Using Conference Report Widgets
In this article, we will describe some of the different widgets available to you in Transparent Classroom as you create your Conference Report templates. You can use widgets to format your reports and record different types of progress. In this article, you will find information on:
- Updating a Template
- Cumulative Conference Reports
- Name & Value Widgets
- Autofilled Progress Widgets
- Manual Progress Widgets
- Attendance Widgets
- Formatting Widgets
Updating a Template
Before we get started, there are a couple of important notes to consider when creating and updating Conference Report templates. Once you create and save your template it will be available for guides and administrators to use to generate Conference Reports. If you choose to modify a template after it has been used to generate reports, only reports generated after making the modifications will reflect the new template. This means that Conference Reports generated previous to the modification will not be updated with the new template.
Why does this matter? Before you save your template, consider having another pair of eyes look over it for typos or inconsistencies.
If you do happen to make changes to a template after you've generated your reports, we can always help by refreshing the conference report templates. For more information on how to do that, check out this article.
Cumulative Conference Reports
The Skills Tables and Standards Tables widgets include a checkbox option called "Cumulative: Copy data from the previous conference reports in current session." You might want to consider this option if your school generates more than one Conference Report per session and that report includes information from the other reports during that session. It is important to note that using the cumulative option will only pull information from reports generated with the same template and session. You can access this option by clicking on [...] in the bottom right of a Skills Table or Standards Table widget.
Name & Value Widgets
The first thing you might want to add to your report is a child's basic information. Using "Name & Value" widgets you can pull this information directly onto your Conference Report from a child's Profile page. All options that have a ✏️ next to them can be edited, but not removed, after you generate a report.
Below are the widgets we currently have available in this section:
Child Name✏️
Age✏️
Child Age at Session Start✏️
Child Birthday ✏️
Child Grade ✏️
Child's First Session✏️
Start Date - End Date ✏️
End Date ✏️
Session ✏️
Author ✏️: This is the name of the person logged in when the Conference Report was generated.
Classroom ✏️: This is the classroom the child is currently enrolled in.
Parents ✏️
When you add any of these widgets to your template, you will have the opportunity to add a title. A colon will already be added, so all you need to do is type in the title name, such as "Birthday."
Autofilled Progress Widgets
One way you can include a child's progress on their Conference Report is to use one of our Autofilled Progress widgets. These widgets are great because they take advantage of the record keeping work you have already been doing in Transparent Classroom. There are a couple of different options in this section each with their own pros and cons depending on your goals for the Conference Report. All options that have a ✏️ next to them can be edited, but not removed, after you generate a report. The options include:
Lesson List w/ Proficiencies: This is our most popular Autofilled option. This widget will pull all of the lessons that a child has been working on during the reporting period and list the child's level of progress with each lesson as it has been recorded in Transparent Classroom. Using this widget, you can choose to hide the levels of progress, include all lessons the child has been introduced to, or limit the areas in your lesson set that are included in the report. If you choose to publish your Conference Reports to parents digitally, parents will be able to click on the lesson names in the report to view the Lesson Description pages to learn more. This widget will also create a comment box below each area so you can include written comments if you would like.
Lessons in Area ✏️: This widget will pull all the lessons a child has received in the areas of your lesson set that you list. The area name must match the area name in your lesson set exactly. It does not show the child's level of progress with the lessons or the groups that the lessons are organized into. It is also important to note that unlike the Lesson List w/ Proficiencies, the lesson names do not link to the Lesson Description pages.
Lessons by Area in Table : This widget is similar to Lessons in Area, but will create a table for each area in your lesson set and organize them horizontally across the page. Just like the Lessons in Area, the lesson names will not link to the Lesson Description pages.
Standards Table ✏️: If your school is using our standards feature (learn more here), you can use this widget to create a table that will list a child's progress with a specific standards set. When you select this widget you will need to know the exact name of the standard set you are using and the grade levels that you want to include on the template. You do have the option to include cumulative progress and hide previous progress. While you can modify a child's progress with the standards after a report has been generated for an individual child, you will not be able to modify the standards themselves. Additionally, the standard progress that has been modified in a report does not update the actual standard progress for the child on their [Standards] page.
Portfolio Notes: This widget allows you to include notes that you have saved to a child's portfolio. It gives you the option to select how many notes you would like to include in the report, but you are not able to select which notes will be pulled.
Portfolio Pictures: This widget is similar to the Portfolio Notes widget, but will pull photos from a child's Portfolio rather than notes.
Caution: These two widgets will pull both published and private observations from the Portfolio into the conference report!
Manual Progress Widgets
Another way that you can capture a child's progress is by using Manual Progress widgets. While these widgets do not pull information directly from a child's profile for you, they can be a great way to share benchmarks outside of the Montessori lessons or focus on outcomes. The options include:
Skills Tables ✏️: Skills Tables are another popular way to include progress. Using this widget you can create tables that include custom skills, comments, and levels of progress or development. When you create a Skills Table you will have several formatting options. The first steps are to title your table and label your columns. Next, you can add the skills you would like to measure. Additionally, you can also choose to use a two-column layout, use checkboxes or include comments.
As you are deciding how you want to design your Skills Table you will need to decide how you want to utilize columns. One option is to make the columns the levels of progress or development. With this option, guides can use a checkbox or "x" out the appropriate column.
You could also choose to leave the columns blank, which will create one column that you can type the level of progress of development into for each skill. You will want to use this style if you are going to be using the cumulative option (see below).
Key: A key is a tool that you might want to use with Skills Table. Keys give you a space to share the levels of progress or development you are using to describe a child's progress. Keys also make it easy to abbreviate these levels. When you use a key you will need to set values and descriptions. A value is the level you will be using to describe progress, while the description explains that value.
Note ✏️: You can use this widget to create a text box, with no character limit, that can be filled out after the Conference Report is generated for an individual child. This is a great way to add in space for a written comment or narrative.
Attendance Widgets
There are two widget options for including attendance information on your Conference Reports.
Attendance Count ✏️: This option will add a line in your template for one attendance state at a time. When you add the widget to your template you can input the letter that represents the attendance state you would like pulled from the Attendance page in Transparent Classroom. Since the information in this widget can be edited after you generate a Conference Report, it is a great option for schools that do not use Transparent Classroom to track attendance.
Attendance Summary Table: This widget will create a small table on your template that includes attendance information from multiple attendance states for the reporting period and the current session overall. The information in this table is pulled directly from a child's attendance information in Transparent Classroom and, while it can be refreshed after the Conference Report is generated, it cannot be manually edited.
Formatting Widgets
As you create your Conference Report template, you may want to include use some of our formatting widgets. These widgets can be used to design and customize your template, add photos, and optimize your template's layout for printing.
Report Title: By default, your template will include a Report Title that has the child's profile picture, first name and the name of your template. You can use this widget to customize your Report Title which will remove the default title.
Heading: This widget will add a Heading to your report with text that is larger and bolder than the text on the rest of the report.
Subheading: This widget is similar to the Heading widget, but creates a slightly smaller heading.
School Banner: This widget will pull the banner image from your [School Settings] page in the [Admin] menu onto the report. When you add the widget you will be able to size the banner and choose to leave it on the left side of the report (default) or pull it to the right side of the report. It is important to note that when you resize the banner you need to make sure to add the % symbol after the number, or it won't work. (For example, you need to type 50% if you want the banner to show up half size.)
Profile Picture: You can use this widget to include a child's profile picture onto the report. If a child does not have a profile picture when you generate their report, you can still add one afterward and the report will automatically update.
Choose Picture ✏️: You can use this widget to include photos that a child has been tagged in on their Conference Report. When you add the widget you will be able to size the photo and choose to leave it on the left side of the report (default) or pull it to the right side of the report. You will be able to choose the actual photo when you generate the report for an individual child.
Divider: This widget will add a horizontal line to your report, which can be a nice touch between sections.
Page Break: If you will be choosing to print out your Conference Reports, you can use this widget to control how the pages break. To use this widget, drag and drop it where you want each page to end.
Panel ✏️: This widget is similar to the Note widget from the "Manual Progress" section, but includes a blue background behind the panel title and a defined section to type in comments after the Conference Report has been generated.
Text: You can use this widget to include a consistent section of text in each report. This widget is great to use if your reports include a section that describes your program or outlines the goals. It is important to note that this text cannot be modified from the Conference Reports after they have been generated for individual children.