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Getting Started

ClassCents is completely free for all teachers!All features are included at no cost. We’re committed to making classroom economy tools accessible to every teacher.
Primary audience: K-8 classrooms (ages 5-14)The system works great for:
  • Elementary school (K-5): Full feature set
  • Middle school (6-8): More advanced features like auctions and budgeting
  • High school: Can work, but designed primarily for younger students
No! ClassCents is designed for teachers, not developers.
  • Intuitive interface
  • Step-by-step wizards
  • No coding required
  • Visual guides and tutorials
  • Support available if you get stuck
First-time setup: About 15 minutes
  • Create classroom: 2 minutes
  • Add students: 5-10 minutes
  • Create rewards: 5-10 minutes
  • Award first points: 1 minute
After initial setup, daily management takes just 5-10 minutes!

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Student Access

No traditional accounts needed!Students access dashboards via:
  • QR codes (password-free)
  • Unique dashboard URLs
  • No email or password required
Perfect for young students who can’t manage passwords!
Yes! Students can access from any device with internet:
  • Check balance at home
  • Show progress to parents
  • Shop for rewards
  • Participate in auctions
Great for family engagement!
Yes, ClassCents is designed with student safety in mind:
  • No personal information displayed publicly
  • Students can’t see other students’ data
  • No social features or messaging
  • FERPA compliant
  • Secure authentication
  • No external links or ads
Easy to fix:
  1. Teacher generates new QR code for that student
  2. Old code becomes invalid
  3. Student gets new code
  4. All balance and history preserved
Takes less than 30 seconds!

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Currency & Points

Both work great - choose based on goals:Use Dollars ($) if:
  • Teaching financial literacy
  • Want real-world connection
  • Students understand money concepts
  • Mirroring actual economy
Use Points if:
  • Simpler for younger students
  • Game-ified feel preferred
  • Avoid confusion with real money
  • Very large numbers (inflation-proof)
Recommended: 50-100 points/dollarsWhy:
  • Students feel “wealthy” immediately
  • Can afford small rewards quickly
  • Provides buffer for early mistakes
  • Creates positive first impression
Starting at 0 can feel demotivating!
Signs of inflation:
  • Everyone has huge balances
  • Rewards too cheap to be motivating
  • Students don’t value currency
Solutions:
  • Introduce expensive “luxury” rewards
  • Create auction system for special items
  • Reduce earning amounts slightly
  • Offer “tax” or “savings bond” opportunities
By default, students cannot spend more than their current balance — the system prevents overdrafts automatically.However, with the Bills & Expenses system, students can go into a negative balance when automatic bill payments are deducted. This is intentional and teaches valuable lessons about financial responsibility.Prevent negative:
  • Students can’t spend what they don’t have in the shop
  • Simpler for younger students
  • Avoids discouragement
Bills may cause negative (by design):
  • Mirrors real-world expenses
  • Teaches consequences of overspending
  • Students must earn back to positive

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Classroom Management

Recommendation: Multiple times per class periodFrequency by age:
  • K-2: Every 15-30 minutes for positive behavior
  • 3-5: 3-5 times per class period
  • 6-8: Daily recognition, weekly bonuses
More frequent = better reinforcement!
Use sparingly! Positive reinforcement works better.When to deduct:
  • Clear rule violations with agreed-upon “fines”
  • After warnings and explanations
  • As natural consequences students expect
When NOT to deduct:
  • First offense of new rule
  • Punitive/reactive responses
  • Without clear explanation
Focus on rewarding good behavior instead!
Start: 5-10 rewards Later: 15-30 rewardsInclude variety:
  • Multiple price points (low, medium, high)
  • Physical items and privileges
  • Individual and group rewards
  • Short-term and long-term goals
Yes! Create separate classrooms for:
  • Different class periods
  • Different grade levels
  • Different academic years
  • Co-taught classes
Each classroom has independent:
  • Currency settings
  • Student rosters
  • Rewards catalogs
  • Payment schedules

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Technical Questions

ClassCents works on:Desktop/Laptop:
  • Windows, Mac, Linux
  • Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge
Mobile:
  • iOS (iPhone, iPad)
  • Android phones and tablets
  • All major mobile browsers
Chromebooks: Excellent support!
Yes, ClassCents requires internet connection:
  • Teacher dashboard needs internet for all features
  • Student dashboards need internet to view/shop
  • No offline mode currently available
Data syncs in real-time when connected.
Yes! Export options:
  • Transaction history (CSV/Excel)
  • Student rosters with balances
  • Analytics reports
  • Badge awards history
Great for record-keeping and parent reports!
Your choice:Option 1: Start Fresh
  • Keep your student roster
  • Clear transaction history
  • Reset balances to the classroom’s starting balance
Option 2: Delete
  • Delete the classroom permanently
  • All student and transaction data removed
Archive (read-only classroom history) is on the roadmap for a future release.

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Payment & Roles

Automatic payments for classroom jobs:
  1. You create a role (e.g., “Line Leader”)
  2. Set payment amount and frequency
  3. Assign student to role
  4. System pays automatically on schedule
Learn more about payment schedules →
New in v2.3.3: Configure payment times per classroom!
You control this! As of v2.3.3:Configure in Settings → Payment Schedule:
  • Choose your timezone
  • Set time of day for daily payments
  • Set day/time for weekly payments
  • Set day/time for monthly payments
  • Configure bi-weekly cycle
Default (if not configured): 5 AM UTC daily/Friday/1st of month
Yes, this is optional!Enable role applications:
  1. Go to role settings
  2. Turn on “Allow Applications”
  3. Students can request roles from dashboard
  4. You approve or deny
Great for student agency and ownership!

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Badges & Achievements

Automatic badges: Process daily at 6:00 AM UTC (around 1-2 AM Eastern)Students who become eligible today receive badges tomorrow morning.Manual badges: Instantly when you award them
Most common cause: Currency amount mismatchThe problem:
  • You wanted $200 badge
  • You entered 200 in a dollar-based classroom
  • System interpreted as $2.00 (200 cents)
  • Everyone with $2+ qualified
The fix:
  • Edit badge
  • Change amount to 200.00 (the dollar amount)
  • System will now correctly check for $200.00
Learn more about badge amounts →
Yes, but use sparingly:
  1. Go to student profile
  2. Find badge in badges tab
  3. Click Revoke
Use for:
  • Incorrectly awarded badges (errors)
  • Duplicates
  • Extreme circumstances only

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Auctions

Quick overview:
  1. Teacher creates auction with start/end times
  2. Students place bids (must be higher than current bid)
  3. At end time, highest bidder wins
  4. Winner’s currency is deducted
  5. Teacher delivers reward
Full auction guide →
Can’t happen! System requires each bid to be higher than the current high bid.No two students can have the same amount as high bid.
Yes, before auction ends:
  • Student finds their bid
  • Clicks “Cancel Bid”
  • Reserved currency is released
  • Can use funds for something else
After auction ends, winner can’t cancel!

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Timezone Settings

ClassCents has two separate timezone configurations:1. User Profile Timezone (User Settings)
  • Controls how dates/times DISPLAY in analytics
  • Shows “2:00 PM” in YOUR timezone
  • Affects reports and dashboards
  • Personal preference setting
2. Payment Schedule Timezone (Classroom Settings)
  • Controls WHEN automated payments process
  • “Pay students at 8 AM Pacific Time”
  • Affects actual payment execution
  • Per-classroom setting
These serve different purposes and can be set independently!

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Data & Privacy

Yes! ClassCents follows educational privacy best practices:
  • Student data not shared with third parties
  • Teachers control access to classroom data
  • Data encrypted in transit and at rest
Yes, you have full control:
  • Delete individual students from your classroom
  • Contact support to delete your teacher account or request full data removal
Only authorized users:
  • You (the teacher)
  • ClassCents support (only when requested for troubleshooting)
  • The individual student (their own data only)
Other teachers cannot see your classroom data.

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Troubleshooting

Check:
  1. QR codes generated for all students?
  2. QR codes scanning properly (lighting, camera)?
  3. Student using correct QR code (name matches)?
  4. Internet connection working?
  5. Try regenerating the student’s QR code
Check:
  1. Payment schedule configured? (Settings → Payment Schedule)
  2. Students assigned to roles?
  3. Current time matches configured time?
  4. For bi-weekly: reference date set?
  5. Check transaction history for errors
Payment schedule guide →
Check:
  1. Rewards marked as available?
  2. Shop feature enabled in classroom settings?
  3. Reward availability set to “Shop” or “Both”?
  4. Quantity limit not reached?
  5. Student dashboard refreshed?
If transaction missing:
  1. Check transaction history - may have recorded with different reason
  2. Check student’s transaction list specifically
  3. Try the transaction again
  4. If duplicate occurs, can manually undo
  5. Contact support if transactions regularly missing

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Feature-Specific Questions

Absolutely! Create:
  • Multiple classrooms (one per class period)
  • Separate settings for each
  • Different currencies if desired
  • Independent economies
OR:
  • One classroom with all students
  • Use groups to organize by period
  • Shared economy
Not built-in, but you can facilitate:
  • Student requests trade
  • Teacher approves and processes manually
  • Deduct from one, award to other
  • Log as “Trade with [student name]”
Consider implications: trading can create wealth inequality or social issues.
Yes, but consider carefully:Options:
  • Reset all students to starting balance
  • Adjust all balances by percentage
  • Give everyone bonus currency
This effectively “forgives” poor performance and gives fresh start.
Resets can demotivate students who saved carefully!
Yes! Share the student’s QR code with parents:Parents can:
  • View balance and transactions
  • See earned badges
  • Monitor earning patterns
  • Encourage saving behavior
Great for parent-teacher communication!

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Still Have Questions?

Contact Support

Can’t find your answer? Create a support ticket and we’ll help!