Report Card Time!!!

Madison's Kindergarten class on their first field trip.



Make ense of what the report card is really telling you. Read the comments written by the teacher . These comments give you a better idea of how your child is performing overall.

Attend the Parent-Teacher Conference. The teacher has spent hours a day observing your child in the classroom. Often they can paint a better picture of where your child is headed academically.

Put it in context. Some school years are more challenging than others. Certain grades are transition years, such as the first year of high school, or the shift from early to middle school, that are challenging to all students, regardless of their academic abilities.

Go to the Source. If your child’s report card contains some surprises, ask the one person who would know best: your child. But before you do, take some time to read the report card by yourself. Identify the subjects that are the biggest concern and address those concerns when you sit down together and go over the report card. Remember to remain calm—you and your child are allies in education, not enemies.

Take Action NOW. A bad report card can be a serious roadblock to opportunities for the future. But it doesn’t have to be. Just because the school year is out doesn’t mean that parents have to wait until the school year begins to get their children back on track. The report card is a red flag. If parents don’t act now, the urgency of the bad report card will be forgotten and there will be no progress made.


Michelle Macon, Program Coordinator