When did you start grading your student's work?

[Joyful]

My oldest is in Grade 5. Though we started homeschooling thinking that we would just take things one year at a time, it's looking like we will most probably HS through Grade 12. :001_smile:

 

At this point I don't grade our children's work. I will give feedback and make corrections. But I don't actually give the assignments a grade. DH and I have talked about it, that we like it this way so that our children grow up motivated by learning rather than grades. Also, we didn't want them to associate their "work" with a number or a letter in the early years. (We both grew up with the pressure to get high marks and good grades.)

 

Thinking ahead, I think we will need to report grades on a HS transcript for application to college. And I think I would like to start grading DC's work perhaps in the 8th grade (I am totally not sure about this) - so DC begin to get used to the idea of having a number/letter "evaluation" of their progress.

 

When did you start grading your student's work? Why did you start then as opposed to earlier or later?

 

Are there families who have chosen not to grade even in HS? If that's what you have done, can you please share your reasons?

 

Are grades in HS required to apply for most colleges?

 

Thanks!

[spaceman]

:lurk5:

 

Mine are little, so no grading and no answers. But curious as well.

 

I'm currently of the mindset of repeat until its done correctly (as in 100%), and I'm unsure how that'll *eventually* translate into older grades. I mean, I honestly don't want them to only know 90% of the material.

[Teachin'Mine]

Eighth grade work was graded and all high school level courses before then as well. I'm glad I didn't do any grading before then and also glad that we started when we did in preparation for high school.

[Mommyfaithe]

Eighth grade work was graded and all high school level courses before then as well. I'm glad I didn't do any grading before then and also glad that we started when we did in preparation for high school.

 

I grade everything starting in 8th grade. Before then, every paper is checked and corrected. Math, grammar, and spelling quizzes and tests are graded from grade 1 on. I like my kids to get used to being graded from the begininng.....and see they will not die if they don't know something. I have them correct anything they get wrong..and use their tests/quizzes to evaluate what we need to review. Iow, their tests are not used as a competitive device, but as an evaluation tool.

 

Faithe

[snowbeltmom]

 

Are there families who have chosen not to grade even in HS? If that's what you have done, can you please share your reasons?

 

Are grades in HS required to apply for most colleges?

 

Thanks!

I am in the minority, but I am not assigning grades even at the high school level. My kids work to mastery, so we don't move on in a topic until the concept is mastered. I also believe that grades are only meaningful in a classroom setting and are only useful in comparing the kids in that specific class. An "A" in a chemistry class at school district X will not be equivalent to an "A" in a chemistry class at school district Y. I think this is the reason that colleges request SAT subject test scores.

 

I have read of other homeschoolers who also did not award grades on the transcript and were very successful in the college admission process. I have also spoken with the admissions folks at my son's current top-choice schools, and they are fine with this as well.

 

My kids will have ACT/SAT, AP's, and subject test scores to demonstrate their levels of knowledge. Imo, these test scores are the only "grades" an admissions officer would be interested in from a homeschooler.

 

The only time I would assign grades would be if one of my kids decided that they wanted to go to a school that required a certain gpa for scholarships or the honors college. Otherwise, the my kids' transcripts won't have letter grades assigned by me listed.

 

ETA: The NCAA requires a transcript with grades, so the transcripts that I submit to the NCAA Clearinghouse will list grades.

Edited April 24, 2012 by snowbeltmom

[Butter]

At first I didn't grade them, but then the older two *asked* for grades and report cards so I've graded them ever since. My first grader gets grades (letter grades) and is very proud of that fact.

[KarenNC]

I started this year (6th grade) in some subjects because I wanted to get ready for the transcript issues in high school as well as give my daughter a gradual shift in expectation of taking outside graded classes. I grade English, math, science and vocabulary, since the programs we are/were using for those include easy to grade tests.;) It was a real eye-opener for my daughter to see that blowing off prepping for a test equals a bad grade and that bad grade stays with you throughout the year (she has to correct all mistakes, but there's no do-over or changing the initial grade). She brought her initial 67 on the first science test up to 90s pretty quickly.;) In her case, the grade is motivating because she likes to see her averages and feel she has something more in common with her publicly-schooled friends.

[SkateLeft]

I only grade high school coursework, and I keep grading pretty simple.

 

My 8th grader this year is taking Italian I (a combination of local classes and Kolbe's high school Italian), and Algebra I. I keep track of test grades in both courses. I don't grade the rest of her stuff at this point.

[Myra]

I, too,do not assign grades at all. I wasn't sure how well this would fly with college admissions....but my eldest just got accepted to all of his college choices and each offered merit aid! His transcripts had no grades on it - no outside coursework - only SAT test plus two SAT subject exams plus results of National Latin Exams (3 years worth). Go figure!

 

Myra

[AHASRADA]

I never have. If they get a question wrong (math or multiple choice), they do it over. More subjective work receives feedback and is edited. I never saw a point in "grading".

 

Now that my ds is in HS, he takes online classes and is graded by each course's teacher. If I were hsing HS on my own, I would have to assign grades for his transcript, but I prefer to have an outside entity provide his "official" grades.

[Joyful]

Thank you all for sharing about grading! It's been great reading about what you do and why.

 

I am in the minority, but I am not assigning grades even at the high school level.

*********

I have read of other homeschoolers who also did not award grades on the transcript and were very successful in the college admission process. I have also spoken with the admissions folks at my son's current top-choice schools, and they are fine with this as well.

 

My kids will have ACT/SAT, AP's, and subject test scores to demonstrate their levels of knowledge. Imo, these test scores are the only "grades" an admissions officer would be interested in from a homeschooler.

 

The only time I would assign grades would be if one of my kids decided that they wanted to go to a school that required a certain gpa for scholarships or the honors college. Otherwise, the my kids' transcripts won't have letter grades assigned by me listed.

 

ETA: The NCAA requires a transcript with grades, so the transcripts that I submit to the NCAA Clearinghouse will list grades.

 

Snowbeltmom,

It's encouraging for me to know that there are families who don't assign grades in HS, and are still successful in their college applications. I'm also glad to know that there will are schools that are fine without grades on the transcripts. Thanks for sharing information about when it would be useful to have actual grades! I'll keep these in mind even though we are quite a long ways from that.

[Joyful]

I, too,do not assign grades at all. I wasn't sure how well this would fly with college admissions....but my eldest just got accepted to all of his college choices and each offered merit aid! His transcripts had no grades on it - no outside coursework - only SAT test plus two SAT subject exams plus results of National Latin Exams (3 years worth). Go figure!

 

Myra

 

That's wonderful! Congratulations to your son!

[Kendall]

I also do not grade much and also teach to mastery, but I have assigned grades for the transcript. Usually an A if they have done everything I asked them to do. I do give Math tests starting in Pre calc and I did give science tests(Apologia) and an occasional history test so they can get used to taking them. SAT/ACT/NM status has backed the A's up. I never thought about not putting grades on the transcript. I like that. I did give one son a B in Greek because he did about 85% of the course. They will have enough chance in college to work for grades, for me they work to learn.

[FaithManor]

I've always graded and kept a grade book. Now, the children didn't always see the grades because that wasn't important. I just kept records that I thought would help a school teacher see some strengths and weaknesses for my children in the event something happened to me and dh needed to place the children in school. I kept my grade book and a portfolio of work for each child.

 

We believe in mastery. I am absolutely ADAMANT about this in math and science especially, but still very tough in English and Latin. So, all scores resulting in less than 90% must have the work redone or extra practice or whatever in order to assure that the kids really understand the material. However, at about 6th grade, I began only counting the first grade on all tests, quizzes, writing assignments, and other important non-daily work. So, let's say child a. took a math test and received a C+, said child would be redoing the chapter/unit/whatever material he/she seemed fuzzy on, but the new test grade (I always make my own tests if the book does not offer an alternative because dh or I always cover each missed item with the child) is not entered into the gradebook. Test number 1 is the grade that stands. Test grade two or writing assignment X, or oral quiz b. or whatever is for our benefit that we know they have finally mastered the content.

 

I also seriously discuss grades, popular ranking systems, why ranking systems exist, pros and cons, etc. at the beginning of 9th grade so the kids understand that any grade is not the sum total representation of their intelligence, knowledge, and talent, but that unfortunately, sometimes a grade/test score (say the ACT) ends up being the only measure of ability that a specific education entity is interested in seeing. In this way, I hope it prepares them for the rigors of dealing with a system that seems rather one-sided, if not blind sided, in how it ranks students or determines who will be successful.

 

DD missed a 4.0 because of my sticky wicket about grading. I know the local school inflates, allows kids to do extra credit in order to bring grades up, etc. However, she had her one year of not applying herself as well to literature as she should have, bombed a couple of important writing assignments, and ended up with her one and only B. Every homeschooler I know thought I was a real battleaxe for not letting her do some make-up work and get that grade up for a 4.0. Dh and I felt that we would be letting her down in the long haul because she would miss out on a very important life lesson. We have three boys yet to graduate and we had no intention of setting a bad precedent. In my former life (ha-ha), I may have been Professor Snape (movie #4, rolled up his sleeves and shoved Ron's and Harry's heads into their respective books)! :D

 

So, we fall into the mastery camp, but we grade and definitely by the end of 6th, the kids are being introduced to what all of this means to outsiders and particularly, in the US education system.

 

Faith

[mumto2]

I have always given a percentage grade when it can be calculated easily. It hugely improves the quality of the work handed to me.:001_smile:

[CupOCoffee]

For DS, I did not start until this "year" (meaning this current batch of work we are studying, since we school year round); and I started lightly -- first couple of quizzes/tests have been open book. We are working towards closed book. I test in Biology, History, Algebra, and his online IT course has tests.

 

For DD, I might start sooner. She *wants* to be tested on what she knows! We are currently using a BJU Science book that I got from the free for shipping thread, and it has tests -- gonna give her the first one at the end of this week. I may start gradually easing her into other "tests". Not sure about overall grades though. She may start asking, since she now has a good friend in the neighborhood who talks about her school grades.

 

~coffee~

[Karen in CO]

I also do not grade much and also teach to mastery, but I have assigned grades for the transcript. Usually an A if they have done everything I asked them to do. I do give Math tests starting in Pre calc and I did give science tests(Apologia) and an occasional history test so they can get used to taking them. SAT/ACT/NM status has backed the A's up. I never thought about not putting grades on the transcript. I like that. I did give one son a B in Greek because he did about 85% of the course. They will have enough chance in college to work for grades, for me they work to learn.

 

I also never assigned grades except on math tests. I assigned grades on transcripts that matched what I though my ds earned in that course. I even gave him a C in a class because he earned it. I cringed when I recalculated the GPA after that C. He didn't always put in the amount of effort he needed to in his homeschool classes. His SAT/ACT scores matched well with the grades I assigned him. He took many classes the local cc that were all A's and received great letters of recommendation from his teachers.

 

If he'd asked for a more objective grade, I would have found a way to provide it for him, but we were both happy with my "grading" system.

[sunflowerlady]

I'll be starting in 9th grade, which is this coming school year.

[Vida Winter]

In the minority here - I grade it all, from K on. If they do not master the material, they need to do it over; in other words, they are *required* to raise the grade.

 

It never occurred to me that I shouldn't be assigning grades - they are logical consequences of the quality of work that is turned in.

[Julie in MN]

When did you start grading your student's work?

 

This month?

 

Actually true. My ds decided he wants to apply for PSEO college courses for 11th grade, and the colleges he's applying to both expect a transcript and GPA for 9th grade and 1st semester of 10th grade.

 

I guess you could call my method an "as needed" basis.

 

But whew, I've been a very busy gal for several weeks. I don't really recommend waiting until the last minute like this, but fortunately I have (a) all his work in one binder per year and (b) lesson plans and grading procedures for most of those classes already laid out (mostly through MFW). So maybe that's why I felt okay with putting it off :confused:

 

I will say that waiting until after the fact to grade my son's English essays has been a good thing, I think. In the midst of the process, we are very much mastery oriented and I am usually very much frustrated about tiny details. Now that some time has passed, I have been able to look at his essays with fresh eyes and with a comparison of 9th to 10th grades. I decided that I like grading essays much later :)

 

Julie

[ereks mom]

The only thing I graded prior to 7th grade was weekly spelling tests; we didn't do spelling after 6th grade. In 7th & 8th grades, I started grading math & science tests. I didn't grade anything else until high school.

[Joyful]

I've always graded and kept a grade book. Now, the children didn't always see the grades because that wasn't important. I just kept records that I thought would help a school teacher see some strengths and weaknesses for my children in the event something happened to me and dh needed to place the children in school. I kept my grade book and a portfolio of work for each child.

 

 

I'm thinking that I might start assigning grades for the kids next year, but not necessarily show the kids the grades. Although we hope to homeschool all the way to high school, one could never predict what our lives will be like down the road. Circumstances might arise which will make it difficult to continue homeschooling. In that case, I could see the benefits of having grades and transcripts to show to schools. (Although, I'm thinking that one way around that, if we don't have a transcipt of grades, would for the kids to take some kind of assessment tests....)

[Chez J]

I started this year (6th grade) in some subjects because I wanted to get ready for the transcript issues in high school as well as give my daughter a gradual shift in expectation of taking outside graded classes. I grade English, math, science and vocabulary, since the programs we are/were using for those include easy to grade tests.;) It was a real eye-opener for my daughter to see that blowing off prepping for a test equals a bad grade and that bad grade stays with you throughout the year (she has to correct all mistakes, but there's no do-over or changing the initial grade). She brought her initial 67 on the first science test up to 90s pretty quickly.;) In her case, the grade is motivating because she likes to see her averages and feel she has something more in common with her publicly-schooled friends.

 

This was our first year grading (7th). We had the same experience. If she doesn't do all the work, or study well, she gets a bad grade. Then she's getting to see how it affects the grade all year. We have had the discussion that grades reflect the level of understanding. If you are scoring in the 70s, then you really don't understand everything. A's are expected BECAUSE they show you understand everything.

 

Next year, I hope she learned the lessons and can get better grades. She needs to work through this before they count in high school.

[Julie in MN]

In the minority here - I grade it all, from K on. If they do not master the material, they need to do it over; in other words, they are *required* to raise the grade.

 

It never occurred to me that I shouldn't be assigning grades - they are logical consequences of the quality of work that is turned in.

 

I've seen the other side of this, too. I really think it depends on the child (or of course the family). I've raised 3 very different kids. I've also worked with a lot of public and private schooled kids. I find that sometimes grades either (a) tell the kid they aren't a good student and never will be a good student, or (b) give the kid a "so-what" attitude about education, because -- especially if they haven't done well -- they don't really buy into the "adult" idea that it matters all that much in life.

 

My oldest, public schooled son loved grades, and if they weren't as high as he wanted, he was always negotiating ways to substitute extra credit. His ability to negotiate the world of grades did him well in college, I think.

 

My youngest, homeschooled son likes grades if he's doing well, or if he wants something for them (getting into PSEO). But in general, that son grew up with the attitude that, "Oh, well, somebody's gotta get an F, I don't care if it's me." Maybe it was because he didn't have any peer pressure at home, but it's also just the kind of kid he is. I have had to steer way around the "do this for a good grade" attitude with him, because he'll do what's required, but he won't really learn anything.

 

I know hard work and accountability are important, but more than those I want the learning -- during the short years I have him at home. So the hard work/accountability piece has to be taught separately from the learning. We tend to just keep the learning going until ds has reached the level I think he is capable of at the time, rather than cutting him off at a certain point and assigning a grade.

 

Hopefully that explains why some of us choose not to grade. At my house, giving grades is basically for the colleges because I realize we are an unknown quantity as homeschoolers.

 

Julie

[SailorMom]

No matter how young, I always evaluated their work, gave feedback, and made them do it over if they hadn't mastered the material (or had been lazy).

Starting in about 5th, their tests would be graded.

In 6th, tests and most assignments.

Now, in 8th, we don't grade every math assignment - we just check them all - so, I'm back to giving a letter grade for tests only, and more of a "complete" for the assignments. Similarly in science, he gets letter grades for labs and tests, but daily work is "complete". Writing - letter grades for final drafts only, but he has to have the outlines and drafts done on time.

If he gets a bad grade on a test, I record that grade, but we still go back and review to make sure he understands before we move on. This has really only happened once or twice, though, as I usually wait to do the test until I'm sure he

s ready.

If he was going to PS high school next year, I wouldn't do that, as he wouldn't get that kind of time in school. But since he'll be home-schooled the whole way, I feel like we have that luxury.

[SailorMom]

In that case, I could see the benefits of having grades and transcripts to show to schools. (Although, I'm thinking that one way around that, if we don't have a transcipt of grades, would for the kids to take some kind of assessment tests....)

 

High school home-school grades might count for something to the schools if they transfer in the middle of high school, but before that (in my experience here in our school district), school counselors do not care about home-school parent assigned grading.

They want either a portfolio or testing. In our case, they wanted both. DS took the FCAT (our standardized tests) in 7th so that he could be placed appropriately when he went back in 8th.

He could have gone in to the school without any scores, but they would not place him in anything but the lowest level classes without the test scores.

[Finnella]

I started this year, in 7th grade. My DS was feeling insecure and didn't think he was getting enough feedback, so I started doing a quarterly report card. I wouldn't have done that if he hadn't wanted it; I was mainly practicing grading to prep for high school.

 

I'm hoping to try a syllabus for at least some of his classes in 8th grade and continue grading. For middle school, I'm a big believer in working towards mastery. However, I'm also trying to transition him during middle school. Once I'm not teaching him anymore, he won't get multiple chances to redo things. So I plan to be a bit tougher in high school. (He already thinks I'm pretty tough.) :001_smile: