How to change grade level in Prodigy

To change the grade level in Prodigy, use Grade Override. Parents do it from the parent dashboard, under View Progress, then Manage Child, and teachers do it from the class roster, under Students, then Edit. The grade sets the difficulty of the math questions, so change it when the work is clearly too easy or too hard, not after one bad day. One thing to know first: for parents, Grade Override is a Premium Member feature, while teachers can set it free from the teacher dashboard.

How parents change the grade level

Log in to the Prodigy parent account at prodigygame.com. On the parent dashboard, find the child whose grade you want to change and select View Progress under the child name. On the left hand side of the page, select Manage Child. There you will see the Grade Override widget, where you can pick the new grade level and save. The change applies to the child account straight away, and the next questions in the game use the new grade. Grade Override is a Premium Member feature for parents, so if you do not see the widget, the account does not have a membership. If the child plays through a school account, the teacher controls the grade instead, so ask the teacher to change it. The difference between the two account types is explained in Parent account vs teacher account in Prodigy.

How teachers change a student grade level

Log in to the Prodigy teacher account and select the class the student is part of. Select Students from the left side of the page, then select the Edit button next to the student name. In the menu that opens, select the dropdown under Grade Override, pick the new grade, and save. Teachers can set Grade Override free, with no membership needed. The change applies to that one student only, so the rest of the class is not affected. If the student is in a class that uses Clever rostering, make roster changes in Clever first, then select Sync with Clever from the teacher account, because the class list comes from Clever.

How teachers change a whole class grade

If the whole class needs a new grade, for example when the same class rolls over to a new school year, change the class grade instead of changing every student one by one. Log in to the teacher account and select All Classes at the bottom left of the screen. Find the class card, select the gear icon in the top right hand corner of the card, then select Edit. Enter the new grade, then select Save. The class grade sets the default for the class, and individual students can still have their own Grade Override on top of it.

What changes when you change the grade

Changing the grade changes the difficulty and the topics of the math questions. The wizard, pets, levels, and rewards stay exactly as they are, because the grade only controls the curriculum. Move a Grade 3 student to Grade 4 and the questions become Grade 4 questions, covering the skills of that grade. Move the grade down and the questions get easier, which can rebuild confidence after a student has struggled for a while. Progress already earned is not lost, and the student can keep playing in the same world with the same friends. The adaptive system keeps adjusting inside the new grade, so the questions get a little harder as the student answers correctly and a little easier after mistakes. The grade overview for each year is in Prodigy Grades Overview, Grades 1 to 8.

When to move the grade up or down

Move the grade up when the student answers almost everything correctly, finishes battles fast, and says the math is boring or too easy. That is a sign the questions are below the student level, and a higher grade gives a real challenge. Move the grade down when the student gets most questions wrong, avoids playing, or says the math is too hard. A lower grade is not a failure, it is a reset that lets the student practise the missing skills and rebuild confidence. Do not change the grade after one bad session, because a tired day or a new topic can look like the wrong grade. Watch a full week of play first, then decide. If the student is in the right grade but one topic is weak, the placement test and the adaptive system usually handle it without a grade change.

Grade level and the placement test

When a student first starts Prodigy, the placement test sets the grade and the starting difficulty. The test asks questions across the grade range and finds the level where the student is comfortable. Grade Override replaces that starting point, so it is the tool to use when the placement test got it wrong or the student has moved on since. A student who finished Grade 4 in June and starts Grade 5 in September should have the grade updated, not left on the old placement. The placement test itself is explained in Prodigy placement test explained.

Grade Override is missing: what to do

If you are a parent and cannot find the Grade Override widget in Manage Child, the usual reason is that the account has no membership, because Grade Override is a Premium Member feature for parents. The free parent account can still see progress and set goals, but it cannot override the grade. The options are to add a membership, or to ask the teacher to set Grade Override from the teacher account, which is free. If you are a teacher and cannot find the Edit button, check that you opened the right class and that the student is on the roster. If the class uses Clever, the roster is managed in Clever, so sync it first. If the grade changed but the questions did not, sign the student out and back in, then play one battle, because the new grade applies from the next session.

Frequently asked questions

Related guides

• Prodigy placement test explained
• Parent account vs teacher account in Prodigy
• Prodigy Grades Overview, Grades 1 to 8

This site is an independent guide. It is not the official Prodigy site, and it is not affiliated with Prodigy Education.