Creating New Activities
Educators can create activities from scratch or grab pre-made content from the Formative library, you can also use our AI to generate an activity.
In this article we will focus on the creation of new activities, covering:
NEW! Editor Navigation Side-Bar
A quicker way to navigate items on the activity's Editor has been introduced recently. Using the Navigation Side-Bar teachers can quickly jump to individual items, take bulk actions such as copying or deleting items, and even re-order items on the activity. Head on over here to read more about this new and exciting feature!
Coming Soon! Collapsible Activity Editor
A new cleaner and more organized editor experience is coming to Formative soon! Head over to your account's settings page to opt in to testing this experience in your account. Read more about the collapsible editor view and functions here!
Get Started
Navigate either to your "Home" tab or your "Activities" tab
Click the "Create +" button at the top right corner
Select the preferred method from the dropdown menu -
NOTE: all methods below are available on the "Home" tab, but only the first 3 options are available on the "Activities" tab:
+ Formative to open the standard editor view of a new activity and start building an assignment from scratch. (available on both tabs)
Lesson to open the Editor view of a new activity, with the Presentation View (Slides-bar) toggled ON. With the Presentation View enabled, you will have access to our Lesson Blocks feature to get you started with building a lesson within Formative. (available on both tabs)
Practice Set to open the Practice Sets editor page, where you could proceed to create a new Student Practice Set. (available on both tabs)
Available on 'Home' onlyCommon Assessment (School & District license only) - Available only to members of a School & District license, clicking the Common Assessment option will re-direct you to the standard editor view of a new activity, however in this case the activity will automatically be tagged as a Common Assessment (Common Assessment toggle turned ON) and the Common Assessment settings panel will open by default. You will be able to adjust the Common Assessments settings, but will not have an option to un-tag the activity from being a Common Assessment. (available on the Home tab only)
Upload Your Content to open the standard editor view of a new activity while simultaneously prompting you to upload your own content file (PDF, Image, etc.) into the activity - ready to be enhanced with questions and activities. If you select to upload a PDF, you will also have the option to parse the PDF. (available on the Home tab only)
Auto-Generate Formative to utilize Formative's AI for the creation of a new activity (step-by-step instructions can be found in this linked article). (available on the Home tab only)
Import with Google to import PDF files, Google Slides, Google Docs, or Images saved on your Google Drive directly into a new activity to serve as the foundation for your article (here, too, you can then proceed to enhance it with questions and other items). From here you can also simultaneously import an existing Google Form from your Google Drive and parse / convert into an activity (step-by-step instructions can be found in this linked article). (available on the Home tab only)
Create with Youtube or Upload to search and select Youtube videos, import Vimeo or Google Drive videos with a share link, or upload a video file into a new activity. Once the video has been added it can be enhanced with timestamps and questions. (available on the Home tab only)
If you have other content items you'd like to add to an activity, such as audio files, please review the corresponding help article in this linked support section.
Do not worry! You can add content items at any stage when building an activity, read on to find out more about adding content items!
Add a title and instructions
When creating a new activity, start by giving it a title. Simply click the generic "Untitled Activity/Formative" in the banner and type in a different title.
To add general instructions to your activity click on "Add Instructions" and enter instructions to your students and/or teacher notes that will be visible only to you and other teachers who collaborate on the activity with you. Instructions and notes may include content items such as files, videos, audio recordings, images, emojis, etc. (See here for more details on teacher notes)
The header view also provides the option to tag the activity. Tagging the activity will assist in data collection and reporting.
Clicking the styling icon will offer the option to change the banner's color or upload a background image to it (ideal image size 1000x400). You can select a background from our existing gallery, upload an image from your device of Google Drive, take a photo with your device's camera, or search for an image directly on Google Image.
The body of a formative can include various content and question types, including enhanced uploaded content. Paid Teacher plan / School & District license users also have the ability to divide their activity into sections.
Adding any of these items to an activity begins by clicking the big blue + button.
Add Questions from scratch
After clicking the blue plus button you can choose any of the available options under the Add Item tab.
Note: The question types available to Free Teacher account holders are: Free Response, Multiple Choice, Multiple Selection, Short Answer, Drawing, and True Or False.
All other question types are part of the extended features set available to Paid Teacher plan/School & District license members.
You can add a question anywhere in the activity, even after you've already created others. The "+" button is located before, after and in between each question.
You also have the option to generate questions using ChatGPT AI under the 'Create with AI' tab.
Duplicating questions
Sometimes it's faster to duplicate a question and then tweak it!
Simply click on the 3 dots next to the point value, and select "copy" to duplicate the question:
You can also use AI to generate a new question that will be similar to the one you had just created. Click on the 3 dots next to the point value, and select "Generate similar" from the dropdown menu.
Changing Question Type
NOTE: Changing the type of a question that already has student responses will delete the question and the responses. If your activity is shared with other teachers as collaborators, their students' answers will be removed as well. If needed, you will be able to locate the original question in your deleted items list and restore it along with the answers. When restored, the original question will re-appear as the last item on the activity and not in it's original place.
To change the question type, click on the question type listed at the top left corner of the question box, and choose the new type from the dropdown menu. Then, confirm your request to change the question type.
File Upload to questions
File uploads of less than 100 MB are supported in all question types. Add any file type for students to download by clicking the plus button at the far right of your question's text bar, and choosing "File". You can upload a file directly from your device or grab one from your Google Drive. Students can also add a file upload to Free Response questions.
Add an Existing Question - from an activity previously created or from the library / item bank
Start by clicking the big blue + button and then "Library + Item Bank" under the 'Add Item' tab:
Add question from your existing activities:
At the top left of the window that opens select the "My Formatives" tab
Search within your list of activities to find questions / items to add!
Then click the "+Add" button to the right of each desired question / item
You can then continue to add more questions from this formative or from another, one by one!
When done, click on the X icon at the top right corner of this page and you'll get redirected to the editor page, where the newly added questions / items will have been added
Grab a question from the library:
At the top left of the window that opens select the select the "Library" tab
If you're a member of a School & District subscribed organization, select between searching the Public library or the Private library of your team
Search within the library to find formatives that may contain questions / items per your interest
Click on the title of a formative to expand its' content in the right side panel
Locate questions / items within the formative you want to add to your activity
Then click the "+Add" button to the right of each desired question / item
You can then continue to add more questions from this formative or from another, one by one!
When done, click on the X icon at the top right corner of this page and you'll get redirected to the editor page, where the newly added questions / items will have been added
You can edit and duplicate your grabbed questions as much as you like!
Library items show the Standard tagged by the author along with a brief description upon hovering. This will be helpful when selecting the appropriate item to assign.
You can choose to Add or Dismiss the standards set in your own use of the activity
If you're a member of an organization with a School & District license that has purchased our Item Bank Add-on, please review this article to learn how to add Item Bank questions to your activity from the Item Bank Tab
Add Content Items
After clicking the blue plus button, you can choose any of the available options under "Content".
You can add media between other items/questions on your activity. Simply click on the + icon in between questions or content you've already created and select from the menu that appears:
NOTE: If a attempting to upload an unsafe file extension (ie .exe files) or other non-supported files, a "That file is not supported" notification will appear
Enhance an Uploaded Document (including Google items)
You can upload PDFs, Word Docs, images, slides, Google Docs, Google Slides, Google Forms, and more - directly from your device or from Google Drive!
Note: When grabbing items from Google Drive there is a limit of 25 pages per upload as well as a limit of 25MB file size per upload. If your slide deck or file is larger, please split it into smaller chunks and upload each portion separately.
** Free Teacher plan users have an uploading limit of 20 pages of media content per month.
Enhance the Document of your choice
To start, click on the "+" icon and choose the "Upload Images or Documents" tab
Select the option you prefer for importing your image/documet into your activity. You can select between:
Search Google Images or Add an Image URL using the Search bar
Upload items directly from your device with a click on the field or dragging and dropping the item into the field
Pick from Google Drive to import any saved PDF, Google Doc, Slides, Forms, etc. directly into your activity
Take a Photo to grab a live image with your device's camera
Draw an Image to use our whiteboard option where you can upload a background and add manual scribbles, writing and drawing directly on it.
Select the document and confirm the upload
The document will be added on the left side of your screen
Make your formative accessible by adding Alt-Text to the image/document
Add questions or other content items to enhance your image/document on the right side panel
To add questions that will correspond with specific areas within your uploaded image/document, simply click anywhere on the image/document where you would like your question to be associated with. Select the desired question type from the list. Numbers will appear on the image/document and the corresponding questions will then appear on the right side, where you can tag standards, set an answer key for auto-grading and set the point value.
You can also use AI to generate the questions.
Need to adjust the location of the number on the image/document? Simply hold and drag it.
To remove a question, click the 3 dots next to it and choose "Delete"
Questions can also be moved around. You have the ability to switch the order of questions within the "Enhance" question type, or to move them out from the question type to be stand alone questions on the general activity. In a similar manner you can also move a stand alone question on the general activity into the "Enhance" question type.
To move a question to another location within the Enhance question type or outside of it:
Click the 3 dots on the left side corner and choose "Move"
A blue frame will appear around the question chosen to be moved
Click the "Move item here" button in the location to which you would like to move the question.
To move a stand alone question into an Enhance question type:
Click the 3 dots on the left side corner and choose "move"
Click anywhere on the image/document where you would like your question to be to create the number bubble (don't worry you can move the question again later if you'd like to rearrange the order of questions)
The question will then appear on the right side
Note: The scroll bar is separate for both the document and the questions so that students can always reference the document while they answer questions. Also, you can pick up and drag the question numbers if you choose to move them!
Remove or Replace the Enhanced Image/Document
If you no longer need the original image/document within your activity, or if you'd like to replace it with a different one, you have the option to do so while keeping the enhancing questions or items. To do this:
Click on the pencil icon at the top of the uploaded content
Click on the trashcan icon to delete the image/document but keep the questions, and confirm the removal
orSelect one of the image/document upload options to replace the current image/document with a different one
Once the image/document has been removed, the questions will remain as stand-alone questions that are not dependent on the previously uploaded image/document item.
PDF Parsing
You can use AI to parse your uploaded PDFs and pull questions from within them into Formative automatically. Click here to learn how!
FAQ and troubleshooting tips
When I try to upload, nothing happens.
If you are uploading a Google Doc, then you may be trying to upload from a Shared Drive that we do not have access to. Try downloading the Doc to your device, then re-uploading it.
Another possible reason for this is if you are trying to upload a file that is larger than your upload limit, or a file in an unsupported format. (Note: TextEdit files are often labelled as PDFs in Google Drive.) Try checking the file size, then try downloading the file and exporting or printing to PDF, and then upload it again.
NOTE: If a attempting to upload an unsafe file extension (ie .exe files) or other non-supported files, a "That file is not supported" notification will appear
Reorder Items Within an Activity
There are two ways to re-order questions and media items inside an activity:
Click on the three dots to the right hand side of your question/item (next to the point value) and select "Move". The "Move item here" buttons will appear across your activity, click on the button in your desired new location to move your question/item there.
Expand the left-side navigation bar, hover over the icon to the left of the question/item you wish to move. Your cursor will change to a 'move' icon, click on this spot to hold and drag the question/item to the desired new location. Once moved within the navigation bar, the question/item will move accordingly on the activity editor page as well.
Delete and Restore Questions/Items
NOTE: Deleting a question that already has student responses will also delete the responses. If your activity is shared with other teachers as collaborators, their students' answers will be removed as well. However, restoring the deleted question will restore the answers too.
To delete a question/item:
There are two ways to delete a question/item from your activity:
Click the 3 dots located on the the right-hand corner of a question or a media item and select "Delete". Then confirm your deletion request.
Expand the left-side navigation bar, click on the check-mark icon at the bottom left corner. Then, check-mark the box next to the question/item you wish to delete and click the trashcan icon from the menu that will pop-up, proceeding to confirm your deletion request. You can also select multiple questions/items to delete in bulk!
Removed a question accidentally?
To restore a question/item:
Click the 3 dots at the top menu of your screen
Choose "Restore Deleted Items"
Scroll the panel to locate the question/item you would like restored
Hover over the question/item and click the "Restore" button
The restored question/item will re-appear on the activity as the last question/item (instead of its' original location)
If any student responses were previously captured for a restored question, they will also be restored on the responses tab
Preview an Activity as a Student
You can use the Preview button to view & interact with your activities from a student's perspective!
While in Preview, you can see how your activity will appear to students on various devices by selecting the desired preview device icon - phone, tablet, or computer screen!
You can also click the "pop out" icon to open the Preview in a new tab. This will update every second as you build your activity, so you can quickly click between the two tabs to check how your activity will appear to your students:
You can even answer the questions while in Preview, and click on "View Responses" to see how your answers would be auto-graded!
Responses you give while in Preview will not be included in your Tracker, unless you hit "submit". Once submitted, your responses will be included in your Tracker under "Teacher Preview". You can un-submit these responses to exclude them from the Tracker.
Note: the Preview's display will behave based on the assign settings that were most recently used / updated with the assigned class. If no classes are assigned, the preview's display will behave based on the account's default settings.