7 Responses for "Report Cards"

1. Atara April 14th, 2009 at 5:45 am 1

   Well, I don’t always think the parents understand this kind of report because they have no idea what “articulate” is. I think they want to know if their child is progressing so they will just skip to the part where you make personal comments. I do have a music lab so they will receive a lab report showing the software games and skills they have mastered there so they know that time is truly productive and planned.

2. Leigh April 14th, 2009 at 7:56 am 2

   I might include something about general preparedness – bringing all materials, effective practicing, following instuctions in assignment book. Also, behavior might include “attitude”, “respectfulness”, “willingness to work”.

   I have thought many times over the years about doing “report cards”, but I think what worries me most is the student whose parents have such high expectations of the him/her that any negative comment would get the child “in trouble” at home. This is why, whether speaking to the parent or writing a note in the assignment book, I ALWAYS start out with a positive comment, then suggest improvement. (”Anna’s doing very well on her recital piece, she just needs to remember to count through the middle section….”)

3. Mindy April 14th, 2009 at 10:18 pm 3

   This is an interesting thought. You have to be careful in this area. For some, just being able to play hands together would be a great success whereas for others paying attention to fingering is the cause for failure. How would you account for the individualization that you give each student on a “report card”? Would it be to your standard or the student’s?

4. Vanessa April 16th, 2009 at 1:23 pm 4

   You would have to be really careful, I would almost say no…
   Thought I would share this even though it has to do with dance & abby.
   We cannot really see the kids dance during their lessons so I didn’t know abby was the only girl out of all 10 of them that couldn’t do most of the moves.
   A couple weeks ago they let us into the studio to watch the dance class, they only do this once a year.
   I was bothered that the teacher didn’t take time to tell me this, I would have been helping her at home or asking the teacher if she could do anything to help catch up with the other girls.
   On that same day that we went into the class she gave everyone a “progress sheet” in the notes she did mention at all that she couldnt do all of these moves! It had me very confused.
   Because of this we have switched dance studios to a more involved, directional teacher.
   Maybe something to think about, I switched studios because of the progress report!!

5. Laura April 21st, 2009 at 1:05 pm 5

   I’ve just put up two posts about the progress reports I use in my studio and why I use them. Let me know what you think!

6. Suzan Pleva April 21st, 2009 at 2:01 pm 6

   I am just beginning to integrate this idea into my students lessons. Not only will it be a great thing to keep me updated, but it will also help my students to be more aware of where they are, and where they need to be.

7. Helena April 24th, 2009 at 7:01 am 7

   I believe a progress report is a valuable tool for the teacher not necessarily for the parents. All the parents want to know is “how is she doing?”, once that question is asked, now is the moment to talk to the parents and praise the child’s efforts or maybe suggest some more practicing, specific drills or games the parents can get involved in.

   The teacher on the other hand, can monitor the progress of the kids by evaluating the report every 2-3 months and to detect areas that the student is consistently having difficulties or is excelling.