It seems like I can only think of about the same five things to say. Do you have a variety to use or can you come up with quick meaningful words for each student each grade period?
We have a really tiny space to write ours... So I come up with one specific thing to comment on, and change it up for each kid - although sometimes there is someone who needs a totally different comment. For instance: "Tim is a creative and careful writer. I'd like to see him work on adding more detail to his stories." . . . "Mary is a detailed and careful writer. This marking period she has been working on adding some more "spark" to her writing."
We have to choose from a list that doesn't cover most of the comments I want to make. Plus, everytime I try to put a comment it never shows up one their report card anyways.
The 3rd quarter is always the hardest for me-because I've already said-they are adjusting well, they are making progress...then it's hard for me to come up with another way to say it. The last ones are usually keep practicing this summer or they are ready for the next grade. We also have a small space which kills me because I am very wordy (if you can't tell that from my posts ).
We don't get to make comments, we have a behavior report card that goes with our academic report card.
We have comment codes. I don't care for them. I think they are too generic and confusing for the parents. If a student does not demonstrate that attribute, you are supposed to put a minus sign in front of it. So, for the #9 comment code "Attendance Enhances Progress", if a student has a ton of absences, you put a -9. I don't think it's helpful at all. About half of my students have parents that don't speak English, and I know they don't understand this system, especially since it isn't translated. We are also able to make short comments, but we are expected to do the silly comment codes too. It is a LOT of work. It is extra frustrating because we have to do comment codes for every subject. So I have to do comment codes for spelling and then for reading. All of our classes are self-contained, so it's not like the kid drastically changes in the two minute transition from Spelling to Reading.
We make lengthy comments for every subject area. It gets to be a bit redundent by the end of the report card. Especially on the final ones! I have a report card comment bank that I pull from, and try to make the comments as personalized and specific as possible. We're not really supposed to "cut and paste", but there are really only so many comments you can make for science or social studies.
Our report cards are all computerized. We have a list of about 180 comments that we can put on the report card using the number. Sometimes there just isn't one that fits the situation.
Hi Mopar, We are using a new reporting system next year that separates behavior and academics. How do you like it?
I really tend to write the same things for many of the children, but if you go on line, there are tons of lists of report comments that often help me out when I want to say something specific or try to make something negative sound a little more positive.
Our report card separates behaviors and academics, and I think it makes sense. When I am assessing their abilities in math, I need to focus on the skills I am assessing. Whether they are respectful or not is an entirely different skill, and not related to math. When a behavior issue affects learning (i.e. always talking in class) I comment on it in both sections of the report card, but it doesn't affect their math score - i.e. I wouldn't take off marks in math for excessive talking. However, I would comment that I think the child would be performing better in math if he/she paid attention. This is where the freedom to write specific, descriptive feedback is essential in report cards.
My 2nd year is done, and I can truly say my favorite commit to cut and paste for each one is "Pleasure to have in class". If there's an issue marked for something I'll add, "Thank you for working on (insert area needing to be addressed)". I figure if I've had to write anything more than "It's a pleasure", the parents already know by the time they get the report card.
I have a book--I can usually find what I'm trying to say in there. Plus, it also has pages of adjectives and descriptive words and phrases, which help me personalize comments for each student.
I have a colleague that I'll call on the phone in the middle of writing and ask her "How does this sound...?" and we'll tweak things for each other.
I think I write too much on the comment section. Most of the 2nd grade teachers write the same generic comment on each and every report card. Here's an example of a comment I wrote on a report card for the fourth (final) quarter: It has been a pleasure being __________'s teacher. She has made incredible progress and her work habits and citizenship are impeccable! I will truly miss __________ but I'm certain she'll succeed in third grade and beyond. Have a wonderful summer! I personalize every comment and I rarely write the same thing on two report cards.
