Dashboard

_In the app: `/dashboard`_

Your homeschool command center showing everything at a glance. This is where you see your family snapshot, upcoming compliance deadlines, active school year progress, your students, and quick-add buttons for the daily work you do (grades, attendance, reading, portfolio) plus the documents and records you generate periodically (transcripts, report cards, credentials, ESA summaries).

How to

See your family snapshot and current plan on the dashboard

Open the Dashboard (first item in the left sidebar).
At the top, you'll see 'Welcome, [Your first name].' Below that is a one-line summary like 'Homeschooling Sam and Riley in Colorado' or 'Homeschooling in Arizona' if you have no students yet.
To the right of the welcome line is a badge showing your plan tier (e.g., 'Free trial', 'Family · monthly', 'Family · annual', 'Transcript Pro', or 'Expired'). Note: co-op members won't see a badge.

Check your state compliance status and next deadline

Look at the left card (or top card on mobile) below the welcome section showing your state name, a regulation level badge ('Low regulation', 'Moderate', or 'High regulation'), and the next deadline you'll face.
If you haven't set your state yet, the card will say 'Pick your state in settings to see compliance info.' Click the link to go to settings.
Click 'Open compliance →' to see the full compliance dashboard with all required tasks for your state.

See the active school year and how far through the year you are

Look at the right-side card (or bottom card on mobile) showing the school year label (e.g., '2025–2026'), the date range, and a progress bar showing what percentage of the year has elapsed.
If no active year is set, the card says 'No active year' — click 'Open school years →' to add one in settings.
Click 'Open attendance →' to jump directly to the attendance page.

View all your students and jump to the gradebook

Scroll down to the 'Your students' section (shows student initials in circles, name, and current grade level).
Each student card shows their name and grade. Click the 'Open' button to jump to the gradebook filtered to that student.
Click 'Manage students →' (top right of the section) to add, edit, or archive students in settings.

Add a student

Click 'Manage students →' in the 'Your students' section on the dashboard.
Or go to Settings → Students.
Click 'Add a student', fill in: first name, last name (required); preferred name (optional); birthdate and grade level (required).
Save. The student appears on the dashboard immediately.

Find the daily input cards and know what to do each day

Scroll down to 'Daily inputs'.
You'll see four cards: Gradebook (record assignments, tests, daily scores), Attendance (log days of instruction), Reading log (add a book), and Portfolio (upload student work).
Each card has a '?' icon next to the title — hover/tap to see why you'd use it and how it connects to other parts of ArborSlate.
Click 'Open' to jump into any section.

Access documents and records you generate once per quarter or year

Scroll down to 'Documents & records'.
You'll see cards for: Transcripts (high-school transcripts with GPA and credits), Report cards (K-8 report cards), Credentials (diplomas, student IDs, recommendation letters), ESA records (expenses and quarterly summaries for Arizona families), and Unit studies (included free curriculum).
Each card has a '?' icon — hover/tap to see details.
Click 'Open' on any card to go to that section.

Dismiss the intro card if you've seen it before

On your first visit to the dashboard, a 'Quick orientation' card appears at the top.
Read it or click the 'X' button (top right) or the 'Got it →' button to dismiss it.
It won't appear again on future visits (unless you clear your browser's local storage).

Change your state or school year from the dashboard

To change your state: click the 'Pick your state in settings...' link in the state card (if unset), or scroll to Settings → Family Settings and update the state dropdown.
To change your school year: click 'Open school years →' in the active school year card and set a different year as active in Settings → School years.

Options & settings

Plan tier badge (shows Free trial, Family · monthly, Family · annual, Transcript Pro, or Expired; no badge for co-op members)
Family snapshot text (auto-generated from students and state)
State compliance card (shows regulation level and next deadline)
Active school year card (shows label, date range, and progress bar)
Student cards (show name, grade level, and 'Open' link to gradebook)
Daily input cards (Gradebook, Attendance, Reading log, Portfolio — each with a '?' help tip and 'Open' button)
Documents & records cards (Transcripts, Report cards, Credentials, ESA records, Unit studies — each with a '?' help tip and 'Open' button)
'Manage students' link (top right of the 'Your students' section, goes to Settings → Students)
'Open compliance', 'Open attendance', 'Open school years' links (on state, school year, and 'No active year' cards)
Intro dismissal ('Got it' button or 'X' close, stored per visit in browser localStorage)

Common questions

What does 'Free trial' mean, and what happens when it expires?

The Free trial is a 14-day evaluation window. After 14 days, your plan shows as 'Expired' and you lose access to features tied to the Family plan (grades, attendance, documents, AI features). You can sign up for a paid plan (Family monthly or annual) or keep using the Transcript Pro tier if you only need transcripts. Trial users also have caps on AI features like recommendation letters and the AI tutor to prevent free heavy use.

Why doesn't the dashboard show all my students?

The dashboard shows only active students (non-archived). If a student is missing, they may have been archived. Go to Settings → Students and scroll down to 'Archived' to see them. To bring them back, use the restore option in their row.

What's the difference between 'Family plan' and 'Transcript Pro'?

The Family plan (monthly or annual) includes grades, attendance, reading logs, portfolios, transcripts, report cards, credentials, ESA tracking, the AI tutor, and unit studies. Transcript Pro is for high-school transcripts only — no grades, attendance, or other features. If you need to log grades, you must upgrade to a Family plan.

Can I add my co-parent from the dashboard?

No. Go to Settings → Family Settings to add a co-parent (secondary) via email invite.

What does the school-year progress bar tell me?

It shows what percentage of the active school year has elapsed based on the calendar (today's date vs. the year's start and end dates). It's a quick visual sanity-check, not tied to attendance. To see actual attendance vs. your state's minimum requirement, go to the Compliance page.

How do I know if I've set everything up before I start logging?

Before you start, make sure you have: a state selected (shows up in the state card), at least one school year set as active (shows in the school-year card), and at least one student added (shows in the 'Your students' section). If any are missing, you'll see a prompt or empty message pointing you to settings. The dashboard intro card also gives you the 10-second orientation on first visit.

Good to know

The dashboard shows a family snapshot ('Homeschooling Sam and Riley') even if you have no students yet — it's just 'Homeschooling' until you add them.
Plan tier badges only show for trial, family, transcript_pro, and expired tiers. Co-op members don't see a badge.
The school-year progress bar is calendar-based, not attendance-based — it reaches 100% on the last day of the year regardless of how many days you've logged.
Clicking a student card's 'Open' button takes you to the gradebook filtered to that student. To see all students' grades at once, click the 'Gradebook' daily-input card instead.
The state compliance card shows the 'next deadline' but not all deadlines — to see the full calendar of your state's requirements, click 'Open compliance'.
If you haven't set a school year as active, attendance and enrollments won't attach to any year. The dashboard will show 'No active year' — this blocks you from entering most records until you create and activate one in Settings → School years.

Plans

All tiers (Free trial, Family monthly, Family annual, Transcript Pro, co-op members) can access the dashboard. The trial is 14 days; after that it shows "Expired" and access is limited by plan tier. ESA records are for AZ families only.