> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.chimeedu.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Grade Student Work with Graded Mode

> Turn a ChimeEdu map, timeline, diagram, chart, flash card deck, or fill-in-the-blank into graded work — with a due date, student submissions, grades, and feedback.

By default, ChimeEdu activities are open-ended — students work, and nothing is ever "turned in." **Graded Mode** changes that: you set a due date, students submit their work, and you grade it with a letter grade, a percentage, and written feedback that you release when you're ready.

It's the difference between "explore this map" and "build your map of the trade routes, submit it by Friday, and I'll grade it."

## Which activities can be graded

| Activity                           | Graded Mode | Requires                            |
| ---------------------------------- | ----------- | ----------------------------------- |
| Maps (Geographic and Area)         | ✓           | Per-Student or Group issuance       |
| Timelines                          | ✓           | Per-Student or Group issuance       |
| Diagrams                           | ✓           | Per-Student or Group issuance       |
| Graphs & Charts — Line and Scatter | ✓           | Per-Student or Group issuance       |
| Flash Cards                        | ✓           | —                                   |
| Fill-in-the-Blank                  | ✓           | Signed-in students                  |
| Quizzes                            | —           | Live quizzes have their own results |

For maps, timelines, diagrams, and charts, each student (or group) needs their own copy to submit — so those must be set to **Per-Student** or **Group Assignment** first. See [Per-Student & Groups](/teachers/activities/issuance). Flash cards and fill-in-the-blank record per-student results already, so they work in the normal shared model.

<Note>
  Enabling Graded Mode requires a **Plus or Premium** plan. Turning it **off** is never restricted — if you downgrade, you can always switch a graded activity back to ungraded.
</Note>

## Turning it on

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Edit Details">
    On the activity page, choose **Edit Details** and find the **Grading** section.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Enable Graded activity and set a due date">
    Toggle **Graded activity** on and pick a due date and time. A due date is required — it's what makes "late" and "missed" mean something.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose how grades display">
    Pick **Letter**, **Percent**, or **Both**. This controls which grade fields you fill in when grading, and which values students eventually see.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## What students experience

Students see the due date on their dashboard and activity list, plus a status chip that tracks where they stand. They work in the activity as usual, then press **Submit your work** — with a confirmation step, because submitting locks their work read-only. In Group Assignment mode, any member can submit for the group, and the whole group locks together.

Two type-specific notes:

* **Flash Cards** — submitting means "I'm done studying." It freezes the student's study progress for this deck.
* **Fill-in-the-Blank** — a graded fill-in-the-blank requires students to **sign in**, and allows a **single attempt**. (Ungraded fill-in-the-blank stays open and anonymous, as always.)

## Reviewing and grading submissions

Once Graded Mode is on, a **Graded submissions** panel appears below the Students panel on the activity page. Each student (or group) shows one of six states:

| State       | Meaning                                              |
| ----------- | ---------------------------------------------------- |
| Not started | No work yet, due date hasn't passed                  |
| In progress | Work started, not submitted                          |
| Submitted   | Turned in, awaiting your grade                       |
| Graded      | You've saved a grade (students don't see this label) |
| Incomplete  | Started but not submitted, and the due date passed   |
| Missed      | Never started, and the due date passed               |

For each submitted entry you can enter a **percent**, a **letter grade** (ChimeEdu suggests one from the percent), and written **feedback** with full formatting. Then:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Save grade">
    Records the grade privately. Students see nothing yet.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Send results">
    Releases the grade and feedback to that student. Until you send, students only see "Submitted" — grades are never visible early.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Reopen (if needed)">
    Puts a submission back to In progress so the student can keep working — including after the due date. Reopening also withdraws released results; your saved grade is kept for reference.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Tip>
  **Grading and releasing are separate on purpose.** You can grade the whole class over a few days and send everyone's results at once — students never see a half-graded roster.
</Tip>

## Common questions

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="What happens when the due date passes?">
    Students who haven't submitted can no longer edit — their status becomes **Incomplete** (they started) or **Missed** (they never started). Use **Reopen** to let an individual student continue, or edit the due date in the Grading section to extend it for everyone.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I turn Graded Mode off after students have submitted?">
    Yes — you'll see a warning first. Submissions are hidden, not deleted, and edit locks lift. If you turn Graded Mode back on, everything is restored exactly as it was.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Why can't I enable Graded Mode on my shared map?">
    On maps, timelines, diagrams, and charts, the whole class edits one shared copy by default — there's no individual work to submit or grade. Switch the activity to **Per-Student** or **Group Assignment** first, then enable Graded Mode.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Who submits in Group Assignment mode?">
    Any member of the group can submit, and the panel shows who pressed Submit. There's one submission — and one grade — per group.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do students see their grade as soon as I save it?">
    No. Saving a grade is private. Students see their grade and feedback only after you press **Send results** for their submission.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Related

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Per-Student & Groups" icon="user-group" href="/teachers/activities/issuance">
    Maps, timelines, diagrams, and charts must be issued per-student or per-group before they can be graded.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Assessments" icon="clipboard-check" href="/teachers/assessments">
    For question-and-answer style graded work, assessments have their own built-in grading flow.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>