Grades for early elementary (1st-4th grades)

[A.J. at J.A.]

I was reading the other thread about grades and felt it was good timing because DH was just asking me about this. He suggested if I grade our kiddos' schoolwork (1st, 3rd grades) that it will give them a better incentive and a "mark" of achievement. I haven't done grades up until now because I check their work and make them redo whatever they missed - so figured they had "mastery" of the lesson. I also have a stamp for "A+ Attitude" and another one for "Nice Work" which I use if appropriate. I'm open to grading but not sure exactly how to go about it. He is thinking maybe a percentage grade or different colored stars or different number of stars something like that.

 

If you could let me know how and what you grade for these younger guys, I would appreciate it.

 

Thanks!

Angela

[Kelli in TN]

We do not do grades until 7th grade. Our homeschool umbrella does not even require grades until 7th grade. We just do a pass/fail. I have strong opinions about grades for elementary age students, so I will stop now before I rasie a ruckus.:)

[Myrtle]

When I gave my young children numerical grades it distracted them. It caused discipline issues as they argued with me or simply had tantrums because they didn't get a perfect score.

 

That just didn't work.

 

The only thing I put a numerical score on now are their cummulative math tests (and I do it for me and not them) and even so they don't appreciate the idea that missing points in one particular area indicates that they need (or rather that I need )to review their skills in that area. I think an older child would have less difficulty understanding that.

 

On the other hand, and this is going to sound hackneyed, simply acknowledging their effort has resulted in them trying harder, working longer, and choosing more challenging books to read.

[jg_puppy]

I agree with the above poster. I don't give grades right now (2nd grade) and I don't plan on it anytime soon. I used to teach 2nd grade in a public school and grading was one of the hardest things. Many kids just didn't get it. I would get questions "Is this a good grade?" The ones that did well most of the time, but then for some reason they didn't do well on an assignment then they felt very bad. Sometimes it would make them so distracted they wouldn't do well on that days assignments.

 

One of the reasons that I am homeschooling is that I want my dd to love learning and not to be focused on grades. I had too many kids that would only try and really apply themselves if it was something that was going to count for a grade. If not then they would say what is the point of doing the project. That just isn't the attitude I want my kids to take and I can see my dd taking that kind of attitude if I was to give grades.

 

Your experience might be totally different than mine. If you think grades would help then by all means try it for awhile and see how it works. It might work great for you and your kids.

 

Jan

[Jackie in AR]

I haven't done grades up until now because I check their work and make them redo whatever they missed - so figured they had "mastery" of the lesson.

 

Yes, that is my method, too. We stay with something until they learn it.

 

Schools need grades to keep parents informed of how their child(ren) is doing in the classroom. And to keep the teacher informed, because it would be impossible for every teacher to know how each of her students is doing on a certain topic. And to keep the school administration informed on how the teacher is doing in her classroom, because that's all about the test scores, right? ;)

 

Anyway, it seems silly to me to assign grades in an elementary homeschool.

[Wildiris]

Besides grading math by % correct, one could grade other subjects by a point system for a given project and hand out a a point sheet with the project. Grading with a point system is a bit less arbitrary than say giving a gold star. For the lower grades a point sheet may look something like this:

 

____ 1. Due date____ 10 pts

 

____2. Neatness, penmanship.... 10 pts

 

____3. Graphics page 10 pts

 

 

So on and so forth, until your point criteria adds up to 100.

 

A self-evaluation form may also be helpful. On a self-evaluation form the student answers questions about the quality of their work and what needs improving and what they felt they did a good job on etc.

 

On one level I think grades are silly, but on another level kids need to gain autonomy in their learning and this responsibility should not to be underestimated even at the lower grades. Unfortunately, patterns set in the lower grades can become bad habits in the upper grades.

 

Wildiris

[Trivium Academy]

Our dd7 was having issues with "doing her best work the first time" which is actually one of our house rules and it was very tempting to start grading her to give her a taste of what would happen at school.

 

The problem?

In these grade levels there really isn't much to put a grade on with a percentage of right/wrong if you're using narrations, copywork, memorization, etc. You can only measure effort which is very elusive. Workbook work is easy to grade but then you also need to have quizzes and tests to truly assign a letter/number grade. What percentage of that number grade is devoted to completing assignments, projects and creativity? How do you grade creativity?

 

What is the end purpose of the grade?

Will it make the child prideful? Will you be truly measuring the child's ability? Do you want to your child to be more concerned with letter grades than the content you're teaching?

 

I finally decided that praise would be a better motivator in the end and less time-consuming! Lol.

[Chris in VA]

I think that's such an interesting question. I was wondering how much our own schooling influences our thoughts about grades, and I was also wondering if the effects of grading are different on kids that are coming into homeschooling after having been in public (or private) school.

I do mark my second grader's timed math facts with a 100% if she completes them, and just a numerical score (how many right/how many possible) so that I can keep track of her progress. Just yesterday, she was upset that she got 11 out of 25 facts on a test (Saxon). I was able to show her her last test, upon which she had gotten a 9 out of 25, and tell her of the improvement. She likes seeing progress.

I had a report card for her last year, but didn't really see the point, except perhaps to show a teacher next year.

I don't know--grades are an interesting subject. I'm glad you gave me something more to think about.

[Rhesa]

I don't use grades for my 1st grader. Usually I'm sitting nearby while he does worksheets. When he completes, them, I quickly go over them and we correct them together.

 

He has the type of personality that anything less than perfect would be perceived as a "failure". This creats some interesting challenges...

[AudreyTN]

Our umbrella school requires grades, but I don't actually "grade" my kids' work. I just give them all A's because we work on a topic until it's mastered.

 

For incentives I give stickers or stars. But it has to be done right the first time. Being good, or doing what they're told during school is also a part of their weekly allowance.

[Quiver0f10]

I only give grades for highschool work and that is only because of transcripts.