WHAT TO LOOK FOR ON THE FIRST REPORT CARD

For a child it can be a terrifying experience or one of anticipation. If they are struggling in school, bringing home a bad report card can be full of dread. On the other hand, if our child is excelling in their studies, they can have the expectations of rewards and praise or maybe a trip to the ice cream shop or catching that movie they've been wanting to see. Are we putting too much pressure on our kids? Or should we be holding them to the highest standards possible? Read on for some helpful tips. Let us know your thoughts in the comments. 

source: http://www.athenalearningcenters.com/what-to-look-for-on-the-first-report-card

Overall, the first report card of a new school year is to be taken with a fairly large grain of salt.

For many schools and districts, we’re coming up on the end of the first grading period of the school year. Many students will come home with perfectly acceptable grades. Some will have their parents confused in one way or another. Here’s what to look for in that first report card.

Conduct

For the most part, don’t worry too much about actual grades (more about that later). What you might want to pay more attention to is conduct. Obviously, if conduct is bad, then learning suffers later.

If you are at all surprised about any conduct reports, reach out to the teacher immediately. Lots of things, including mindset, can change over the course of a summer. It’s better to get a handle on those changes now.

Grades

As said before, don’t pay as much attention to grades. It’s the first grading period. Summer brain drain, new surroundings, and new relationships can all make for a steep learning curve this early in the year. There are a few exceptions:

· For high school seniors, a lackluster report card now can signal the start of the “senior slide” and can have effects on the future that the student doesn’t understand. Their college of choice will still see these grades on their transcript, even if they’ve been admitted early.

· Bad grades for subjects in which the student normally excels are worth a conversation. In math, it might just be another steep learning curve (there is a big difference between geometry and calculus, for example). Some outside help from a learning center might be warranted. If it’s another subject, there might be something wrong that only the child or the teacher can uncover. These tend to be interpersonal or organizational issues that are easily solved if caught early.

· Slipping grades in the “easy” courses, like PE or electives, are also worth a conversation. There can be a lot of reasons for these as well, but they also count just as much on a GPA and deserve some attention.

· Obviously if any grades are really bad, some action on your part is needed.



Overall, the first report card of a new school year is to be taken with a fairly large grain of salt. Yes, there are potential warning signs of upcoming troubles. But for the most part, many students struggle with getting back into the routine of school.

Worried about your child's report card? Give us a call, we'd love to help....it's what we do!

Athena Learning Center of College Station

Tutoring and Learning Center for K-12th grade kids in math, reading, writing and science

3505 Longmire Drive
College Station Texas (TX) 77845
United States

(979) 314-9132
Hours: Mon-Fri 10am - 8pm

Dear Student: I Don't Expect You to Be Perfect

Have you ever wanted to write a letter to your child’s teacher and tell them how to help your child better or to just tell them off? Or maybe you have. Here is a great letter from an experienced, passionate educator to his students. This is an insightful look into a teachers response and thoughts how best to help his students help him. Very enlightening!


Source: http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/reaching-all-students/2015/09/dear_student.html


Every fall, I am struck by a profound sense of responsibility as parents drop their children off in my

classroom. Humbled by the mixture of faith and fear inherent in that moment, I meet moms and dads who hope that I will hold their children close, appreciate their unique traits, and help them inhabit their potential. Parents of unconventional learners have come to me with stories that have left them and their child in a state of academic PTSD. These parents count on me to invest in their children enough so that I can celebrate their abilities, understand their struggles, and, in some cases, help heal their childrens' school-based wounds.


However, even with the best intentions, I will occasionally move too fast, expect too much, miss a cue, drop a ball. I might even do all of those things with the same child (I really hope not). This is a hard truth to accept, particularly because I pride myself on being an educator who advocates for students with different learning profiles.


Over the past month, a trend has developed in social media. I refer to it as the "Dear Teacher Movement." Children with learning challenges, particularly dyslexia, have taken to the internet to

share letters they have written to their new teachers, communicating their hopes and dreams for the upcoming school year. In these poignant and frequently unsettling appeals, students wish to remind teachers they are trying (even when it may not look like that); that they are smart and capable (even if they struggle with certain skills); and that they have high aspirations for their own learning (which they hope their teachers will share). Implied in these letters are previous teacher failures that prompted students to share in this way.


Teaching is complex. We try hard to get it right, but sometimes we fail. Even with more than twenty-five years of teaching experience, I still have blindspots. I hope that my students know that I am not judging their potential by their spelling or speed, or confusing their school struggles with lack of effort. However, learning disabilities like dyslexia can make assessing a student's ability and effort more difficult. Often, I need my students' feedback to help me determine how to best meet their learning needs. This fall, inspired by the Dear Teacher letters, I decided to write a different kind of letter to my students at the launch of the school year.


Dear Student,
I am honored and thrilled to be your 5th grade teacher this year. I take my job very seriously, but despite my great effort and my good intentions, I sometimes fumble. Here are a few things that you should know.

1. I was not a perfect student and I don't expect you to be.

2. We all learn differently. This year I hope you will help me understand how you learn best.

3. Spelling well and reading fast make learning easier, but they have nothing to do with intelligence. I will help you become better spellers and readers, but intelligence is much more complex. Some of the best thinkers struggled with school skills. Please don't get discouraged if some skills are hard for you. It does not mean that you are stupid (at all). This year we will try to identify some strategies to make school work less frustrating.

4. Tell me if you are struggling. Effort can often be invisible. I wish I had a crystal ball, but I don't. Let me know if I assign something that feels overwhelming. That way, we can create effective supports or craft a workaround plan together.

5. Sometimes I go too fast. I get too excited or ambitious or impatient. When I do, remind me to slow down. Everyone in the class will appreciate it, including me.

6. I look forward to finding out what gets you up in the morning (besides your alarm). What are your dreams inside and outside of school? Let's try to connect them. That is where you will find the joy in learning.

Finally, sometimes school may not be easy, but it should never be miserable. Please don't suffer in silence.

Sincerely,

Kyle Redford


After reading this, how would you write to your child's teacher now? Any differences? Here at Athena, we know that children have different learning skills and vastly different learning styles. We do in depth analysis' to see exactly where they are at so we can help them the best. We come alongside your child's teachers to supplement and help them with what they are already learning. Our tutors ARE teachers and have experience in the struggles that all teachers (and students) face. Give us a call today and see how we can best help your child.

Athena Learning Center of College Station

Tutoring and Learning Center for K-12th grade kids in math, reading, writing and science

3505 Longmire Drive
College Station Texas (TX) 77845
United States

(979) 314-9132
Hours: Mon-Fri 10am - 8pm

Starting The School Year With a Party

How we, as teachers present the educational experience to our students is so vitally important. It can greatly affect how they view learning as a whole. We can create a vibrant, engaging, fun learning environment with a little effort and a lot of creativity. Read on to learn a couple neat ideas brought to you by our friends at Edutopia.


Source: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/starting-school-year-party-ben-johnson


My daughter Sadie-Belle just had her birthday, and as tradition demands in our family, we must decorate her door with crepe paper, balloons, and candy before she wakes up that day. The difficulty this year was that we were visiting her sister in Missouri, and the birthday girl was sleeping on an air mattress in the front room.


One of my other creative daughters found a way around this. She found a foam presentation board, drew a door on it, and wrote, "Happy Birthday Sadie!" We put all the candy on this and laid it beside her air mattress. We then decorated the archway into the kitchen with strands of crepe paper and balloons to satisfy the tradition.


The power of this tradition is that every time anyone, especially the birthday child, goes through the decorated door into the room, they have to remember that this is a special day.

Putting a Fun Spin on Pre-Testing

Imagine something similar at school. Start the school year with a party -- a celebration of learning, as teacher and education writer Harry Wong suggests. As every elementary teacher can tell you, enticing student participation often depends on what kind of spin you put on the learning activity.


Envision students that are enthusiastically engaged in discovering how much they know as they take a


diagnostic of some sort -- on paper or via computers or tablets. Rather than a "testing day," students realize that it's a special occasion because the room is decorated with crepe paper and balloons, and they are given party hats. Some unimaginative folk might call this assessment a simple pre-test, but in fact it's a great opportunity to bolster and build a child's academic future.

Why Diagnostic Testing Matters

Blended learning tools can make this an easy and enjoyable experience for the student and the teacher, rather than a nonessential chore that is often skipped in the course of learning. If the students have tablets, the teacher can possibly send each student a knowledge and skills test that will preview what the students will be learning this semester. Most textbook companies include diagnostic testing with their textbooks and curriculum resources. Teachers can also utilize the commercial diagnostic tools to which many school districts already subscribe.


Having a pre-test party is only part of the celebration. The most important element of the fiesta is providing individual feedback by taking the time to show each student what he or she has already learned and mastered, and then giving the student a preview of the learning during the coming semester or course.


It's so incredibly important to establish a baseline for each student at the beginning of the year. How can we expect to be successful in inspiring learning if we don't know what our students already know and where the gaps in their learning might be? How do we know if they have learned anything from all our effort in creating engaging learning environments and activities unless we determine what they know to begin with?


A teacher must find the answers to these questions, and this has to happen the first days of school. And as Harry Wong convincingly suggests, it should be a celebration.

Pep Talk Follow Up

It seems obvious, but when a teacher takes the time to give a pep talk, explains why the students should try



their best, and shows confidence in their ability to overcome difficulty, students are more apt to be resilient and persistent when learning gets more difficult. The conversation that follows the pre-test is a perfect time to give those one-on-one pep talks. As education expert Carol Dweck reminds us, learning is hard work, and even gifted students need encouragement.


Not only can we prep students for success with pep talks, but with the information gathered from each student, we can design custom learning plans to help them accelerate their own learning -- and fill in gaps where incomplete learning has occurred.


In what ways do you assess, encourage, and prepare students at the start of the year for their upcoming learning? Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comments section below.

Athena Learning Center of College Station

Tutoring and Learning Center for K-12th grade kids in math, reading, writing and science

3505 Longmire Drive
College Station TEXAS (TX) 77845
United States

(979) 314-9132
Hours: Mon-Fri 10am - 8pm

Precious Video of Girl's First Day of School Goes Viral

Watching our little one climb on board that bus for the first day of school can be stressful and worrying. We try to calm their fears and put on our happy face while on the inside we are just as anxious as they are. These parents, the Dad works for the school district, decided to strap a GoPro to their little girl and give us an inside glimpse into how the first day looks to a kindergartner. An experience parents rarely get to see. The results will warm your heart. No wonder the video is going viral!


 

Athena Learning Center of College Station

Tutoring and Learning Center for K-12th grade kids in math, reading, writing and science

3505 Longmire Drive
College Station TEXAS (TX) 77845
United States

Phone: (979) 314-9132 Hours: Mon-Fri 10am - 8pm

The School Supplies That Won’t Be On the List

It’s that time again. You can’t help but notice, what with all the TV commercials, radio ads, store fronts shouting in your face….it's back to school time! Walmart has rearranged their entire store just to cater to this big yearly event. If you have kids it is important to plan ahead and having a school supply list is a must. These are easy to find but here are a few things you won’t find on those lists but can definitely help out during your child’s school year. 

Source: Athena Learning Center blog 

Terracycle takes those millions of juice pouches and upcycles them into backpacks, pencil boxes, folders, and other school organizational items. Stuff like this is all over Etsy. Get creative!

School supplies have been on display in local stores for weeks now. It gets earlier every year. Pretty soon, the schools will start posting their supply lists with all the items that make sense. But that list isn’t complete. Here are some things you might want to pick up that your child will be glad to have when the time comes.

Laminating sheets

For the older kids, laminate things that they need to keep in good condition. Schedules and important phone numbers fall into this category. It can also give certain projects a more professional look. For the younger kids, laminate their best art work throughout the year.

Fancy sketchbook

You don’t have to be an artist to find sketching and doodling relaxing. Investing in a good one gives

the book a better chance at survival. Who knows? You might spark a serious artist.

Fancy journal

Self-reflection is a big 21st century skill. There are plenty of online journaling options, but nothing beats having the ability to sit down with a pen and jot down your thoughts. Again, investing in a good one is an investment in survival.

Lap desk

Where is all this drawing and writing supposed to happen? Teachers are starting to use a more free-form design in their classrooms. It spurs collaboration and creativity. A lap desk gives your child the opportunity to work anywhere, including the floor.

App store gift card

School means using a lot of devices and a lot of different apps. Most tools a school uses are either free or through their subscription, but that’s not always the case. Other times, your child will want to use something specialized for a project. Buying a gift card now and setting it aside for these purchases is a great way to budget.

Multi-port charger cable

By now, your child is carrying around chargers and cables for their primary device. But what if they want to charge the school’s digital camera or a strange laptop? This adapter cable goes from USB to either Lightning (newer iDevices), 30-pin (older iDevices), as well as mini and micro USB (most Android phones and other small electronics).

Cool organizational stuff

Boring folders are 1,000 for 99 cents. But that doesn’t mean you can’t make your child stand out. For

example, Terracycle takes those millions of juice pouches and upcycles them into backpacks, pencil boxes, folders, and other school organizational items. Stuff like this is all over Etsy. Get creative!

I hope you found a couple ideas you can use or at least started those creative juices to “think outside the list”. Having the necessary supplies is important for your child’s education but if they are having a hard time with concepts or struggling in an area or two, that’s where we come in. If they need a refresher course, homework help or a deeper interactive study lesson to bring them up to where they need to be, we can help.

Our tutors are all certified, licensed teachers or former teachers who are experienced with training young minds and know what to look for to help them the best way possible. Want to know where your child stands and what possible weaknesses they might have? Schedule a free assessment with us. In just a short evaluation, you can see where little Johnny might need help in one area or where they are really strong in another. Give us a call at (979) 314-9132, we’d love to talk with you! We’re located at 3505 Longmire Drive College Station, TX 77845. Or visit our website. Be sure to visit our previous post about what to do the first day of school.

What to Do the First Day of School (and Why)

Being a teacher for many years, I can’t think of a more terrifying day for students than that first day of school. Of course fear of the unknown is natural but for a young child, knowing that you’ll be faced with other kids your own age is especially scarey. Peer pressure is very prominent in the younger years and the need to be liked and accepted is hugely important. Not to mention the pressure of not knowing exactly where to go or what time to be there!

Teachers have their own anxiety to deal with as well on that first day of the new school year. Knowing that a class full of young students will all be focused on you can cause inexperienced teachers to feel quite a bit of pressure. You want to be liked as well but also be respected by your students. And there’s the added pressure of wanting to be the best at your job that you can be.

Here are three great tips for teachers on that first exciting day of the new school year:

Source: http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2015/08/07/what-to-do-the-first-day-of.html

1. Focus on the kids.

That sounds obvious, but it’s hard to do.

Believe it or not, my biggest problem that year was not my appalling fashion sense. It wasn’t the gruesome tie, baggy olive slacks, or uncoordinated dress shoes.

My fatal flaw was that I thought teaching was all about me. The passion I would bring. The brilliant, inspiring things I would say. (In my defense, there’s a long line of Hollywood movies that spreads this myth. Also, I was 22.)

It took me a few months to flip that perspective and think about each day in my classroom from the point of view of the kids. What brilliant things did they say? How much time did they get to spend talking, rather than listening to me talk? How much did they get to move around, instead of sitting still at the confines of a desk? What did they get the chance to build, think, write, read, and create?

When you plan your first day, think through each hour and transition from the perspective of a child in your class. Make sure the kids are going to get enough time to talk, draw, make choices, and move around.

Make sure, too, that you’ve built enough “down time” into the day—some extended blocks when the students are working on an art project, exploring the math manipulatives, or browsing the books in the classroom library. This workshop time will free you up to talk one-on-one with the students so you can get to know them as individuals.

What do they like to do after school? How many brothers or sisters do they have? What kinds of books do they like to read, what kinds of pictures do they like to draw? What is their favorite animal?

These things matter. Each child you talk to will go home remembering that you took an interest in her as a human being. Continuing to build that trust and rapport will do more than any behavior chart or treasure box to ensure mutual respect and order in your classroom throughout the year.

2. Don't talk too much.

Every year on the first day of school, I talk more than I meant to. I just have so much to tell them—how excited I am to be their teacher, what my class rules are, how they check out books from the class library, how to have a “Peace Talk” when they have a conflict with another student ... it’s a long list.

It’s easy to have your first day end up as one long, grueling filibuster. Brutal on you, even worse for the kids. We need to remember that we can spread out the routines over the course of the week—we don’t need to tell them everything that first day.

I still remember how devastated my parents were when my little sister came home from her first day of kindergarten. They eagerly asked her how her day went, and their shoulders slumped when she answered in a sad little voice, “All we did is learn about the rules.”

On the first day of school, I only have two priorities. First off, I want the kids to feel excited about school. Secondly, I want to set the right tone for the year. I want the students to know their teacher is kind but firm. I want them to know that they will have a lot of fun and freedom in our class, but they will also be kind to one another and respectful toward adults. 

As long as those two messages are clearly conveyed, we’re off to the right start. If they don’t learn the pencil sharpening policy or class library procedures until Thursday, it’s not a big deal. We have time.

3. Have the kids make something you can put up on the wall right away.

When I was in 2nd grade, I thought someone in some factory office somewhere must need all these worksheets completed. I didn’t get that the worksheets were supposed to help us learn things, and I never got the sense that our work was interesting or original enough for adults to care about.

We need to send the message that kids’ work matters. When they take the time to write a story, solve a math problem, or paint a picture, they need to know that we’re going to take the time to look it over and respond. We’re going to honor their work. 

Final thoughts – Be sure to have your second day planned out. Day one might have gone fantastic but then you get home and realize you haven’t prepared anything for the next day. Panic can turn that good feeling around quickly. Getting back into the groove of things will come easily and it’s important to remember why we became teachers in the first place. Seeing all those excited, anxious young faces always invigorates me and reminds me how important my job is!  

Michelle Lee is the owner and center director of Athena Learning Center of College Station. You can find them at 3505 Longmire Drive College Station, TX 77845. Call them at (979) 314-9132.

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