School Reports That Make You Smile, Laugh, Cringe, Cry, etc.
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This comment is oh so true.T.i.p.s.y wrote:What I noticed in some schools was that bright kids were getting negative comments about the things they weren't/couldn't do and thick friends were being praised for effort and working hard and achieving a milestone and didn't receive any negative comments!
All throughout primary school my dd has got reports saying she working above expectations but then picking up on the tiniest of things.
To be truthful we thought she was just average until we went down the 11+ route!
When pressed for reports in support of her appeal it turned out she had a reading age of 15.6 (as measured a year previously!) AND that she was gifted and talented in Literacy. Her teacher even went as far as describing her ability as 'phenomenal'.
Now we had never been told any of this and it is to my great shame that I did not know. I have said all along that she attends a good school, and to be fair she does - but why the heck didn't they tell me about his during all the Parents' evenings I have attended. I even started wondering if they were talking about my child because their descriptions were so totally not what I recognised from previous reports.
WHY does this happen???
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T.i.p.s.y
My DD's report has recently come out and I/we feel so disappointed. 
Having always struggled with various medical issues which have in some ways hindered her learning ability my DD excitedly ripped open her report as she thought (as I had) that she had had a good year and was progressing well. Once opened and read she quietly put it back down and walked away slowly,and I then had a read. Oh how I wish I hadn't let her open it. In English she has apparently stayed the same and in science and maths has regressed!!!
Why has our school left it until now at the end of the year to say this??
Then as concerned parent I raised these issues at parents evening and was really given no explaination or advice on what else as a parent I could do (I already help her with English and Maths) and was told to look on a well known revision website to help her with hew science!!! But of course was told 'she is a pleasure to teach and she is so enthusiastic about learning. Well i'm not so sure she is now.
I feel a bit helpless.
Anyway rant over - hot weather not helping.
Having always struggled with various medical issues which have in some ways hindered her learning ability my DD excitedly ripped open her report as she thought (as I had) that she had had a good year and was progressing well. Once opened and read she quietly put it back down and walked away slowly,and I then had a read. Oh how I wish I hadn't let her open it. In English she has apparently stayed the same and in science and maths has regressed!!!
Why has our school left it until now at the end of the year to say this??
Then as concerned parent I raised these issues at parents evening and was really given no explaination or advice on what else as a parent I could do (I already help her with English and Maths) and was told to look on a well known revision website to help her with hew science!!! But of course was told 'she is a pleasure to teach and she is so enthusiastic about learning. Well i'm not so sure she is now.
I feel a bit helpless.
Anyway rant over - hot weather not helping.
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Chelmsford mum
- Posts: 2113
- Joined: Sat Feb 21, 2009 7:16 pm
Hi,
Are you thinking that she has " regressed" based on SATS levels? It is unlikely that she really has.Are these just snapshot test result levels?
Children sometimes plateau out because they hit high levels early and their teachers are not always able to take the brighter ones beyond their level 5s and concentrate on bringing the weaker ones up.
Don't take it too much to heart though.Being lovely and a pleasure to teach will be much more important in the long run of life.
New school ; fresh start.
Are you thinking that she has " regressed" based on SATS levels? It is unlikely that she really has.Are these just snapshot test result levels?
Children sometimes plateau out because they hit high levels early and their teachers are not always able to take the brighter ones beyond their level 5s and concentrate on bringing the weaker ones up.
Don't take it too much to heart though.Being lovely and a pleasure to teach will be much more important in the long run of life.
New school ; fresh start.
Hi C.M
Knew you would put things into perspective. DD is actually only Y4 (DS off to new school in Sept) Teacher said report results were based on national level and also partly on the optional sats paper, but she refused to give me actual mark. She seemed to backtrack slightly by saying that she had had a good year but I pointed out that that was not reflected in her report marks.
It is hard for her as her brother does the minimum amount of work required and always gets AA**** marks, and DS really tries so hard and does love information and learning but her efforts do not appear to have been recognised.
I am not complaining that she has low marks, but just the fact that this year her three reports show a decline in marks for some subjects which appears to me like a slippery slope. Teacher seemed unaware of this!
I'm not sure where to go now. I have an appointment with her maths teacher (different to her form one) as her form teacher can you believe 'couldn't comment on her progress(or not) as she wasn't her teacher!!'
Her exersise books show no signs of struggling child - far from it just lots of house points!!!
Knew you would put things into perspective. DD is actually only Y4 (DS off to new school in Sept) Teacher said report results were based on national level and also partly on the optional sats paper, but she refused to give me actual mark. She seemed to backtrack slightly by saying that she had had a good year but I pointed out that that was not reflected in her report marks.
It is hard for her as her brother does the minimum amount of work required and always gets AA**** marks, and DS really tries so hard and does love information and learning but her efforts do not appear to have been recognised.
I am not complaining that she has low marks, but just the fact that this year her three reports show a decline in marks for some subjects which appears to me like a slippery slope. Teacher seemed unaware of this!
I'm not sure where to go now. I have an appointment with her maths teacher (different to her form one) as her form teacher can you believe 'couldn't comment on her progress(or not) as she wasn't her teacher!!'
Her exersise books show no signs of struggling child - far from it just lots of house points!!!
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Chelmsford mum
- Posts: 2113
- Joined: Sat Feb 21, 2009 7:16 pm
I think I would go to the meeting.I don't think they will have any profound answers. They sound a tad too laid back but it will alert them to the fact that you are "on the case".I would ask the questionsuncrest wrote:Hi C.M
) Teacher said report results were based on national level and also partly on the optional sats paper, but she refused to give me actual mark. She seemed to backtrack slightly by saying that she had had a good year but I pointed out that that was not reflected in her report marks.
I am not complaining that she has low marks, but just the fact that this year her three reports show a decline in marks for some subjects which appears to me like a slippery slope. Teacher seemed unaware of this!
I'm not sure where to go now. I have an appointment with her maths teacher (different to her form one) as her form teacher can you believe 'couldn't comment on her progress(or not) as she wasn't her teacher!!'
Her exersise books show no signs of struggling child - far from it just lots of house points!!!
"Do you think this grade reflects her ability?"
I am not sure why they won't discuss actual marks with you.My middle DD " went down" in science in yr 5. I asked to see the paper and asked why they thought this had happened.It turned out she missed out some questions(turned two pages together) and for a section worth a lot of marks drew a food chain the wrong way around.
This reassured me there weren't areas she needed help on. (other than exam technique and checking over
)Year 4 can be a funny year.Some schools mark down a little at start of year three to allow greater increase to be shown at the end of the year and key stage.Then this leaves year 4 with nowhere to go sometimes.Some schools don't put them in for papers which allow the maximum scope of levels too.
The following year she "went up" 5 sublevels.She is no scientific genius and had not really made monumental scientific progress, she just had her act together on the day.
Sorry am rambling on.
I would go in ask direct questions but.... also not worry too much.Next term she could "go up" several sub levels just because the paper had more scope or she liked the reading task better.These levels really are snapshots.
A child who is a pleasure to teach and enthusiastic about learning is going to be just fine in the long term
Yes CM I am going to the meeting, but fear that I may come across as neurotic pushy mother. Have never questioned anything any of the teachers have said and done before and I feel now that it is not just my DD's confidence that has been hit - mine too.
I do realise that they can go up and down it a year but really truthfully I see my DD's abitity has really increased this year.
I do realise that they can go up and down it a year but really truthfully I see my DD's abitity has really increased this year.
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Chelmsford mum
- Posts: 2113
- Joined: Sat Feb 21, 2009 7:16 pm
suncrest wrote:Yes CM I am going to the meeting, but fear that I may come across as neurotic pushy mother. Have never questioned anything any of the teachers have said and done before and I feel now that it is not just my DD's confidence that has been hit - mine too.
I do realise that they can go up and down it a year but really truthfully I see my DD's abitity has really increased this year.
Try and trust your own knowledge of your child . You see more of her than them after all.
My point was that although they can appear to go up and down, often they are not in terms of their real progress.DD2 did def not make two and a half years' worth of science progress in two terms but if I believed the report levels ,she did.Equally she did not regress the year before but if I believed the report.. she did.
I don't enjoy questioning the teachers .It may be there are one or two technique issues you can help with.My middle DD really needed to learn to proof read her own work at age 9/10.So you really need to know what you can help with.
I do know what you mean though and I always take the approach of "It may be me worrying over nothing but...." No one is going to think you pushy.
These levels are a worry I agree no matter how hard we try not to put store in them.
If the levels weren't there , as they weren't a few years back, how would the report read then?
Report quotes to make you smile.......... 
What they say - What they mean
'Has settled in well' - 'It didn't take him long to find out
who's boss' !
'Is settling in' - 'He's still finding out who's boss' !
'Is still a bit unsettled' - 'Still thinks he's boss' !
'A likeable child' - 'Surely someone must like him'
'Nice cheerful child' - 'We can't say anything good about
his work,but at least he's harmless
enough'
'Interesting child' - 'The same as above,but he's not
harmless' !
'Lively' - 'Difficult to control'
'Boisterous' - 'Impossible to control' !
'Active' - 'Impossible to control even if we
could catch him-which we can't' !
What they say - What they mean
'Has settled in well' - 'It didn't take him long to find out
who's boss' !
'Is settling in' - 'He's still finding out who's boss' !
'Is still a bit unsettled' - 'Still thinks he's boss' !
'A likeable child' - 'Surely someone must like him'
'Nice cheerful child' - 'We can't say anything good about
his work,but at least he's harmless
enough'
'Interesting child' - 'The same as above,but he's not
harmless' !
'Lively' - 'Difficult to control'
'Boisterous' - 'Impossible to control' !
'Active' - 'Impossible to control even if we
could catch him-which we can't' !
