I'm pretty sure my oldest is going to get his first failing grade. On his progress report he had a D+ in Social Studies. Everything else looked decent, he even had an A in one subject. A few Bs and a C made up the rest of the report. Considering how hard school is for him, I'm really proud of that A and those Bs. The C I'll accept, even if I'd like to see him do better. However, the D is completely unacceptable.
We got the progress report the week before Christmas break. I had hoped the test he had to take in Social Studies that week would help bring the grade up into the C- range. Didn't happen. Despite studying for the test, the child managed to bomb the thing and got a nice, solid E.
I can't even tell you how frustrated I am with him and this whole situation. Sometimes I think he tries so hard and fails anyhow. Then I have those moments when I think he's not trying at all, doesn't care, doesn't know he should care, and would really rather just goof off, thank you very much.
Not that he has a choice. He has to get that grade up. I get the feeling this year that he may seriously be faced with flunking. He may not get into Fifth Grade. The rules have changed. The State rose the bar, demanding higher test scores and a higher minimum grade per subject. I'm nervous about this.
No, the truth is I'm worried.
So this week we're trying a new studying technique. He has to bring his book home every night and read it out loud to me. Then, after he reads each section, he has to write down the key words and their definitions as well as the important big-picture fact that section covers. I'm hoping this will help him remember the info on test day. Repetition works, at least that's what the experts say.
Unfortunately, this new approach won't have a chance to impact his report card. We only have two and a half weeks before the end of the marking period. :-(
We got the progress report the week before Christmas break. I had hoped the test he had to take in Social Studies that week would help bring the grade up into the C- range. Didn't happen. Despite studying for the test, the child managed to bomb the thing and got a nice, solid E.
I can't even tell you how frustrated I am with him and this whole situation. Sometimes I think he tries so hard and fails anyhow. Then I have those moments when I think he's not trying at all, doesn't care, doesn't know he should care, and would really rather just goof off, thank you very much.
Not that he has a choice. He has to get that grade up. I get the feeling this year that he may seriously be faced with flunking. He may not get into Fifth Grade. The rules have changed. The State rose the bar, demanding higher test scores and a higher minimum grade per subject. I'm nervous about this.
No, the truth is I'm worried.
So this week we're trying a new studying technique. He has to bring his book home every night and read it out loud to me. Then, after he reads each section, he has to write down the key words and their definitions as well as the important big-picture fact that section covers. I'm hoping this will help him remember the info on test day. Repetition works, at least that's what the experts say.
Unfortunately, this new approach won't have a chance to impact his report card. We only have two and a half weeks before the end of the marking period. :-(
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