Cricket Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 My boys' tae kwon do gym wants them to hand in a report card with their application for each new belt. It's a way for the instructors to see how they are doing in school and encourage them to do better if they need to. We tend to go over material until they know it. We don't do tests in the traditional sense. I wouldn't even know how to give grades. I guess I could give them all A's. :) This last time I wrote a few sentences about how they were doing with their school work. At each belt test, they usually read the grades if the student is doing well. (They never embarrass any struggling student.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jail warden Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 I just go over the material until I know they know it. To me that's more important for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 I don't give grades, because I view the homeschooling journey -- like life -- as a process of becoming. Eventually the girls will take outside classes and receive grades, and they'll receive grades in college. But to work to earn good grades as opposed to working to do one's best seems silly. I say this as someone who always got good grades (I had the highest grades of all the students in my graduating year in university) but could never see the relationship between getting good grades and the acquisition of knowledge; doing "well" in school was more like playing a game. I've learned much more since. If I were forced to give a grade, I would say "progressing in all subjects." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karenciavo Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 I give grades, we also go over material until they know it, I don't see those two points as being mutually exclusive. My children like the feedback and my dh feels more connected to what is going on. My boys are tested in math, history, Latin, Greek, and science (oldest only.) Their writing is also graded. Other subjects like Bible or language arts/English get a comment. If someone gets a low grade on a math test for instance, they must review the material and then take the test again. The two grades are then averaged together for a final grade. I use a grading rubric for writing, they know what they will be graded on and how much is taken off for shoddy work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth in Central TX Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 I give grades on our objective subjects: Math, Grammar, & Spelling. It's easy to do in Edu-Track, and I can address a possible comprehension problem early on if I see a grade slowly slipping. It's also a good visual for my oldest son who is very good at math, but makes many careless errors; they do add up and make a difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracey in TX Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 My boys' tae kwon do gym wants them to hand in a report card with their application for each new belt. It's a way for the instructors to see how they are doing in school and encourage them to do better if they need to. We tend to go over material until they know it. We don't do tests in the traditional sense. I wouldn't even know how to give grades. I guess I could give them all A's. :) This last time I wrote a few sentences about how they were doing with their school work. At each belt test, they usually read the grades if the student is doing well. (They never embarrass any struggling student.) I don't give grades yet, but told DS' soccer coach that he was a straight A student, but won't be getting a traditional report card. It is mandatory to have minimum of C average in order to perform competitive sports. If DS want their grades read at belt cerenomies, then give them a version of their weekly/montly grades. What belts are your boys? I loved tae kwon do and wish I had continued. Do remember some of the forms, though :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imeverywoman Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 my kids have been asking for them, and REALLY thrive on knowing just how they measure in any given subject. Go figure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen sn Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 I "test" my dd. Whatever is wrong she corrects. I don't really believe in grades for me or mine. But I do see how other children do well with that concept. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcconnellboys Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 I have done this only when a son has needed/wanted it for something such as this. I simply make up a grade sheet showing their grades for a particular six or nine week period. Because we work to mastery, like you, these tend to generally all be A's. Regena Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAR120C Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 I give grades, we also go over material until they know it, I don't see those two points as being mutually exclusive. My children like the feedback and my dh feels more connected to what is going on. My boys are tested in math, history, Latin, Greek, and science (oldest only.) Their writing is also graded. Other subjects like Bible or language arts/English get a comment. If someone gets a low grade on a math test for instance, they must review the material and then take the test again. The two grades are then averaged together for a final grade. I use a grading rubric for writing, they know what they will be graded on and how much is taken off for shoddy work. Same here! We don't make a big deal of it, but I do keep grades. It's a convenient way to communicate with DH how things are going in a very "snapshot" sort of way, and a way for me to keep an eye on whether things are too easy or too hard. I give half-credit for re-worked problems (which amounts to about the same as averaging two scores), which reminds DS that it's worthwhile to get it right the first time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plaid Dad Posted February 17, 2008 Share Posted February 17, 2008 I went to a college that did not give grades - we got extensive written comments instead - so I'm pretty indifferent to the idea of grading. That said, my dd is enrolled with a homeschool academy this year, and we are required to give grades on her report cards. At this stage they are just of the "S for satisfactory" variety, but if we continue with this program, we will give letter grades. I do think it's helpful for kids to get periodic, more formal feedback on their progress, but I don't think that grades are the only way to achieve that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricket Posted February 18, 2008 Author Share Posted February 18, 2008 What belts are your boys? I loved tae kwon do and wish I had continued. Do remember some of the forms, though :) My 6 yo tested for his orange belt on Saturday and my 9 yo tested for his senior brown belt. Only three more belts to go for him until his black belt. That will probably be next fall. They both love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siloam Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 We study all core topic to mastery, so the only option is A. For history and science, at this time I am going for exposure to ideas not mastery of material, so I don't care. ;) Heather Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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