I requested a conference with Henry's teacher a couple weeks ago. I'm tired of all the F's he's bringing home, and I wanted to get some ideas of ways to help Henry improve his grades (studying tips, whatever). His teacher was about as helpful as a rock. She gave me the same exact speech that I got at his first conference in the Fall. "Blah, blah, it will get better, blah, blah, a lot of it is maturity. Blah, blah, Henry needs to go back and prove his answers before turning in his work. Blah, blah, really it's just maturity. Blah, blah, he really needs to improve because 5th grade is REALLY hard."
Okay, if he REALLY needs to improve because 5th grade is REALLY hard, then why didn't she give me any actual advice or tips???
Then I opened my big mouth and told her what I was doing to try to help Henry. I got a subscription to Weekly Reader so we could read them at home. His class reads them weekly and gets graded on the questions on the back. Henry ALWAYS gets F's on those. She said that was a good idea but that we shouldn't go over the questions on the back "because that would give Henry an unfair advantage over the other students." (Annoyed because it wasn't like I was giving him the answers. I'm just trying to teach him how to look back for the right answers.) The next day at school, Henry's teacher told HIM not to go over the questions at home. [Grrr.]
For two weeks, Henry made B's on his Weekly Reader assignment. Last week I didn't get one in the mail. Henry said they did one in class anyway. He made a 65. I got one in the mail today, and it was the one they did LAST WEEK. That made me mad because those suckers were $$$$$, and now I'm wondering if they are going to continue to be a week ahead for the rest of the year. AND THEN I looked at Henry's grades online, and she counted that STUPID 65 in both Social Studies AND Language Arts. I'm livid.
I hate that I'm starting to think she's not on my side when it comes to Henry doing better. She can't have so much time on her hands that she's made it her mission to insure that Henry's grades don't improve. Right?
I'd really like to make it my mission to get Henry making all A's just to spite her but I'm having trouble getting him on board with this plan.
[Not only all that stuff but I went to two different gas stations today and the pumps wouldn't work right. I refused to go inside because I had my kids with me, and that was the whole point of going to a pay-at-the-pump. Both my kids got hurt today because they were being mean and/or careless. I was late to a meeting at church because of the gas pump issue. Someone spilled a whole cup of red kool-aid on the floor in the kitchen but no one would own up to it. Holly peed in the living room this morning. I'm having a day.]
Well...I know we're suppose to be awesome parents and guide our kids to greatness but I think sometimes we need help.
As in outside, tutorial help.
I'm getting there with Jack. My next door neighbor has a teacher come twice a week for 2 hours after school to help her son organize his work, study for upcoming tests and help him with his homework.
She's a teacher just looking for some extra money.
Now granted he's in 7th grade but I see us doing this soon.
It's hard because they take so many tests in school that they don't study for at home so we have no control over any of it.
Having taught in the fourth grade classroom, I have to say I don't think this teacher is very helpful. I do realize it's the student's responsibility. Having said that, the teacher has a responsibility too. If I had Henry in my room I think I would
have a note card taped to the corner of the desk with some simple reminders like: go back and check your work, underline key words
place Henry in a seat that is near where the teacher usually does most of her teaching (blackboard, whiteboard, etc.) so that periodically she can look to see if he is on task and remind him to recheck his work.
I also disagree with the teacher about weekly reader. I do get that she doesn't want him to have an unfair advantage, but on the other hand it should not be a secret what you are expected to know on a test. If you want the student to learn the material, then it only makes sense that you tell them what it is you want them to know. To not make waves, just reword the questions so they are basically the same but not the exact same words.
I don't know if you can make any suggestions to the teacher but you can always try. It sounds like very frustrating situation.
Robin, have you considered a meeting with the teacher and principal so that you can work out a definitive plan as to how to help Henry? I have a friend who is in a similar situation, with an unresponsive teacher. Once the principal became involved, there was a lot more progress made.
Well...I know we're suppose to be awesome parents and guide our kids to greatness but I think sometimes we need help.
As in outside, tutorial help.
I'm getting there with Jack. My next door neighbor has a teacher come twice a week for 2 hours after school to help her son organize his work, study for upcoming tests and help him with his homework.
She's a teacher just looking for some extra money.
Now granted he's in 7th grade but I see us doing this soon.
It's hard because they take so many tests in school that they don't study for at home so we have no control over any of it.
Blah! I feel your frustration.
I just hate that I can't help him with his work. Also I'm not sure I can afford a tutor.
Having taught in the fourth grade classroom, I have to say I don't think this teacher is very helpful. I do realize it's the student's responsibility. Having said that, the teacher has a responsibility too. If I had Henry in my room I think I would
have a note card taped to the corner of the desk with some simple reminders like: go back and check your work, underline key words
place Henry in a seat that is near where the teacher usually does most of her teaching (blackboard, whiteboard, etc.) so that periodically she can look to see if he is on task and remind him to recheck his work.
I also disagree with the teacher about weekly reader. I do get that she doesn't want him to have an unfair advantage, but on the other hand it should not be a secret what you are expected to know on a test. If you want the student to learn the material, then it only makes sense that you tell them what it is you want them to know. To not make waves, just reword the questions so they are basically the same but not the exact same words.
I don't know if you can make any suggestions to the teacher but you can always try. It sounds like very frustrating situation.
I did write "Find the answers in your book, don't just guess" on an index card and stuck it in his Science book last week on Open Book test day.
I don't feel right telling her what to do or giving her suggestions of how to help Henry. Not sure why. I don't want her to think I'm telling her how to do her job.
Robin, Sorry you are having such a difficult year with Henry. My first thought is what is the teacher's intention when using the Weekly Reader? Is she assessing them to see how they use reading comprehension skills or is it for the content? If it is for the reading comp skills, I would say not to use the exact material at home. There are many sites online where you can print out reading passages with questions. If it is for the content, then I do not see the problem with you working with him on it since he does have to understand the content and retain it. When he is working on reading comprehension passages at home, have him underline in the story where he found the exact answer and/or clues. Go over the types of questions they ask for comprehension. We teach our students the different reading skills and then teach them to identify if it is a "Right There" question (answer directly in the story) or a "Think about It" question (you have to find clues in the story and your prior knowledge to make an inference). PM me your address so I can send you some of the stuff I give my students. I"ll get it together and send it out on Monday or Tuesday. Let me know if there is anything you think you might need specifically. Also, what programs do they use for literacy and math? Maybe I can gather some stuff about the specific programs.
