and a handful of facilitation moves that need to work differently when everyone is on a screen instead of in the same space. This page covers those differences.

Your facilitation guide also has a dedicated appendix with the session blockBlock Block is the abstract term used to describe units of markup that, composed together, form the content or layout of a webpage using the WordPress editor. The idea combines concepts of what in the past may have achieved with shortcodes, custom HTML, and embed discovery into a single consistent API and user experience. schedule and session-specific notes for online delivery. Read this page first for the principles, then use the appendix for the specific schedule.

What stays the same

More than you might expect.

The session content, learning goals, talking points, activity sheets, and appendices in your facilitation guide all apply without modification. WordPress Playground at https://playground.wordpress.net/ runs in a browser and works identically online — in some ways it is easier, because participants are already at their computers and can open it alongside you in real time. The SlackSlack Slack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/ and GitHubGitHub GitHub is a website that offers online implementation of git repositories that can easily be shared, copied and modified by other developers. Public repositories are free to host, private repositories require a paid subscription. GitHub introduced the concept of the ‘pull request’ where code changes done in branches by contributors can be reviewed and discussed before being merged by the repository owner. https://github.com/ activities follow the same instructions.

The independence principle from the guide also applies: when participants have a question, point them to the documentation rather than answering directly. The goal of the workshop is to build facilitators who can operate on their own. That goal does not change online.

What changes online

The facilitation guide was written for a physical room. It assumes you can walk between tables, that participants have printed activity sheets in front of them, and that there is a shared lunch break where informal conversations happen. None of those things exist in an online workshop.

That does not mean online delivery is worse — it means it is different, and the differences require deliberate adjustments.

Session length. Online attention works differently than in-person attention. In a room, the energy of the group carries people through longer stretches. Online, that ambient energy is gone, and concentration drops off faster. The practical solution is to work in 90-minute blocks with at least a 15-minute break between blocks. The appendix in your facilitation guide maps the sessions to specific blocks and shows you how to schedule them. You decide how many blocks to run per day and how many days to spread the workshop across — the appendix gives you a starting point, not a fixed schedule.

Participant interaction. In a room, you can feel when attention drifts — someone looks away, a conversation starts at a nearby table. Online, that feedback disappears. What replaces it is structure: participants need to actively respond at least every 10 minutes. This is a program standard. An interaction means participants produce a response in their own words, by speaking or by writing — answering a direct question, completing a reflection prompt, adding to a shared document, or working through a hands-on task. A single-word acknowledgment in the chat does not count. If ten minutes have passed and participants have not actively responded, stop and create an interaction before continuing.

Activity sheets. Share all activity sheets as a digital document before the workshop begins — a shared Google Doc or equivalent that participants can open and edit without creating a new account. Do not ask participants to print materials in advance. Before the first session, confirm that everyone can access and edit the document.

Resource sharing. Handing someone a URLURL A specific web address of a website or web page on the Internet, such as a website’s URL www.wordpress.org to a full handbook and asking them to navigate it rarely works in an online session. What works is opening the specific page on your shared screen, walking participants to the content, and asking them to bookmark that page. Targeted and specific beats comprehensive.

Before you facilitate online

The “Before You Facilitate” checklist in your facilitation guide covers preparation for in-person delivery. Complete the following in addition to that checklist, at least 48 hours before your first session.

Platform setup

Choose your video conferencing platform. Any platform that supports breakout rooms and screen sharing will work. Options include Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams, among others.
Confirm that your platform supports breakout rooms. You will use them for every partner and small group activity in this workshop.
Test breakout room creation and assignment before the first session so you are not learning it live.
Set up a waiting room or lobby and test the process for admitting participants.
Share the meeting link with all participants at least 24 hours before each session.
Identify a backup channel for reaching participants — email or a group message thread — in case someone loses their connection during a session.

Participant tech check

Send the pre-workshop email (see the template below) at least 48 hours before the first session.
Ask participants to confirm they can open https://playground.wordpress.net/ in their browser before the first session. WordPress Playground requires no account and no installation.
Ask participants to create a WordPress.orgWordPress.org The community site where WordPress code is created and shared by the users. This is where you can download the source code for WordPress core, plugins and themes as well as the central location for community conversations and organization. https://wordpress.org/ account before the first session at https://login.wordpress.org/register/. Include this link in the pre-workshop email.
Confirm participants can open and edit the shared activity sheet document before the first session. Send the link in the pre-workshop email.
Ask participants to test their microphone and camera before the first session.

Your own setup

Read all session blocks in full at least 48 hours before your first session.
Keep the facilitation guide open in a separate window or on a second screen during delivery.
Before each session, decide which window you will share on screen and test it.
For any hands-on session, open WordPress Playground and any other tabs you need before the session starts so you are ready to demonstrate immediately.
For any live resource walkthrough, bookmark all URLs in advance and confirm each page loads.
Have the shared activity sheet document open before each session that uses it.

Digital alternatives for physical activities

Opening goal-setting activity: prepare a shared document where each participant can write their goal for the workshop. A simple table with one column per participant works well. A collaborative whiteboard tool that participants can access without creating a new account — such as FigJam or Miro — also works.
End-of-session check-in: set up a shared document or simple form with two questions — what is one thing that is clear, and what is one thing that is still unclear. Review responses before the next session and open that session by addressing the most common unclear points.
Workshop close reflection: return to the shared document from the opening activity. Ask participants to read what they wrote at the start and note whether the workshop addressed it.
Final peer connections: ask participants to post their name and preferred contact method in the chat before the close. Give two to three minutes for this before ending.

Pre-workshop email template

Send this to all participants at least 48 hours before the first session. Adjust the dates, platform name, and links.

Subject: Before our WordPress facilitator workshop — three things to do

Hi [name or group],

Our first session is on [date] at [time, with time zone]. Before we meet, please take about 15 minutes to complete these three steps. They will make your first session much smoother.

1. Create your WordPress.org account

Go to https://login.wordpress.org/register/ and create a free account. You will use this account throughout the workshop and to join WordPress Slack. If you already have a WordPress.org account, you are all set.

2. Test WordPress Playground

Open https://playground.wordpress.net/ in your browser. A WordPress site will load automatically — no account or installation needed. If it does not load, try a different browser. We will use this tool in our first hands-on session.

3. Open the shared activity sheets

Here is the link to our shared activity documents: [link]. Please confirm you can open and edit the document. If you see a permission request, reply to this email and I will sort it out before we start.

We will meet using [platform name]. Here is the link for our first session on [date]: [link]. I recommend joining two to three minutes early.

If you run into any trouble with these steps, reply to this email before [date] and we will work it out.

See you then.

[Your name]

Adapting in-person facilitation moves

Most of the facilitation moves in the guide transfer to online delivery with a direct equivalent. Here is how to handle the ones that need adjustment.

Opening goal-setting activities

The guide opens Day 1 with a sticky note goal-setting activity. Online, a shared document does the same job. Ask each participant to write their goal before the first content segment begins. At the end of the workshop, return to the same document and ask participants to read what they wrote and reflect on whether the workshop addressed it. The document makes the opening and closing of the workshop feel connected in the same way the sticky note wall does in person.

Table groups and partner work

Every time the guide refers to “table groups” or asks participants to “turn to the person next to you,” that is a breakout room online. Assign groups before the session starts so you are not doing it live. Where possible, use the same groupings across sessions — participants work better with people they already know from previous rounds.

For partner activities, send participants to breakout pairs. Give a clear time limit before they go, and broadcast a one-minute warning before you close the rooms.

Walking around during hands-on activities

In person, walking the room during hands-on time tells you where participants are getting stuck. Online, you cannot be in more than one place at once, so you need a different approach. For individual work, stay in the main room and watch the chat — participants who need help will often say so there. For group work in breakout rooms, visit each room briefly rather than staying in one. Two to three minutes per room is enough to get a read on how things are going.

It also helps to have a running question thread in the shared document or chat where participants can post questions without interrupting their own work. If the same question comes up more than once, answer it with the full group when everyone returns rather than handling it individually each time.

End-of-session check-in

The guide collects a brief end-of-session check-in at the close of Day 1 — two questions, what is clear and what is still unclear. Online, collect these responses in a shared document or simple form rather than on paper. Review responses before the next session and open Day 2 by addressing the most common unclear points, exactly as the guide instructs for in-person delivery.

The full group share at the end of Session 11 is one of the most important moments in the workshop. Every participant states their one next step out loud. Research on professional development consistently shows that workshops that end with a public commitment produce better follow-through than those that do not. Do not skip this online.

Keep everyone in the main room. Move through participants in a deliberate order so no one is skipped. For groups larger than 15, ask participants to type their next step in the chat simultaneously, then call on several people to also say theirs aloud — this preserves the public commitment without the session running long.

The guide’s closing note asks participants to write their next step on a sticky note and put it somewhere visible. Online, ask participants to screenshot their action planning sheet and set it somewhere they will see it in the first week — their phone lock screen, desktop background, or a channel they check every day. The principle is the same: make the commitment visible after the session ends.

Live resource walkthroughs

The support network walkthrough session works the same way online as it does in person, and often works better. Share your screen, open each resource as you name it, and ask participants to follow along in their own browsers and bookmark each page. Because participants are already at their computers, they can navigate the resources alongside you in real time rather than watching from across a room.

Structured peer consultation

The peer consultation rounds work well in breakout rooms. Assign groups before the session, share the round structure in the shared activity document before participants go to their rooms, and give clear timing signals throughout — announce the start of each round and a one-minute warning before each round ends.

The most important step is briefing participants on the round structure before the rooms open. In person, you can circulate to redirect a group that has drifted. Online, once participants are in a breakout room, the structure either holds or it does not — and it holds when participants understood it before they went in.

Managing common online challenges

Online delivery introduces a handful of challenges that rarely come up in person. Here is how to handle the most common ones.

A participant loses their connection mid-session. Keep going. Send them the meeting link again through your backup channel and let the session continue. When they reconnect, give a brief orientation to where the group is. Stopping the session for a connection issue disrupts everyone else and rarely resolves the problem faster.

WordPress Playground does not load for a participant. Ask them to try a different browser — Chrome and Firefox are the most reliable. If it still does not load, they can follow along on your shared screen during the demonstration and complete the reflection questions in the activity sheet without using the tool directly. Note this and follow up before they facilitate their own workshop, since they will need to be able to demonstrate Playground to their own participants.

A participant cannot access WordPress Slack. Slack access sometimes requires additional email verification through the WordPress.org account. If a participant cannot join during the session, continue and ask them to resolve it before the next session. One thing to flag before participants create their accounts: their Slack email address will be publicly visible in their Slack profile. Cover this before they sign up, not after.

Engagement drops noticeably. The clearest signals online are cameras turning off, slower chat responses, or answers that feel perfunctory. When you notice this, stop and call a five-minute break even if one is not scheduled. After the break, open with a direct question or short activity before returning to the content. The instinct to push through and cover the material usually makes things worse, not better.

A session is running long. When you are running over time, the instinct is to cut the hands-on activity or the session close to catch up. Do not do this — those are the parts of the session that participants remember and that produce follow-through. Instead, reduce the talking points in the current session and carry remaining content to the start of the next block. Note what caused the overrun in your self-assessment so you can adjust your pacing next time.

Facilitator self-assessment: online additions

Use this checklist after each online session alongside the Facilitator Self-Assessment in the facilitation guide.

Before the session

Participants received the meeting link and any pre-session materials with enough time to complete them
Breakout room assignments were prepared before the session
Shared activity documents were confirmed accessible before the session began

During the session

No presentation segment ran more than 10 minutes without a participant interaction
Breakout rooms opened and closed with clear time limits communicated in advance
The chat was monitored throughout and questions were addressed
Participants were addressed by name during interactions

After the session

End-of-session check-in responses were collected at the Day 1 close
The next session’s meeting link was confirmed or sent to participants
Tech issues were noted with a plan to resolve them

What I would do differently in the next online session:

What worked especially well online:

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