# Messages: community chats, direct messages and Activity

> Messages is one screen for every conversation: each community's chat spaces, direct messages, and your group chats — with **Activity**, every notice, at the top. New messages arrive at once on every device.

Last updated 2026-10-16 · Source: https://prolaud.com/help/community-messages

![The teacher's Messages: Activity, the community's chat, and conversations with unread counts](https://prolaud.com/help/community-messages/03-teacher-messages.png)

*Messages, as the teacher.*

## Chat spaces

1. On a community's wall, press the pencil beside a space in the menu (or add a space).
2. Set Shows as to Chat (quick messages, in Messages).
3. Choose whether Only teachers and moderators write here, and a Slow mode (a wait between a member's messages).

![Edit space: name, emoji, heading and Shows as](https://prolaud.com/help/community-glue/16-space-edit.png)

*A space can be posts, topics or a chat.*

![A student's phone in the community chat](https://prolaud.com/help/community-messages/01-asha-chat.png)

*A student in the chat, on a phone.*

## Direct messages

![New message: the people this student may write to](https://prolaud.com/help/community-messages/04-new-message.png)

*New lists only the people someone may write to.*

- Press the gear in Messages to choose: students may message Their teachers (the usual), Teachers and classmates (in the same community), or Nobody (they can still answer you). Kids mode never lets students message each other.
- Phone numbers, emails and links to other apps are taken out of conversations a student is in, and the message says so.
- Anyone can block someone from a conversation's ⋯ menu.
- Paused: a member who reads but cannot send messages anywhere.
- You can start a group chat with chosen people (+ Group).

![Messages settings: who students may message, and paused members](https://prolaud.com/help/community-messages/05-settings.png)

*Who may message whom.*

## In a conversation

![A conversation with a voice note](https://prolaud.com/help/community-messages/02-voice-note.png)

*Photos, files and voice notes up to two minutes.*

- Each message's ⋯: react, Reply, Edit your own, and for teachers and moderators Pin, Hold for review and Post to the feed (a great answer becomes a post, by its writer).
- Only teachers delete someone else's message. You never see conversations you are not in — and neither do moderators.
- Unread counts show in the list, on Messages in the menu, and on the community's menu.

> **Note:** The student menu's Inbox is now Messages. Old links to the inbox open Activity.

## Related

- [Moderators and approvals](https://prolaud.com/help/community-moderators)