For a first-grade teacher, “tech time” can quickly turn into “troubleshooting time” if you’re stuck typing in 25 different passwords for 25 different six-year-olds.
Mandy Carney, a veteran educator at Uplift Summit, has mastered the art of the seamless digital transition. By using ClassLink Quick Cards, she’s turned a potentially chaotic start to the day into a streamlined, independent process for her K-2 students.
Here is the definitive guide to setting up, troubleshooting, and managing Quick Cards in your classroom.
How to Generate and Print Quick Cards
Before your students can scan their way into their lessons, you need to get the physical cards ready. Here is the step-by-step for teachers:
Enter the Portal: Log into your teacher ClassLink account.
- Find the Icon: Click on the Class Quick Cards app.
- Select Your Group: Click on your advisory class. (Note: To protect scholar privacy, ensure you aren’t projecting your screen while doing this!)
- Batch Print: Once inside the class list, hit “Select All” and then “Print Quick Cards.”
Pro-Tip from Mandy: Print your cards on bright green cardstock and laminate them. The bright color makes them easy to spot if they’re dropped on the floor, and the lamination ensures they survive a year of first-grade wear and tear.
The "Missing Scholar" Fix
Occasionally, a new student won’t show up in your Quick Card list. This usually happens because the system hasn’t “registered” them yet via a manual login. Here’s how to fix it:
Step 1: Log into Tableau, navigate to the Instructional Folder, and find the Scholar List to grab the student’s specific username and password.
Step 2: Go to the ClassLink login page and manually log in as that student.
Step 3: Once the dashboard loads, log them back out.
Step 4: Log back in as yourself. Like magic, the Quick Card should now be generated and ready to print!
Scanning for Success
The best part about Quick Cards is the independence it gives students. To log in, a student simply:
Opens the ClassLink page on their Chromebook.
Scrolls down and clicks the Quick Card button (the icon looks like a QR code).
Holds their card up to the webcam.
The system reads the code instantly, and the student is in! No typing, no typos, no frustration.
Managing Shared Chromebooks
If your students are sharing devices, the transition between classes is the most common place for “login overlap.” Mandy suggests a simple classroom routine:
The “Sign Out” Habit: Teach your students to sign out of ClassLink the moment they are told to put their Chromebooks away. If they leave the ClassLink login page up, the next student can simply walk up, hit the QR button, and scan their own card. It keeps the workflow moving and ensures every student is working on their own account.
By investing a little time in “bright green” prep, you can save hours of instructional time throughout the school year. Happy scanning!
For a visual walkthrough of the process, watch the video tutorial here.