This article was published on May 5, 2026.
Rubrics let you evaluate student work and give feedback across multiple categories in a single activity.
In this article, you will learn...
- How to create a rubric
- How to edit rubrics
- How to review session grades and leave feedback
- How to export grades
How to create a rubric
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Open your activity and click on "Activity settings".
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Click on "Build with Sparky".
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In the chat window, describe the assessment categories you want for your activity or the changes you would like to make.
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Open your activity and click on "Activity settings".
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Click on "Build manually".
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Click on "Grading".
In the following section we will cover...
- Adding categories
- Adding grades
- Reordering categories
- Deleting categories and grade
- Adding analysis guidelines for Sparky
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Click "Add category" below the rubric table to add a new row.
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Enter the category name in the first column (e.g., "Content knowledge" or "Grammar").
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Click the plus button (+) on the right side of the rubric header to add a new grade column.
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Enter the grade name in the header (e.g., "Excellent", "Proficient") and fill in the grade description for each category.
Click and drag the grip icon on the left side of any category row to move it up or down.
Click the X button on the right side of a category row to remove that category.
Click the X button in a grade header to remove that grade column.
Scroll down past the grading rubric to edit Sparky's grading instructions. Sparky already accounts for grade level, language, and response style by default.
How to edit rubrics
If you started with a single-category rubric (which appears without a visible category name), you can convert it to a multidimensional rubric.
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Open your activity and click on "Activity settings".
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Click on "Build manually".
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On the lefthand sidebar, click on "Grading". You will see your existing rubric with grade columns but no category labels.
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Click "Add Category" to add a second category. The original single category will now display a text field where you can enter a category name.
Your rubric is now multidimensional, allowing you to assess students across multiple categories.
How to review session grades and leave feedback
When a student submits a session in a graded activity with a multidimensional rubric, Sparky automatically assigns a grade for each category based on the rubric criteria.
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Click on any submitted session to see the Session analysis section.
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You will see a Rubric feedback badge showing the per-category grades.
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Click "Edit rubric feedback" to open the full rubric feedback modal.
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The menu displays the complete rubric with the student's grade highlighted for each category. Each row shows the category name, the assigned grade, and any feedback you have added.
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Open the rubric feedback menu by clicking "Edit rubric feedback".
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The menu displays a table with all categories and grades. The currently assigned grade for each category is highlighted with a blue background and checkmark.
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Click on a different grade cell in any category row to change the grade for that category. Here the grade of "2" for "Stage Identification and Sequence" has been changed to a "3".
When you change individual category grades, the overall grade at the top right automatically recalculates based on the average score across all categories.
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You can also manually override the overall grade by clicking the overall grade dropdown at the top right and selecting a different grade.
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In the rubric feedback menu, click the text area in the "Teacher feedback column" for any category to enter feedback specific to that category.
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For overall comments, scroll down and enter text in the "Additional feedback" section at the bottom of the modal.
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Click "Update feedback" to save your changes.
How to export grades
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Open your activity and click on "Overview".
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Scroll down and click on "Download as CSV".
