Progress

Next year our evaluations will be based 50% on student progress. They haven't quite decided what to do with us early childhood folk. Even though we do give standardized testing in Kinder, we don't have anything to compare it to. We know the kids grow, it's just a matter of what measure to use that will be challenging enough that they can show that growth; but not too challenging, because we know there are always kiddos who struggle with particularly getting those reading skills off the ground.

Anyway, I was getting together journals to start sending home with the students (we only have 2 more days left after today). And I sat down with each one to show them the growth they have made in writing this year. Now if you don't teach Kinder, you may not know, it takes a lot of patience to teach beginning writers. I often have to translate for the parents or our administrators because reading "Kindergarten" is an art form! :) They have just shown so much growth this year--the students were even shocked to look back and see how they began as writers. If only the powers-that-be could somehow put a mathematical formula to calculate this level of growth!

This student was a fantastic speller out of the gate-it was just a matter of mastering the mechanics.

She could write simple sentences, but now.....