Any graded activity in Moodle – assignments, quizzes, discussion forums with ratings, etc – are automatically added to the gradebook with a grade value as specified in the activity settings. Oftentimes, however, you may wish to add a standalone grade item to the Moodle gradebook. This essentially adds an item to your gradebook that is not associated with any online activity in Moodle. This is often used to track grades for “intangible” student work like class participation or in-class presentations.