Progress Reports

Progress reports never really reflect what is going on with the child. They are specific yet vague. One of the children I work with got a progress report and it certainly does not match his abilities.

This is a child that does the work and is very smart.

The challenges of any progress report includes (a) to remember it isn't the grade (b) it can change and (c) it is an opportunity to force teachers to become specific rather than vague.

I felt it was worth sharing a few ideas on how to handle progress reports.

A - Remember It Is Not The Grade - A good progress report will not always translate to the same grade. Your child brings home a progress report showing an A. This actually may end up working against them. They may feel they have it all under control. Then they may fall backwards in their efforts. This may translate to a B or even a C.

The child that gets a high progress report should find things outside of the class to challenge their learning.

The child that gets a poor progress report should be a little upset and maybe even confused.

B - Remember It Can Change The grade can, will and should change. When a student gets to an A then make sure they are doing something with that knowledge in the real world. This is the only way to keep them engaged in the school system.

C - Force The Teacher To Become Specific Rather Than Vague If the progress report shows the child is disrupting class then get the details.

Ask the teacher specifically, "what has to change in the behavior for the grade to move up?"

Without this pressure the teacher can remain vague. A teacher will not risk giving a poor grade to a student whose parent is involved. Make sure you get the information direct from the teacher. Emails are great because they are clear.

"What are the three things my child needs to do in order to correct this issue?" Follow up as these items change and get confirmation about the change in writing.

I hope this helps some of the parents who struggle with report cards. Remember grading of any type brings up all of our core stuff.

STAR Scores

These past few weeks parents have been getting STAR Scores for their children. STAR is an acronym in California for Standardized Testing And Reporting. The official State website is located at http://star.cde.ca.gov/

These reports are not always accurate. A parent can be left more confused about their child after viewing the report.

The math component is the most important. A child that increases their math score automatically move up on the other test elements. This is much less common if the language componets increase.

It appears this happens because the children are more focused on multi-step problems.

If you need a free analysis of the STAR Score for your child email roger@rogerthemathtutor.com

California Standards For Grades K-7

Wanted to share some interesting facts with you in regards to California Math Standards for grades K-7.  Standards change for grades 8-12. 

On average these are the "math concepts" that your child will have to learn on a monthly basis.

Kindergarten- 2

1st Grade- 3

2nd Grade- 4

3rd Grade- 5

4th Grade- 6

5th Grade- 4

6th Grade- 6

7th Grade 6

This should give you some hope as a parent because these are extremely manageable numbers of concepts to be introduced to children.

The challenge for you comes when the child falls behind.  Let's say we get to the end of the 3rd month in school for a 3rd grader.  They should have a clear understanding of 15 math concepts.  If they only have a handle on 12 of them then problems will begin.

Do not wait for the school to track the concepts.  Email me with the following information on your child.

1. Grade
2. Last years reports/notes on math
3. Any challenges you are aware of as of right now

I will send you a free checklist to start off the year right!

email mathtutor.roger@gmail.com