Parent Teacher Conference

Abby is pointing to the report she did. Each child had to chose a breed of dog to write about. Abby chose bloodhounds. The reports are on display in the hallway.

This is her report about horses for their farm unit.

The teacher was on time for the conference and we had 10 minutes. It went well. With so many problems we were curious how her academics would look. The only difficulty is with math. They use a curriculum from Chicago. I really like it, but it is not like the math traditionally taught in school. The teacher said Abby is only struggling since it is so different than she is used to. It is a lot of hands-on/ application instead of math fact drills, also kind of like a logic puzzle.

She is reading at a fourth grade level and scores at 96% compared to other children her age. Her report card scores were a 2 for math (approaching grade level standards) and 3 (at grade level standards) for reading, writing, listening and speaking, science, social studies, art, dance, music, and a 4 (exceeds grade level standards) for personal and social growth.

I got a tickle out of the teacher's comment that Abby uses phrases in her writing that they are not familiar with. I asked if this was perhaps a cultural thing.

We know she is a good student and were not concerned but it was reassuring to know that she is keeping up with her school work. She is also settling into the classroom now and playing with more girls.

The school report card was interesting. They have an overall grade of B (26.9 out of 70), but the numbers don't necessarily reflect that. A score of B (8.7 out of 30) for school environment- preconditions of learning such as attendance, high expectations, engagement, safety, respect, and communication. A score of D (5 out of 25) for student performance- Grade 3 assessment in English Language Arts and Mathematics, measured the number of students that have reached proficiency. A score of B (7.2 out of 15) in student progress- capacities students develop as a result of attending this school.

Except for the lunch room we have been really happy here (and perhaps the amount of writing homework). The school has a focus on the arts so Abby gets classes she would not have had at hmoe. The employees have been amazing in terms of support and accomodations. I love that the teacher uses Early Childhood methods instead of Elementary Education. I am glad that she is in a gifted class and doing work at her ability level. They don't have worksheets or tests but do more real life application of the subjects they are studying.