Grades, Attendance, Reports

Classroom Grades

Teachers can create grade records for their Classroom/Pod from the Grades tab within that classroom. Each new record will automatically include all students rostered in that classroom. Grade records created at the classroom level will also appear in the school-wide Grade Records list found in the main left navigation Grades section.

For more details, see the help pages in Grades.

Grading Strategies in Spark

When you create a Grade Record, you'll choose one of four Grading Strategies. Each strategy determines how grades are entered, calculated, and reported:

• Mastery: measures a student’s progress toward specific learning objectives by marking each standard at a mastery level instead of using percentages or points.
• Traditional Percentage: assigns a percentage score to each assignment and calculates a final grade using weighted or unweighted averages based on your school’s chosen letter grade scale.
• Traditional Points: records the number of points a student earns out of the total possible points and converts that point total into a letter grade using your school’s grading scale.
• Pass/Fail: simply indicates whether a student has met the required level of completion or competency, with no numerical or letter grade calculated.

Creating Grade Records

To create a Grade Record:

1. Go to the Classroom → Grades tab.
2. Click + Add Grade Record.
3. Confirm the list of students included in the record.
4. Add the Instructor, Subject, Gradebook, and Term.
5. Select a Grading Strategy.
6. Review and confirm the grading strategy details (scale, learning objectives, weights).
7. Click Create Grade Record.

Note: A Gradebook is a way to organize your Grade Records.

To learn more about Grade Records, grading strategies, scales, weights, etc., see the Grades help docs.

Recording Grades

Once a grade record is created, you can begin entering grades.

Start by adding Graded Items (for traditional grading strategies) or Learning Objectives (for mastery grading). These can be added individually or in bulk from the Graded Items/Learning Objectives tab.

Next, use either Table View or Student View to enter scores for each graded item or objective.

Spark automatically calculates final scores, but you can manually override them if needed by opening the Results section in Table View or scrolling to the Final Score section in Student View and switching the calculation type to manual.

For more information on recording grades, see the help docs in the Grades section.

Classroom Attendance

Attendance schedules for a Classroom/Pod can be created and recorded from the Attendance tab within that classroom. Any schedules created at the classroom level will also appear in the school-wide attendance list on the Admin side under Attendance → Schedule.

Creating Attendance Schedules

To create an attendance schedule for your classroom,

1. Navigate to the Classroom/Pod -> Attendance tab.
2. Click "+ Add New Schedule" in the top right.
3. Name the schedule and select the term, or set the date range, time, and days of the week. Note: Attendance schedules only display when a term is selected. If your schedule is missing, double-check that it’s assigned to the same term you’ve selected at the top of the Attendance page.
4. Select attendees. Use + Add classroom students to quickly add all the students rostered to your classroom. You can remove some from the list if needed.
5. Click Create.

Once created, you can open and edit the attendance schedule at any time.

To learn more about creating and editing schedules, see the Attendance Schedules help doc.

Recording Attendance

Once attendance schedules have been created, you can start recording attendance. To record attendance for your classroom, go to either the Student Planner or the Attendance tab.

• Student Planner: At the top of each calendar day, you'll see an attendance prompt for that day. Click it to open and record attendance.
• Attendance Tab: Locate the date and click the pink attendance block, then enter attendance in the modal that appears.

Several attendance status options are available: Present, Unreported, Tardy, Excused Absence, and Unexcused Absence. Notes and arrival or departure times can also be recorded.

To record attendance status,

1. Open an attendance modal (see above).
2. Select student(s) by clicking the checkboxes next to their names.
3. If present, click Mark Present.
4. If not present, click "More Actions" and choose one of the following:
   • Excused Absence
   • Unexcused Absence
   • Tardy (option to add minutes late)
5. (Optional) Add Notes to provide additional details.

To learn more about recording attendance, see the Recording Attendance help doc.

Classroom Reports

Reports on student grades or attendance can be created for a Classroom/Pod from the Reports tab within that classroom. Reports generated here will also appear in the school-wide reports list on the Admin side under Reports.

Creating a Grade or Attendance Report

To create a grade or attendance report:

1. Go to Classroom/Pod → Reports.
2. Select the type of report you want to create.
3. In the Source Data section, choose the data you want to include.
4. Use the View Options and Header sections to customize how the report looks.
5. Click Generate PDF Preview anytime you add or change data or settings to refresh the preview.
6. When you're satisfied with the report, click Save & Share to finalize it.

To learn more about creating reports, see the Grade Reports or Attendance Reports help docs.

Sharing and Saving Reports

Clicking Save & Share at the top of a report once it is complete will give you the option to create a saved report PDF. This PDF will be stored on your main Reports page and in each students' Reports tab. It can also be shared with guardians or downloaded and saved to your device.

To save a report PDF in your Spark platform:

1. Click Save & Share in the top-right corner.
2. Choose whether to:
   • Create one file per student, or
   • Create a single file containing all reports.
3. Confirm the file name is accurate.
4. If creating a single report, select the folder where it will be saved.
5. Click Save Files & Share to finish.

To share a report with guardians:

1. Click Save & Share in the top-right corner.
2. Select the save option, "File per Student."
3. Confirm the file name is accurate.
4. Check the box "Post report PDF to guardian portals."
5. Click Save Files & Share to finish.

Note: Guardians will only see reports for their student(s).

To download a report PDF to your device:

First generate the report as outlined above. Then, click Print in the top right corner and select from the options.

To learn more about saving and sharing reports, see the Grade Reports or Attendance Reports help docs.