How to Assign, Collect, and Grade Student Work in Google Classroom
Google Classroom can be an excellent platform for virtual learning with your students. It does take some getting used to, as it’s not the most intuitive system out there. With a little bit of practice, though, you can master GC and make it work for your distance learning.
Last time, I walked you through how to organize your Google Classroom to be as intuitive and easy-to-use as possible. Today, let’s take a more in-depth look at how to assign, collect, and grade student work in Google Classroom.
Step #1: Create an assignment for your students
On your Classwork tab, go to Create, and choose Assignment. Enter the title and your instructions.
From here, you have several choices to customize. First, add any files or links your students will need to complete the assignment. Let’s say you want your students to read an online article, view a short video, and then respond to questions you have in a Google Doc.
Simply choose “Link” and/or “Youtube” and paste in the URLs for the article and video.
Choose Google Drive to select your file.
How to Attach Google Docs and Slides
Here’s one of my favorite time-saving features in Google Classroom!
When you go to add a file from Google Drive, you have 3 options:
- Students can view the file. No editing, just a read-only page for students to view.
- Students can edit the file. All students can edit the SAME file. Great for collaborative documents, not so much if you want individual work submitted.
- Make a copy for each student. GC creates a single document for each student, already labeled with their name! Like your own virtual copy machine.
From there, you can choose which class to assign this to, and you can even choose individual students. If you’re differentiating assignments, you just select who you’d like to assign.
Add a point value, or choose “ungraded,” and then set your due date. There’s also an option to attach a rubric.
The final step is to assign a Topic (the unit, week, or lesson it belongs to). Remember to be consistent in how you organize your classwork!
Step #2: Collect assignments from students on Google Classroom
Once you’ve assigned something to students, they will see it in their “View your work” tab at the top of their Classwork page.
A list of assignments by due dates will appear. They can also click the Google Calendar link to see a calendar view. If you don’t add a due date, though, the calendar won’t show that assignment.
As for collecting work, students have to click “Turn In” either on their document or on the assignment screen.
Image source: https://support.google.com/edu/classroom/answer/6020285?co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop&hl=en
Image source: https://thejournal.com/articles/2014/08/12/googles-free-lms-classroom-goes-live.aspx
This is where a lot of students forget a step! But it’s okay — because student work is automatically shared with you in GC, you can check on “Done” and “Not Done” assignments.
Even if a kiddo forgets to click “Turn In,” you can still view their work. Still, it’s a good idea to train your students on how to do this. It will save you a lot of time if they can get the hang of it quickly!
Step #3: How to grade and give feedback on Google Classroom assignments
Now the fun part — grading! ?
When you click on your assignment, you can sort by student last name, first name, or status (done/not done).
Open up their document to view, and from there, you’re able to comment with feedback and suggestions.
You can input a numerical grade and also add comments before clicking “Return to Student.” The student will get a notice that work has been returned, and they can view their grade and your comments.
You can also review all student work, add comments and feedback, and then batch return work with one click at the end.
For an overview of student grades, choose your Grades tab. There, you’ll see all assignments, their point values, and a class average, followed by data for each individual student. It’s your own virtual gradebook!
More Google Classroom Help
For more Google Classroom basics, stay tuned to the blog, and be sure to check out my comprehensive courses Google Classroom Made Simple. I’ve partnered with Brittany Cufaude of Joyful Classrooms to bring you these teacher-friendly courses on how to use Google Classroom for your students. And be sure to follow me on Facebook and Instagram for more tips!
