If you are new to homeschooling, or have been homeschooling for a while, you may be wondering the best way to keep track of assignments and your children’s grades. A printable grade book template can be used as a grading system to keep you organized during the school year.
Free Grade Book Template
Using a free gradebook template or grade sheet templates is a great way to make sure your kids on track with their different subject areas. You can keep track of grades of specific assignments throughout the year to help you come up with an end of the quarter or end of the year grade.
Recording Grades Using a Gradebook Template
One of the benefits of homeschooling for some families is that they don’t always need to grade every single worksheet, quiz or test. Some families prefer to do a portfolio review using a homeschool portfolio checklist to keep track of what their children have learned.
This can change as your children move up to highschool when you need to be more careful with your homeschool record keeping. This is where you will want to start keeping a letter grade for those highschool transcripts.
Gradebooks Using Percentage
Gradebooks using percentages are very common and the most familiar. A final letter grade is almost always defined by the percentage grade.
A simple way to determine a percentage grade is by doing some simple math. First, you need to calculate the number of questions that your child answered correctly. Then you will divide that by the total number of questions on the assignment or test and multiply that by 100.
Grade Percentage Example
If your student took a test with 50 questions, each question is worth 2 points. This is what it would look like if they got 40 questions correct.
40 divided by 50 = .80
.80 x 100 = 80%
You would then enter that test score in your gradebook, and use the weighted combinations of assignments, quizzes and tests to come up with their final grade at the end of the year.
Gradebooks Using GPA
Gradebooks that use a GPA are normally seen at the high school level. If you have younger students you will most likely not be utilizing gradebooks that use a GPA. However, you will want to start calculating GPA for your high school students. Colleges use the GPA grading system as well, so it is important to get used to that system.
Some schools may calculate a GPA differently, but the most common GPA is calculated at 4.0. This is an example of converting a GPA to a 4.0 scale using letter grades and percentages that equal a GPA number.
Letter Grade |
Percentage/Points |
GPA |
A+ | 97-100 | 4.0 |
A | 93-96 | 4.0 |
A- | 90-92 | 3.7 |
B+ | 87-89 | 3.3 |
B | 83-86 | 3.0 |
B- | 80-82 | 2.7 |
C+ | 77-79 | 2.3 |
C | 73-76 | 2.0 |
C- | 70-72 | 1.7 |
D+ | 67-69 | 1.3 |
D | 65-66 | 1.0 |
E/F | Below 65 | 0.0 |
Gradebooks Using Point System
A common point system that is used for grading is called the 1,000 Points Grading System. You can develop your very own grading system for each subject that your child is taking. The great thing about this system is that it is customizable for each subject and works great for electives you want to give your students credit for.
First, you will want to lay out the categories in which you want to grade within the subject such as: assignments, quizzes, discussions or narration, reserach project, tests and final exam. If you are in a co-op setting you can add group projects, and in class participation to the categories.
Next to each category you will determine how much each section is worth point wise. 10% of the grade would be 100 points, 20% would be worth 200 points, with the categories equaling up to 1,000 points total.
Gradebooks Using Letter Grades
Letter grades are grades that are most commonly found on report cards. Everyone knows that an A is excellent and that an F is failing, and C is in the middle, but what exactly does that mean?
There are many different ways that schools and even colleges calculate their numbers and percentages and turn them into letter grades. Percentages have changed some since I was a child, and there is a little more room for error before the grade drops down a level.
The most common example of a percentage to letter grade conversion is:
- A (90–100)
- B (80-89)
- C (70–79)
- D (65–69)
- F (below 65)
Grading Scales
As a homeschooling parent, you can choose whichever grading scale you would like to use with your children. This can even change with the grade level as well. You may choose not to grade until the high school years.
Define a Grading Scale
A grade scale is a guide that explains what the actual grade means. They help to translate letter grades or satisfactory check mark grades to numeric grades such as those that define a GPA by the total points that each letter grade is work.
You may want to choose a specific grading scale or rubric to work off of when you are assigning grades. This is also very helpful for an end of year transcript when you need to come up with a final grade.
Weighting Homework, Quizzes & Tests
A type of grading scale that many families choose to use is a weighted scale. This is where you will take homework assignments, quizzes and tests to get your final grade. Homework doesn’t weigh as heavily as a quiz or a test will.
An example would be:
Daily homework and assignments – 30% of the grade
Quizzes – 30% of the grade
Tests – 40% of the grade
The total will equal 100% with tests bringing the most value to the final grade.
Homeschool Record Keeping
Homeschool record keeping printables, grade sheets and homeschool portfolio printables will come in very handy at those end of the year student evaluations. You will have everything you need to finish up your paperwork for the end of the school year.
Printable Gradebook Template PDF
These homeschool gradebook template pages have everything you need to easily keep track of your students’ grades throughout the school year. You can print multiple copies to create your very own grade book, or use single pages to put into student portfolios.
Pages include a spot to record student names, subjects, and grades. There are detailed pages to help you keep track of the date, assignments, total points earned and final grades.
Additional pages include basic recording such as subject, assignment grade and notes explaining the grade or assignment. There are even pages to keep track of grades per quarter.
The final page will help you to keep track of all assignments and grades throughout the year for a single student.
Download Printable Gradebook Template PDF
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Sarah is a wife, daughter of the King and Mama to 4 children (one who is a homeschool graduate)! She is a an eclectic, Charlotte Mason style homeschooler that has been homeschooling for almost 20 years.. She is still trying to find the balance between work and keeping a home and says she can only do it by the Grace of God, and Coffee!