Overview
Badges are automatic achievements that reward students for reaching milestones. The system checks every student against your active badges once per hour, and any newly-eligible students are awarded automatically.
Automatic badge processing runs hourly. After a student crosses a threshold, they typically receive the badge within an hour — you don’t need to wait until the next day.
Badge Types
- Achievement Badges
- Milestone Badges
- Special Badges
Reward specific accomplishments. Pick a trigger type and a target value:
- Points Earned — lifetime currency earned
- Currency Spent — lifetime currency spent
- Transaction Count — number of transactions
- Purchase Count — number of rewards redeemed
- Jobs Held — number of distinct jobs held
- Badges Earned — number of badges already collected
- Auction Wins — number of auctions won
- Bills Paid — number of bill payments made
- Job Days — days completed in a job
Creating a Badge
Click Create New Badge
The badge wizard opens. You can also click Load Defaults to populate your classroom with a starter set of badges based on your currency.
Configure Badge Details
- Name: Clear, motivating name (e.g., “Money Master”, “Savings Star”)
- Description: What the student accomplished
- Icon: Pick an icon from the categorized icon picker (trophies, animals, food, etc.)
- Color: Choose a color for the badge background
- Badge Type: Achievement, Milestone, or Special
- Bonus Reward: Optional bonus currency awarded when the badge is earned
Set Criteria
For Achievement badges, pick a trigger type and target value (e.g.,
role_days = 5).For Milestone badges, pick a milestone type and milestone amount (e.g., points_milestone = 500).Special badges have no criteria — they’re manual-only.Critical: Understanding Currency Amounts
- ✅ Using Currency (Dollars)
- ✅ Using Points
- ⚠️ Common Mistake
If your classroom uses dollars with decimals:
- To award badge at $200: Enter
200.00 - To award badge at $50: Enter
50.00 - To award badge at $1000: Enter
1000.00
Matches displayed balances like “$200.00”
How Automatic Awards Work
Hourly Check
Every hour, the system checks all active badges against all students in classrooms with badges enabled.
Manual Badge Awards
Award any badge to any student at any time — useful for Special badges or to recognize an achievement before the next hourly check.Badge Management
Editing Badges
- Change criteria thresholds as your economy evolves
- Update descriptions or imagery
- Adjust bonus point amounts
- Enable/disable without deleting
Revoking Badges
To revoke: Student profile → Badges tab → Click badge → RevokeBest Practices
Start with 3-5 Badges
Start with 3-5 Badges
Don’t overwhelm students with too many badges initially. Start simple:
- One low-tier badge (easy to earn)
- One medium-tier badge (1-2 weeks effort)
- One high-tier badge (long-term goal)
Create Progressive Tiers
Create Progressive Tiers
Multiple levels for the same achievement type:
- “Saver Bronze” - Save $100
- “Saver Silver” - Save $250
- “Saver Gold” - Save $500
Test Your Amounts
Test Your Amounts
Before activating:
- Check sample student balances
- Verify your amount matches expected format
- Start with higher thresholds if unsure
- Adjust down if no one earns it
Celebrate Badge Awards
Celebrate Badge Awards
- Announce new badge recipients to class
- Display badges on classroom board
- Let students share their achievements
- Creates social motivation to earn more
Include Bonus Points
Include Bonus Points
Add 10-50 bonus points to badges for extra motivation:
- Makes earning the badge feel extra rewarding
- Provides currency boost for savings goals
- Creates anticipation for badge processing
Default Badge Templates
When creating a new badge, you can load from templates:First Earner
First transaction - awarded immediately to get students excited
Saver Tier 1
Save $100 - teaches delayed gratification
Big Spender
Redeem 5 rewards - encourages using the economy
Job Well Done
Complete job for 7 consecutive days - rewards responsibility
Century Club
Earn $100 in total (lifetime) - achievable medium-term goal
Millionaire
Earn $1000 in total - prestigious long-term achievement
Troubleshooting
Badge Awarding to Everyone
Badge Awarding to Everyone
Problem: Badge awarded to entire class immediatelyCause: Threshold too low or currency format mismatchSolution:
- Check student balances to see typical amounts
- Edit badge criteria to much higher amount
- Test with “dry run” if available
- Consider revoking incorrect awards and re-issuing
Badge Not Awarding Anyone
Badge Not Awarding Anyone
Problem: No students receiving the badge after several daysCause: Threshold too high or criteria unclearSolution:
- Review highest student balances/achievements
- Lower threshold to achievable level
- Ensure badge is enabled and active
- Check that badge criteria type matches your goal
Duplicate Badges
Duplicate Badges
Problem: Student received the same badge multiple timesCause: System error (very rare)Solution:
- Report to support - may indicate a database issue
- Manually revoke duplicate awards
- System has built-in duplicate prevention, so this shouldn’t happen
Badge Analytics
Track badge effectiveness:- Award Rate: How often badges are earned
- Time to Earn: Average days from classroom start to badge
- Engagement Impact: Do badges increase earning behavior?
- Popular Badges: Which are most coveted by students
Related Topics
Classroom Jobs
Combine jobs with badges for achievement tracking
Analytics
View badge earning patterns and trends